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they all look great! i'm not sure where you are, but here in SF, the bridal + bridesmaids bouquet is almost $500. it's very costly here and i'm going broke
i think people usually spend approx $60-$100 on average for a centerpiece, that seems reasonable. $60 arrangement on the table may not be a big one though.
$500 would be reasonable for everything but the centerpieces I spent $650 on my flowers and I had 3 bm bouquet, my bouquet, 4 corsages (moms and grandmas), 8 bouts for gm, fathers, and ushers, 1 bout for groom, and 1 single mum flower in a vase (which I provided) at each of the 24 reception tables.
You are going to pay more than that since you want a much more complex centerpiece with many flowers in it. Perhaps you should do baby's breath like you have in your picture?
Also, my price is for a relatively small city in the midwest. I imagine everything would cost more in a larger city in any other state.
We on WB can give you guesses based on our experiences with florists as well as DIY flowers, but they're just going to be that- guesses. My advice is that you email a few florists in your area with your list of required floral elements and your budget cap for flowers and ask if it will be possible to do all of it within your budget. Some will say no, others might say it is possible, you'll want to have a meeting with the latter ones to hear their ideas.
wow! I can't imagine paying $500 JUST for bouquets and bouts!! Those are like a flower with a pin stuck in them!! And bouquets are FEWER flowers than a normal arrangement that costs like $30-$40(max) locally. *sigh*
If I had a large enough fridge I would not sweat doing the centerpieces myself! Perhaps I will just let them know that my budget is about $500 and see what may be doable within that. I just didn't want to insult them since I really have no idea how much is reasonable. I wouldn't be opposed to baby's breath bouquets for the girls and the bouts (and not TOTALLY opposed to it for myself), but I feel like that's a look that has to go throughout, and I really need the "thick-looking", bright purple flowers for the reception.
Most bm bouquets are $50 each and bridal bouquets are $100 each, at least in my area. Bouts or corsages ran anywhere from $15 to $25, depending on the number of flowers in them. Bouquets may have fewer flowers than centerpieces but you also have to remember you are paying for them to be assembled and constructed in a sturdy manner and you are also paying for the artistry of the whole bouquet. It's not just the cost of the flowers.
I don't know if I would necessarily tell the florist straight up that your budget is $500. Just tell her what you like and see how much she can do it for. Then if it's too much tell her that you were hoping to spend no more than $500 and ask if there are alternate flowers that she could use that would give the same overall look for less. But if you tell her your budget right off the bat then she may mark up the prices of things and not give you as much as you initially would have got had you not said your budget. Just my opinion at least. I would go to a few different florists and see what they can offer you and compare prices before deciding.
Not to scare you but I actually had a florist in NYC tell me that he did not do a job for less than $7,000! I have no idea what that includes and I am hoping that some of the others I call will be more reasonable.
I have read somewhere that on average 8-12% of overall budget can be expected to be spent with florist.
We spent $2,000 on Flowers! Ugh. My bouquet was $135 and my centerpieces are similar to the pic you posted in the black vase and they are $80 each. Just to give you an idea! Good luck! :)
@redsox - thanks for the insight. What kind of flower did you decide on using for your centerpieces? Also, did you find the vase yourself, or was that something rented/purchased from your florist?
we rented them for $6 each from our florist. We are using hydrangeas and garden roses
Where I live, $500 is reasonable for a flower budget. The centerpiece with the pomander of roses is going to be extremely pricey though. Just by looking at the arrangement, I'd be willing to guess that the centerpiece alone is going to cost around $300, if not more. Carnations come in a BEAUTIFUL dark purple and that will most likely cut the total in half (approx. $150). You could add in a few fushia orchids mixed with the dark purple carns to tie into your cake flowers too. The BM bouquets will most likely end up costing around $50-$65 each if you want all roses. Again, you could cut the cost by using only a few roses and substitute for another cream/white colored flower. Depending on what kind of flowers your going to use for the bouts and corsages, you're probably looking anywhere from $20(roses) to $25(orchids) each. Again, I'm not from Los Angeles, just a little town in MI. I'm sure that if you talk to your florist (or multiple florists), you'll find exactly what you need. :) Good luck!
So finally getting quotes....definitely right up to the $2,000 mark. :-/
Not fun. Even though I think every individual thing that people are quoting me sounds fair, it makes me realize that I am looking for more than I thought. Now that I am getting quotes I realize @ redsox that your $80 quote was actually fabulous--especially if it includes roses & the exact type of vase I am looking for. I can't find them anywhere online--I may try making something similar, but that would definitely be more than the $6 it is costing you to rent them!
We're using mostly calla lilies.
