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$350 each? Holy crow! We are paying about 30 bucks per centerpiece for ours - but we are just using brightly colored seasonal flowers. $200 doesn't seem too bad for calla lillies - they can be expensive but $350 for each centerpiece seems like a lot. Go to another florist and get another quote.
That seems high but I don't know a few things. Are you getting married in a month that hydrangeas are not in season? Are you providing the cylinders? If not, are the cylinders priced as being bought or rented? Just a bit more information, and I know this awesome hive will help you out 
When are you getting married? That depends a lot on when flowers are in season. Also, are you requesting a specific color of Hydrangeas? Because they do not normally grow in a color. What makes the colors of the hydrangea is the type of food and phosphates it is fed. That right there could have a lot to do with the cost of your single stem arrangement.
How tall are your cylinders? That has something to do with the price. Are they rented or bought? Does the $350 include a deposit for the pieces should a guest take one or one be broken?
AOEBuckeye - The cylinders are being rented. We are getting married in the Bahamas in the summer. I think this floral place has a monopoly on flowers there. 
I am going to see if swapping in carnations instead would drop the price down...
July2008BRide - 1 cylinder is 13" and the other 2 are 9". And the hydrangeas are all white. (I didn't know that hydrangeas don't normally grow in a color! So interesting.)
Yeah, that seems like a bit of a rip. But, convenience can be costly....
Out of curosity (this might help you with cost) what about silks if you're looking at Hydrangeas? Also, since the cylinders are being rented, ask them to break down the price of each item. (and you didn't say if the price included a deposit for the glass) And does the centerpiece include anything else? A mirror to place the cylinders on? And re-reading your post, you don't say how many centerpieces you're getting gor the $350.00 If it truly is just ONE. Then yes. You are getting ripped off.
I know I wanted cala lillies but in August they are $9 per bloom in the midwest. So we're not doing that. :) I'd check with other florists. Check with your reception hall (or your venue) and see if they can recommend anyone. Our venue coordinator recommended our florist who recommended our cake lady. And she's going to help us with transportation too. People in the business know.
$350 EACH? Or for all of them?
I find that florists over charge for centerpieces because they are transporting and setting up as well as taking down/picking up - and they have to roll it all in one price.
I ditched my florists centerpieces to save money. Even though they were fairily cheap - you do get what you pay for and I didn't like they way they would look in the end.
We had hydrangeas for our centerpieces. This was the description (I don't have the CD for pics yet to show you.)
Square glass cubes (rental) with white hydrangea and natural brown birch branch. Dark brown or Aqua satin ribbon #9 around cubes.( cubes will be 6” empty approx 12 “ in diameter with flowers)
These were about $50 each. We got married in South Florida (not cheap, but also not as bad as OC) for a regional comparison.
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Ouch, that's very steep if it's just one. Go back and request the florist breakdown their proposal cost. X amount for centerpiece flowers, X amount for small cylinder, X amount for large cylinder, X amount delivery, X amount labor. I work at a construction firm, and when subs come in w. outrageous costs we ask them to do this. About 75% of the time we get the quote back and their numbers have magically dropped! If they give you a large lump sum, their usally trying to "hide" some money and charges in there.
that sounds a little too expensive, but i would suggest talking to your florist about cost breakdown. maybe they are adding into the price some extra, smaller flowers that are very expensive (like lily of the valley), that you haven't specifically requested. when i went to my florist, she specifically told me how much each type of bloom would cost and we discussed literally every type and number of flowers to be used.
also, the price may be a result of where the flowers come from. if they're flown in from someplace far away, that may explain the price.
is there some way to DIY the floating candles as a way to cut costs and just have them provide the hydrangeas?
i wonder how much of the price has to do with the fact that everything on islands is just more expensive. i dont know anything about flowers.... do the hydrangeas have to be shipped in from somewhere else?
Yes, it might be due to location. Do those flowers have to be flown in? For our wedding in Jamaica, I made sure just to have local flowers only. The florist said she could get anything, but that if I chose certain flowers they might have to be flown in so it would be pricier. I think an aisle full of rose petals was around $5000... so I went with ginger flower instead for much much much less.
I don't know about whether you're getting ripped off or not, but Hydrangeas are notoriously finicky flowers. They die like crazy and can't really be relied upon.
I think it has to do with the islands...for Bermuda, I got quoted for $40 for a single rose. Yup...ridiculous. Ask them what cheaper options they can recommend. $350 is a lot for U.S. standards...but who knows on Bahamas. What stinks is that you can't really shop around.
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i dont know about the bahamas but here we had to pay an extra 200 for the girl to deliver and take back the vases at the end of the night, but we didnt want to deal with storing them for the night, then returning them without breaking. also, maybe you can order some cheap beads and send them ahead or take them with you? ask your florist to break down the cost per centerpiece, you never know if you are paying $50 in beads, when you can get a bag at ikea for $4.99! im not a flower expert, but swapping or using half what u want and half "filler" flowers might reduce it!
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It sounds like a simple centerpiece arrangement that maybe a friend can do for you. I used to work in a flower shop for 5 years and learned about flower arranging along the way. I've done the centerpieces and personal flowers for several friends for weddings and other events. If you have a picture of the centerpiece to send me I can tell you how much the florist is paying ( they usually charge you double what they pay for the items needed).
If there is a wholesale shop in your area that sells to the public it can really help reduce cost.
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Hi Ladies,
I need your help on flowers - I just got the proposal from my florist. The total is way more than I expected (even though I was warned that flowers are expensive).
The bouquets seemed reasonable enough. My calla lilies bouquet is quoted at $200.
BUT the cost for the centerpieces shocked me. This is what we want: 1 cylinder with some glass beads at the bottom topped with single-colored hydrangeas and 2 smaller cylinders with floating candles and glass beads. I thought we would save money because the only flowers will be on top of the big cylinder. The cost quoted for this trio centerpiece is $350.00! That seems way overpriced... Is it, or am I just ignorant about how much these things cost?
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