I’ll admit my bias up front: I love flowers. And not just any flowers, I love expensive flowers. Peonies, burgundy cymbidium orchids and mini calla lilies are among my favorites. When I was planning my own wedding, I tripled this area of my initial budget. Several brides share my love of flowers and that makes it all the more difficult to stay on budget. Even brides that do not share my extreme love for flowers want beautiful weddings, and your florist will play a huge role in that. As a general rule, flowers should account for 10-15% of your overall budget. Here are some tips to help to stay at or below that number while still having beautiful wedding flowers.

You think you’ve thought of everything, but it’s always better to be safe than sorry. Weddings, although they’re meant to be joyous, can often be very stressful. Here’s some advice: make checklists. Although it may seem a tad ‘corny,’ a wedding checklist can provide you with peace of mind. You won’t have to wonder if everything’s been taken care of. You’ll be able to use each checklist as a confirmation.

One of the most important wedding checklists is a wedding flower checklist. Consider your bouquets. Make sure you have the following bouquets: Brides bouquet, bride’s toss-away bouquet, bridesmaids bouquets, Maid of Honor’s bouquet, and the flower girl’s bouquet or floral basket. While this may sound like a lot to consider AND arrange, we’ve only just begun!

Silk or real; what’s a bride to do? For many brides, the question is really perplexing — especially for those who want to mix a dash of “Do-It-Yourself” into their wedding flower preparations.

Obviously, silk comes with some advantages — it’s tough and shelf stable, and the petals won’t come off at the worst possible moment. On the other hand, silk flowers don’t always look real, and they aren’t always a bargain, either.

When you plan to get married, perhaps one of the few things you will first think of is the budget. having a not so good budget doesn’t mean you shouldn’t get married. In fact, most people nowadays are planning to have a wedding on a budget. So if your budget is tight, don’t feel hopeless for there are many ways to have an effective wedding planning without spending too much yet still make a wedding that is near to perfect.

Wedding flowers are perhaps one of the most important aspects of the wedding, although they also tend to be one of the aspects of the wedding that are dealt with the quickest. This is because people tend to make snap judgments about flowers when sitting back and thinking about it a little bit is really the better way to go. The flowers in a wedding are everywhere, serving multiple purposes and that is exactly why understanding not only what the most popular wedding flowers are, but also why they are so popular is essential to picking the best wedding flowers for your specific occasion. In order to really understand the most popular wedding flowers however, it is important to look at them from the point of view of the different uses they will have.

A simple and elegant wedding bouquet is the perfect accessory to compliment your gorgeous gown and smiling face. We say ‘simple’ because you want your wedding bouquet to highlight your dress, not detract from it. If your bouquet is too ‘flashy,’ your dress may not receive the attention it deserves.

Nevertheless, this is not to say that your bridal bouquet should be plain, white, and boring. That’s not the case at all. Just keep the flashiness in check! As a matter of fact, it’s become very popular for the modern bride to use pastel colors in their bridal bouquets. Soft pink’s and blue’s can add a magnificent touch to any wedding dress. The hue’s are very uplifting and pleasant.

Autumn is visually a glorious time of year when you can feast your eyes on the changing colours from green to amber, yellow, red and orange. The temperatures might be dropping and the days getting shorter, but this seems to help intensify those deep shades, as the foliage dies. If you are lucky enough to have a wedding during this picturesque time of year it would be a shame not to take advantage of these beautiful colours and use them to make a beautiful autumn wedding bouquet.

It’s not your mother’s wedding, so stop worrying about doing everything her way. This is a time for you to express your individual taste and style. So what if she never would have dreamed of carrying “fake” flowers in her bridal bouquet. In her generation fake flowers were plastic. Of course she wouldn’t have used them!

This is a new generation and silk wedding flowers are the rage! Not only have “fake” flowers evolved in leaps and bounds, but they have also become very popular as alternatives to fresh flowers for wedding bouquets, flower girl baskets, corsages and boutonnieres. From the exquisite cascading bridal bouquet to the simplistic hand-tied wedding bouquet, silk wedding flowers lend themselves to every style imaginable!

A perfect wedding isn’t only beautiful, it’s a very personal occassion too. It’s got carefully selected details that are meaningful to you and your fiancé.

Here are some very simple ways to add your own subtle, unique touches to your wedding ceremony and reception:

1. Write your own wedding vows. It doesn’t have to read like poetry; the important thing is that it comes from your own heart. Print it out on an index card and keep it handy during the ceremony.

When deciding on a florist seek personal recommendations from friends and recently married acquaintances. If you are unable to decide, it is best to visit several and look at their displays. Most florists will allow you visit them at a time when they have prepared flowers for other weddings so that you can see the quality of their work.

The florist should be given notice of the wedding approximately four months in advance so that he is free on the day. The florist will want to discuss precise details around six weeks before the wedding.