Floral Costs!!!!

[AngelinLove]

Hey Girls, I need some input!!! I am just now getting around to the whole floral aspect of this wedding. The thing is..we will only need the bouquets, bouts, and corsages..becuase we are doing all of the centerpieces in silks. I want all of the flowers to be either red or cream(vendola) roses, with some greenery as filler. I want handtied bouquets and simple bouts and corsages. I would do something DIY, but we are doing sooo much already. How much should this all cost? We are having my bouquet-20 red roses w/ seeded eucalyptus filler that is roman braid tied with cream ribbon, five bm bouquets with 12 vendola roses, seeded eucalyptus filler and roman braid tied, 9 bouts and 3 corsages? We went to a florist yesterday and she said that she would call me in a few days after she had worked up the numbers...so I am freakin out...I mean you know your in trouble when they have to "work up the numbers". How much does this stuff usually cost...does anyone have a clue? I would appreciate any help or ideas. Thanks!!!

[LaceyinPgh]

Flowers are just going to vary due to location, season, complexity, avaliability. If you want to save yourself some money don't search for specific roses, just say you want ivory and red roses. I know that I am paying a lot for flowers but I ordered a lot of flowers that aren't in season and need to be brought in. Plus the arraingments are really coplex. If you don't like her numbers, you have the option of shopping around for florist. Or give her a number that you can afford and see what she can do with it.

[AngelinLove]

Thanks Lacey for the idea of telling her what I can afford and seeing what she can do...I honestly hadn't thought of that. I guess I am just hoping for some feedback as to what others are spending on bouquets/bouts/corsages. Thanks!!!

[Kacie_bride]

The idea of florists stuff scares me too. However, I am a few months off for that so I'll deal wtih it later.

[andysgirl07]

I talked to a florist the other day, and for a dozen rose bouquet, it was $50. And calla liles (which I absolutely LOVE) are $7.50 each. A rose boutonniere was $5 and a 2 rose corsage was $12. And of course, these are just prices for my particular town, so they could be different for you.

[AngelinLove]

Thanks alot for your input Ashley..that atleast gives me some idea!!!

[WebLady]

Yeah the cost will vary alot ... but I am sure most of the florist I know out here would do something like that for only a couple hundred bucks or so.

I know you can get all the bridal flowers, including centerpieces and church decor for less than $2,000, that seems to be the average out here.

:goodluck:

[AngelinLove]

Well..the florist called today and quoted $127 for my bouquet, $78 for the BM bouquets, $8 for bouts, $18.50 for corsages, and $60 for the dozen of pestcide free roses for the cake...that is just way too much for me...that's $800.00 with delivery and tax. I just can't see paying $78 for a bouquet of 12 roses. I mean am I just living in fantasy land or are they really over priced. I was expecting to pay like $50 for the BM bouquets. What do you guys think?

[rainbowtreat]

To me htat sounds insane. But I am not using real flower. I have a BM wh ois having her sister make our bouquets and bouts for us. My BM is doing it as a gift to us. Not sure what it is costing her but the prices you mentioned seem crazy if you ask me. But again I dot know prices of real flowers. I dont use them.

[WebLady]

Well that may be a bit high but, fresh flowers are not always cheap and you are paying for labor as well. If you have time, look around for another florist or try to tackle it as a DIY.

:goodluck:

[Kacie_bride]

$800 is way expensive! At least I think that. But here again I don't know. I would get some quotes from some other florists. You have the time to shop around. Aren't you glad you are doing it now instead of later!

[WebLady]

If you can, look for a vendor without a store front ... and one that can order direct from the grower or a wholesaler ... that may save you some money too ;)

:goodluck:

[LaceyinPgh]

To me that doesn't sound all that expensive. Depending on what time of the year you are getting married roses can be very expesive. It also depends on the types of roses that you are using. I know the bouquets are fairly simple but there is a lot of prep work that goes into a rose for a wedding.

