How to Elevate Your Wedding Flowers: Tips from a NC Flower Farmer
Planning a wedding is exciting, but it can also come with a hefty price tag. Staying within budget can be tough with all the dreams you might have. And economical wedding flowers may seem like an oxymoron.
If you want the beauty and ambiance fresh flowers add to your wedding, there’s good news. You don’t have to sacrifice fresh flowers to stay within your budget. Finding affordable wedding flowers is about knowing where to put your emphasis.
As a flower farmer and a florist, I’ve seen both sides of the wedding flower fence! Here are eight ways to maximize you wedding flower budget and beauty.
View my NC Wedding Flower Guide to see what’s in season for your NC wedding.
Choose in-season flowers
In our global economy, a wedding florist can get nearly any flower year round - at a cost. Using flower varieties that are in season in your area is like buying fruits and vegetables in peak season. Flowers are fresh, available in abundance and the don’t require extensive shipping.
I recently saw lisianthus for sale at a flower wholesaler in December for DOUBLE their normal summer price. That means you get half the flowers or double the cost.
Either way, choosing in-season flowers is the single biggest way to maximize your wedding aesthetic and stretch your flower budget.
To learn which flowers are in season for your NC wedding date, see my NC Wedding Flower Guide.
Emphasize Focal Areas
Flowers set the mood for the wedding experience for you and your guests.. Flowers also play a surprisingly big role in your wedding photos, which you’ll have for years (unlike the food or music).
Spend your flower budget on areas with the greatest impact: your bouquet, his boutonniere, your ceremony altar or backdrop. Put a few of the expensive, show-stoppper flowers in the most photographed arrangements (i.e. your bouquet and possibly the head table).
Use Seasonal Decor
To extend the vibe in other areas like aisle entrances, welcome areas and cocktail tables, think seasonally. Potted plants, small trees, seasonal gourds or branches, and wreaths or garland make great floral extensions.
Bonus: some florists may offer plant rentals that allow you to use lots of flowering plants for the price of buying just a few yourself.
Go Green
Every season has it’s green but choosing what’s in season can set your event apart. Vines or garlands on your ceremony arbor and reception tables can add a regional touch that blends into the scene around you..
Take advantage of the natural ambience of an outdoor venue. Lights in trees or on fences or arbors with greenery can add a decorative touch and envelop the venue as part of a bigger space.
Work with a Flower Pro
A great designer excels at both floral style and flower sourcing. Working with a professional who knows how to make bouquets and arrangements, AND understands how flowers naturally grow, uplevels your designs from standard to Pinterest-worthy. It’s often subtle touches of native materials that make floral designs one of a kind.
Seasonal elements and altar flowers can be repurposed after the ceremony. Arbors cannot!
Local farmer florists and flower farms are great resources for seasonal blooms. We are the experts on which flowers are in season and often offer options and flower varieties that many traditional wedding florists can’t.
To search for a local wedding flower farm near you, visit localflowers.org for a searchable list from the Association of Specialty Cut Flower Growers.
To make your wedding decor fit seamlessly into your surroundings work with a pro. By thoughtfully planning which elements are most important to you and knowing what is available for your date, you can host a beautiful flower-filled wedding event and have the photos to remember it for a lifetime.
