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| $19.99- Bloomstoday.com |
Flowers are among the pricier elements of a wedding. You want something really personal and style-appropriate, but to get something for a good price is difficult. According to one of my favorite price-estimating websites (costhelper.com), the current averages for the cost of a bridal bouquet is $50-$150. Overall (arrangements as centerpieces, bridesmaids’ bouquets, and the groomsmen’s flowers), it’s about $700 on average for flowers. Ouch.
There are a couple of routes you can take. One, you can order online. Two, you can explore local markets.
Shopping Online:
Online is a really good route for several reasons: One, you have literally hundreds of options and colors; Two, it’s a lot faster than hand-selecting individual flowers; Three , they are oftentimes delivered to you exactly when you want them rather than having to find some complicated way to store them. With this option, you are looking at your bouquet costing around $60-$70. That puts you at the lower end of the national average.
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| $19.99-Bloomstoday.com |
Now here’s a little secret: DON’T click “bridal” when you are searching and you will save about $30. There is a reason that the wedding business is recession-proof; people buy into the fact that, because it’s for a wedding, you have to spend more. They WILL hike up the price on bridal flowers (A few really good places for online shopping is teleflora.com or bloomstoday.com). Their arrangements are absolutely stunning, large, and the average arrangement is around $25.
With that said, another tip is to get an ARRANGEMENT instead of a bouquet. It’s amazing how much more a little floral tape and a ribbon will make your flowers cost. Getting the supplies to turn your arrangement into a bouquet is as simple as this: go to Wal-Mart or a franchised craft store like “Roberts” or “Hobby Lobby.” Floral tape: $1.00; Silky Ribbon $2.00 for 3 yards (that is more than enough to cover the tape and have excess for decorative purposes). Those are the only two things you are going to need in most cases to transform that arrangement into your bouquet.
Exploring Local Markets:
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| $24.95-Teleflora.com |
If you super particular about your arrangement and you have a knack for the actual arranging, this may be the better route. This is an option that tends to cost a little more than the online method, but you will be able to get exactly what you want for less than the national average. One thing, however- I would avoid going to event-specialized markets like “The Flower Patch” due to their flower-by-flower price.
When I say “local markets,” I am not referring to these high-end floral distributors- I mean the grocery stores and the local growers. Yes, I said grocery stores. That may sound unrefined, but you can find some beautiful flowers and bouquets in your local grocery stores. Granted, you might not have as many choices in flower types, but it sure will save you money. Another great place for you to look is Costco. Their flowers are always top quality, and the arrangements of 12 typically cost around $11. That’s a really good price, and getting three of these and mixing them will give you a unique bouquet with lots of volume.
Adding Character to Your Budget Bouquet:
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| $29.99-Teleflora.com |
So now you have your bridal bouquet; but you want a unique bouquet which is why you wanted someone to create it for you. Here’s the million-dollar tip. Add a few accessories that mimics the style of the arrangement. Make them an accent rather than an active piece in the bouquet. Adding 5-6 small accessories will add some real character to your flowers. Guess what? Go to “Hobby Lobby” or a like craft store, and each of these kind of accessories cost AT MOST $2.00 each. That’s worth it considering the fact that such accessories up the price of a bouquet that you buy from a florist by almost an entire price category (ANOTHER TIP: Go shopping for such accessories at the end of a season. At places like “Hobby Lobby” and “Roberts,” you can get up to 50% off on accent pieces like this).
The Best Way to Cut Down Floral Prices:
Bottom line is this- get flowers for you, your bridesmaids, and your groomsmen. If at all possible, don’t get them for centerpieces. There are so many other things that you can use that can 1. Be used over again for décor or resold and 2. DON’T COST AS MUCH. There are plenty of options for centerpieces that match your style (which will be addressed in a completely different entry due to the extensive nature of that topic).
So there you have it- a crash course in money savers for bridal florals. More tips to come!
Questions or comments? I’d love to hear your responses! Leave your replies or email me at discoveryweddings@gmail.com!