[OctoberBride06]

Hi, I am new here.
but we found a great place here to do our flowers. they don't charge labor either.
my Bouquet will be about $60 - 6 roses 6 calla lillies
My MOH bouguet will be about $45 - 4 roses 4 calla lillies
and my Bridemaid bouquet will be about $35 - 3 roses 3 calla lillies
then we will be getting 6 bouttoniers for $45 1 little one for my son $3
and 3 coursages at about $60- 1 rose 1 calla lilly
so we are looking at about $250

another place quoted us $350... you definelty should look around!

this is what my bouquet will look like.
the other place quoted $120 for this.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v509/joshua2003/color_bou2.jpg
and the bouttoniers
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v509/joshua2003/boyflower1.jpg

[AngelinLove]

Thanks all of you for your help and ideas. The bouquet and bouts are beautiful Melissa and it looks like you are getting a good price for them. Brandi, what do you mean a "storefront"? Lacey, I thought roses were one of those flowers that is available year-round? I get sooo frustrated sometimes because everything that I go to do for this wedding cost way more than I wanted to spend....and I have already blown my budget so ridiculously bad. Sorry...I got off on a venting tangent.

[AngelinLove]

Welcome to the Board Melissa!!!

[ikkin510]

I would definaly say check into some other places and their prices. I had my florist quote me some prices in advance. She said the bridal bouquet adverages around 50 and 75, BMS were 25 and 50. It does add up fast though!

[WebLady]

Thanks all of you for your help and ideas. The bouquet and bouts are beautiful Melissa and it looks like you are getting a good price for them. Brandi, what do you mean a "storefront"? Lacey, I thought roses were one of those flowers that is available year-round? I get sooo frustrated sometimes because everything that I go to do for this wedding cost way more than I wanted to spend....and I have already blown my budget so ridiculously bad. Sorry...I got off on a venting tangent.

From my experience, roses are generally available all year ... but some varieties of roses are more 'exotic' and therefore more expensive and not as readily available. Tropicana roses (orange roses) for example are not available all year and cost more. Plus there are 'grades' of roses too, the prices will differ from the cheapy ones to the high quality ones. And like Lacey said, the cost will vary by where they come from too.

What I meant by 'storefront' is a flower shop, one you can go to. If you can find a florist that works from their home you can usually save some money because they save money on renting a store :wink:

Lots of wedding stuff can be expensive ... mostly because of labor, experience and expertise. That and the simple fact that you are paying someone else to do something for you so you don't have to KWIM ;)

You have some time so look around and compare prices, but don't wait too long ... IMO you will want to try and book your florist about 6 mos out. Good luck to you!


Oh and Welcome to Melissa!!

[The Wedding Diva]

Weblady makes some good points. A lot depends on you area; are you in a metropolitan city or small town? You definitely want to price shop, but make sure you are comparing oranges with oranges, and not oranges with apples, KWIM. A good florist will be able to work well within your budget and even find similiar looking flowers to stay within that range. If you do find someone who moonlights, make sure they are very dependable. You will find that you will "spend" more worrying and fussing than enjoying your day or feeling confident in their services.

[CindySue]

When I was checking out prices I was quoted $175 and that was for 2 BM bouquets, 2 corsages, 6 bouts (Groom, 3GM, and 2 dads) and my bridal bouquet was free. I thought that wasnt too bad, but then I decided to go with silks instead.

[CarlosHoney]

Well..the florist called today and quoted $127 for my bouquet, $78 for the BM bouquets, $8 for bouts, $18.50 for corsages, and $60 for the dozen of pestcide free roses for the cake...that is just way too much for me...that's $800.00 with delivery and tax. I just can't see paying $78 for a bouquet of 12 roses. I mean am I just living in fantasy land or are they really over priced. I was expecting to pay like $50 for the BM bouquets. What do you guys think?You can order the roses in bulk from www.pickapetal.com for WAY less. Order the organic roses from www.organicbouquets.com for about half that.