1 bridal bouquet1 groom boutonniere3-4 groomsmen bouts (ill know for sure tomorrow!)3-4 bridesmaid bouquets ( " )1 ringbearer bout7 bouts for dads, grandfathers, etc.5 corsages for mothers, grandmothers, etc. [ Freesia ]6 flowers for the cake
My florist says it will be around $900. That price is with 4 GM bouts & 4 BM bouquets. If i go down to 3 itll drop a little. I would like to have 2 arrangements for the ceremony but i can't see myself paying $200+ on flowers. I'm also ordering 6000 rose petals from fiftyflowers.com.
oh and im also using silk flowers for our centerpieces.
The floral budget has been an unpleasant surprise for me as well. I knew that we wouldn't be able to afford centerpieces from a florist, so I've just been getting quotes for my bouquet, 6 BM bouquets, 10 boutonnieres (groom/GMs/fathers/grandfather) and 3 women's corsages. I was hoping to get that for $700, and I'm seeing that it doesn't appear to be possible. I haven't gotten a quote for less than $850 yet, and sometimes up to $1000.
i hear ya all, the floral budget is so hard because I went in knowing what look i liked and then reading from a few people on here that a bridal bouquet is like 150 and bridesmaids like 75... I already knew that i would be making my own non-floral centerpieces and boutts... so i went to the florist to get my bouquet, 5 bm bouquets, a little decor above our gazebo, and 3 corsages.. $1,100 later...
i went in with a specific feel i wanted and A LOT of different flowers are needed to create that feel... we tried to bring it down a little but it just hurt the integrity of what i wanted a little so i said, "alright, we will find the money somewhere, lets do it" I am BEYOND excited for what i chose and i can not wait to see the end result...
break down was $250 for my bouquet, $150 i think for each of the girls, $25 for corsages, $150 for gazebo decor.. something like that... but granted im not far outside nyc...
hi moneypenny02,
i was quoted from 3K-4K and i'm thinking of going to semi-diy route with the flowers.. i live in ventura county which is 1.5 hrs a way from the flower district so im thinking of doing some myself... so did u go to that florist? commerce florist? i heard they are pretty good with budgets and all.. let me know k? tnx
@primrose - I did get a quote from Commerce, and it was a close to $2,000. I contacted a few other florists based on recommendations on the Knot and here, as well as some people from Yelp and Craigslist. I did get one for around $1,000--although I need to talk to the person more closely to see if they were actually quoting me a price based on what I wanted. I'm also kind of hesitant to go with that florist (with the $1000 quote) because while they had good reviews about the quality of the florals, their customer service was quite varied, so that makes me nervous.
TobeMrsG, $7,000 for just flowers? That would have been more than the cost of our whole reception!
Then again, we limited the flowers to two bridal bouquets, one MOH bouquet, one bout, and some freeze-dried rose petals to scatter on the reception tables. All the rest of our decorations were nonfloral.
@moneypenny: What about doing them youself? I'm doing mine with fiftyflowers.com or wholeblossoms.com and it's going to be about $500 for everything including the hydrangea. orchids, and all the glassware and such I'll need (which I've collected along the way and plan to resell).
I know you said you didn't have a big enough fridge but you actually don't put them in the fridge because the gasses from your foods break down the flowers...it's safer just to keep them in a cool place. I did the flowers (calla lillies) for my brothers wedding last Oct. (there is a post about it somewhere with pics) and stored them in the garage, changing the water daily and stuff. They turned out great and saved them a bunch! Just and idea
I paid 1100.00 for all my flowers. I looked at 3 different florists and went in with a budget. Here is my quote...sorry its long but may be helpful
Date: 02/02/2010
Reference: WEDDING FLOWERS - JULY 10TH
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
*** Item# 1 Product#:
Description / Comments: BRIDES BOUQUET
Quantity: 1 @ 150.000 = 150.00 Taxable: Y
*** Item# 2 Product#:
Description / Comments: BRIDESMAIDS
Quantity: 5 @ 65.00 = 325.00 Taxable: Y
*** Item# 3 Product#:
Description / Comments: JR BRIDESMAID
Quantity: 1 @ 35.00 = 35.00 Taxable: Y
*** Item# 4 Product#:
Description / Comments: FLOWER GIRL WREATH
Quantity: 1 @ 25.00 = 25.00 Taxable: Y
*** Item# 5 Product#:
Description / Comments: FLOWER GIRL BASKET
Quantity: 1 @ 15.00 = 15.00 Taxable: Y
*** Item# 6 Product#:
Description / Comments: GROOMS BOUT
Quantity: 1 @ 10.00 = 10.00 Taxable: Y
*** Item# 7 Product#:
Description / Comments: GROOMSMEN
Quantity: 5 @ 5.00 = 25.00 Taxable: Y
*** Item# 8 Product#:
Description / Comments: FATHER
Quantity: 1 @ 5.00 = 5.00 Taxable: Y
*** Item# 9 Product#:
Description / Comments: GRANDFATHER
Quantity: 1 @ 5.00 = 5.00 Taxable: Y
*** Item# 10 Product#:
Description / Comments: USHERS
Quantity: 2 @ 5.00 = 10.00 Taxable: Y
*** Item# 11 Product#:
Description / Comments: MOTHERS
Quantity: 2 @ 20.00 = 40.00 Taxable: Y
*** Item# 12 Product#:
Description / Comments: GRANDMOTHER
Quantity: 1 @ 15.00 = 15.00 Taxable: Y
*** Item# 13 Product#:
Description / Comments: ALTAR ARRG
Quantity: 2 @ 50.00 = 100.00 Taxable: Y
*** Item# 14 Product#:
Description / Comments: BOWS W / GREENERY
Quantity: 10 @ 10.00 = 100.00 Taxable: Y
*** Item# 15 Product#:
Description / Comments: FAMILY TABLE ARRG
Quantity: 2 @ 40.00 = 80.00 Taxable: Y
*** Item# 16 Product#: DC75
Description / Comments: DELIVERY AND SET-UP
Quantity: 1 @ 75.00 = 75.00 Taxable: N
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total: 1,015.00
8.75% Sales Tax: 82.25
Quote Total: 1,097.25
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
i'm in fl so it's way cheaper here, but i paid $300 for my bouquet, 2 bridesmaids, 5 bouts, 4 coursages, and flower girl petals. we diyed the centerpieces and aisle flowers for $900 wholesale. not as fancy as your inspiration because, well, we're not so flower skilled and we thought just cutting and plopping them in the vase would be easiest.
