Weddingbee Blog

When it came to flowers, there was a lot of this:

Image via rakhirr on Flickr

I am not a flowery person. I don’t really know what that means, except although I think they look pretty, I’d rather have me some chocolate. However, chocolate centerpieces (although sounding fabulous right now) will just get eaten and/or melty, and don’t really go with our whole country-chic/peacock look.

Basically we want the wedding to have a rustic/natural look. While stalking potential photographers (yes, I stalk photographer blogs for pictures of our venue…) I would Google the sourced florists whenever I saw floral arrangements I liked. We want less flowers and more branches. And nothing too traditional or expected (like roses).

Image via Elizabeth Anne Designs / Flowers by Petunia Flowers / Photo by Alex Rodriguez Photography

Image via Elizabeth Anne Designs / Photo by Hilton Pittman Photography

Image via The Knot / Photo by Lauren Grabelle Photography

I wanted to book the florist earlier than “normal” on one of our Pennsylvania trips just to be DONE with it. I was only able to make two florist appointments when we went down to Pennsylvania a few months ago, but I figured that was a good start. It turned out to be all we needed, because unlike a lot of brides who spout out flowers they must have, I was more, “Uhhhhh, sure. Sounds cool.”

The first florist was sweet, but kept pestering me for the types of flowers I wanted. This was after I was completely honest up front. I told her I knew little to nothing about flowers and that I wanted branches with some blooms and a rustic/candle look. I also told her that I wanted flowers in greens/blues and a few peacock feathers strewn into the bouquets. I was disappointed that during the appointment she seemed confused by the array of photos I showed her and kept spitting out flower names like delphinium and viburnum, which meant nothing to me. I know the words “rose,” “tulip,” and “daisy,” lady. Hence my need for your services. I left feeling a bit confused and without a quote, which she said she would email to me in a few weeks.

Our next appointment was on Sunday, on our way back to NYC. It started off badly—the florist/shop owner was almost half an hour late. But, she quickly explained as she drove up like a madwoman, she had a last-minute funeral delivery to make and no deliverymen available. (They were all busy doing wedding-flower deliveries that morning.) It’s true—I guess you can’t really plan for a funeral order. And, stupidity got the best of me when I made the appointment, and I had not left my cell number.

The appointment got off to a great start. She took out little flower “flip books,” and as she listened to our ideas she would show us different flowers she could use in the arrangements. She pulled out vases and branches; suggested candles and table arrangements; and very clearly understood our vision. After a quick write-up in her office, she handed us a quote (which fit perfectly into our budget) and told us we could always change things to make it more affordable. She made it simple, she was knowledgeable, and she had great ideas. If a vendor has those three qualities I’m easy to please.

I gladly checked that to-do off my list (my mental list, that is, since I have failed to compile a written or typed list).

Were flowers a hard choice for you or the least of your worries?