You can hand tie them, and pay about $30 per 25 stems. Not bad at all, considering what you're paying for those! I am doing to all myself.. I'm going to check out the wholesale flower market here in town, and then make a decision based on their prices.

[LaceyinPgh]

Ok, I just wish I knew where everyone was getting their flowers. I don't even have a quote from teh florist doing the church yet but I know that is going to sting. Of course she is in the only florsit in the area so I can't really price shop there. And, I don't even want to discuss what the reception is costing me. I could cry thinking about it. It has to be the fact that I live in a larger metro area, but still $200-$800 for the whole deal..WOW!

[CindySue]

I had originally wanted to go with fresh white roses and my plan was to get them in Tyler which is about 40 minutes away. Its supposed to be the "Rose Capitol of the World" But it may just be in Texas. Anyway they sell a dozen of them for about $3 or 2 dozen for $5. Now of course you have to cut the thorns and stems down yourself but thats still not bad for fresh roses.

[CarlosHoney]

I had originally wanted to go with fresh white roses and my plan was to get them in Tyler which is about 40 minutes away. Its supposed to be the "Rose Capitol of the World" But it may just be in Texas. Anyway they sell a dozen of them for about $3 or 2 dozen for $5. Now of course you have to cut the thorns and stems down yourself but thats still not bad for fresh roses.OMG! I might have to drive to tyler. I'm looking at paying a minimum of $200 for 200 stems. I could be paying, like, $30 for about 300!!!

Wow, Cindy, you're a lucky girl!!

[CindySue]

Tyler has the famous Rose Garden. Its beautiful and has EVERY color of rose imaginable. They will have stand set up on the street corner selling them by the dozen or you can go in and get them.

[CarlosHoney]

I'm going to talk to my Dad or someone wh is going to be coming that way. Maybe they can stop off and pick some up.

[ikkin510]

I never thought of buying real flowers in bulk and making the arrangements myself. That might be nice. Thanks for the idea!

[CindySue]

Here is the Rose Garden:
http://www.texasrosefestival.com/museum/images/roses2.jpg
And here is a website to get more info:
http://www.texasrosefestival.com/museum/garden.htm

[WebLady]

You can order the roses in bulk from www.pickapetal.com for WAY less. Order the organic roses from www.organicbouquets.com for about half that.

You can hand tie them, and pay about $30 per 25 stems. Not bad at all, considering what you're paying for those! I am doing to all myself.. I'm going to check out the wholesale flower market here in town, and then make a decision based on their prices.

Yeah, I have done that on several occasions and it turned out quite nice if I don't say so myself ;) But I think Angel said she didn't want to add anymore to her DIY list.

I never thought of buying real flowers in bulk and making the arrangements myself. That might be nice. Thanks for the idea!

Yeah, it is a great idea if you have the time to takle it and you can save a good bit of money. I like the Pick A Petal site Carrie mentioned ... I don't know anything about the organic rose site.

And Cindy, if you are buying roses from some outdoor stand, just watch out for the cheapy's ... goof quality roses are usually firm and will not bruise too easily and they will last longer. The cheapy ones will usually wilt within a day or two.

:goodluck:

[CindySue]

And Cindy, if you are buying roses from some outdoor stand, just watch out for the cheapy's ... goof quality roses are usually firm and will not bruise too easily and they will last longer. The cheapy ones will usually wilt within a day or two.

:goodluck:
Yeah, I know. Thats why if I buy from a stand I look for the Rose Garden advertisement. They have really good ones. All of the ones I bought last year I had for close to 2 weeks.

[andysgirl07]

My mom was looking today for some pictures of silk bouquets. We were thinking of either asking the florist about using silk flowers to cut down on the prices, or ordering online. We found this site, www.budget-bride.com (Just a warning, I looked them up on www.bbb.org and they had 15 complaints in the last 36 months, so you may just want to look here for ideas). But they had a pretty big selection. I'm thinking about just printing out pics of bouquets I like from this site and taking them to the florist.