Tall centerpieces will definitely be more expensive than shorter ones. You can definitely do purple flowers with shorter centerpieces.
@sanddollar - while I definitely planned to DIY initially, I think I am getting slightly overwhelmed with projects & trying to figure out what all will need to be done on the day of & who will take care of it. If I can't get the price down enough & i feel like I can make the centerpieces myself & keep them fresh, maybe I will try to make up the centerpieces & have the florist take care of the cake, ceremony decor & bridal party arrangements.
What is the condition that the flowers need to stay fresh? If I put it in a room that has A/C is that enough? They would already have been made up in a pom with a base of floral foam.
I have also come to realize that size of your wedding really starts to add up on flowers. Being quoted between 150-175 for low centerpieces, this gets pretty high when you multiply it by 20+ tables. Also, I apparently have expensive Chuppah taste with estimates there around 1000.
centerpiece shock hit me tonight
thanks for your inputs, it gave me a reality check
You'll probably spend $65-100 each for big pomanders like that.
I know I'm a little late but I have the same problem. Flowers are sooooo expensive. The picture you posted is what I am going for on some of my centerpieces. I bought tall candle pillars that have that awesome shape. I found them at TJ max set of 3 for $20. They are pretty tall. I am giving the DIY with fresh flowers a go this weekend. The pomanders were to expensive for me to buy, although I am buying my bouquet from a florist. GOOD LUCK
Your centerpiece idea is gorgeous but that, I am guessing, is where the bulk of your estimates is coming from. They are very labor intensive, include a TON of flowers and they will be heavy--that whole floral foam ball will have to be soaked in water first. That is not a very DIY friendly project. I would either scale down your centerpiece ambitions and do them yourself or pay the florist. $2,000 seems inexpensive for including more than one of those centerpieces!
My flowers are about $950. This includes everything. I have 20 centerpieces. 10 are smaller and 10 are 16 inch vases. I am purchasing the 12 16 inch vases because the florist says that I could get them cheaper than she could. This also is the church flowers. I would definitely explore your options!!!!
Don't forget, a lot of the price depends on what type of flowers you ask for. I told my florist NO ORCHIDS!
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So, I had originally planned on doing flowers myself via flowermart, but if within the budget at all, I would really prefer to have someone else put them together.
So, I am going to start contacting a florist that was recommended by my DOC this week (Commerce Florist -- recommended by another Bee also), who she said was helpful in working within Bee's budgets, but I have really no idea what my budget should be. I am not 100% sure what I want completely (esp in ceremony and if I want anything for buffet table, etc.), but I know I will want:
1) floral centerpiece similar to the flowers in the tall black "vase" below (picture has roses, but I would be perfectly happy with carnations--just need something dark purple & possibly fuchsia) I would probably want to get them as pomanders with ribbon on them so that they can do double duty by hanging on guest chairs at the ceremony.
2) 5 TBD bridesmaids bouquets (to complement the etsy fabric bouquet pictured below (which will likely be my bouquet).
3) TBD Flowers for cake (probably orchids).
4) TBD bouts for groom & 3 GM
5) Flowers of some sort for MOG
I would ideally like to spend around $500 for this, but is this a realistic budget for these types of items? I would want it to be for the LEAST amount possible & the recommended florist is supposed to be budget-friendly. Also, if I have some specific type of look that I am interested in (like that black vase), does the florist usually find them for you, or do I need to find them myself?
EDIT: Picture link broke -- so here are the main pics. The floral print is the tablecloth.