Double Duty ~ Budget Friendly Weddings Part 3

Part 3 of our Budget Friendly Wedding Series is about making your arrangements work for you.  

1. Your bouquet & the attendants bouquets.  All of our bouquets come in a clear glass cylinder vase.  These vases can be used on the head table at the reception to hold your flowers.  You can space them out between the attendants and place your bouquet in the center.  So if you had 4 Bridesmaids you could place 2 on the right side of the table, yours in the middle, and 2 more on the left side of the table.  This is a simple and inexpensive way to decorate your head table.

2.  Your altar arrangement.  If you choose to decorate the altar at your church you can find places at the reception to display them.  For example, a low long arrangement in a design dish would be perfect for a buffet table, or even the gift table.  A taller altar arrangement could be placed to welcome the guests as they enter the room.

These are just a couple of ways to make your flowers work for you. 

Your Floral "Footprint" ~ Budget Friendly Weddings Part 2

1.       Think about your floral footprint ~ Every flower has a “footprint”.  The footprint is the mark that flower leaves on your bouquet.  Think of the size of the bouquet you want.  Now picture each flower leaving a mark where it will go.  The larger the mark the fewer of that flower it will take to fill your bouquet.  The smaller the mark the more it will take to fill your bouquet.

     

        A hydrangea has a large “footprint” 

    Where a flower like ranunculus has a small “footprint” ~ 

     

     

      You may want to consider using fewer small blooms and more large blooms to get the size of bouquet you desire.   This could make your larger and more lush for a smaller price tag.  

      

      For example ~ Hydrangea blooms normally run between $6.00 and $10.oo a bloom.  Where a ranunculus can be as much as $3.00 - $5.00 a bloom.  It would take about 10ranunculus to cover the footprint of the hydrangea.  Even though ranunculus may cost a little less you would need more of them to capture the same amount of space.  

     Some great flowers with a large footprint are ~ Hydrangea, Fuji Mums, and Gerbera Daisies.  Some inexpensive flowers with a smaller footprint are ~ Carnations, Mini Carnations, Daisies, and Asters.

Budget Friendly Weddings ~ Part 1

Don't skimp on the greens ~ Foliage can add texture and fullness to your bouquet.  

Aspidistra can be curled to create a lovely base to a tropical looking bouquet ~ 

Tree Fern can be used to add flair.  Paired below with calla lilies it makes the bouquet look much wider than it is because of the way it spreads out from the flowers.

Seeded Eucalyptus is also a great addition.  Here you can see the tiny seeds around the bouquet to add texture and make the bouquet look fuller.  Also here we used Tree Fern to add even more texture and fullness. 

Foliage can add another dimension to your bouquet.  It can add texture, color, contrast, or make the bouquet look finished.  If you love the "wildflower" look greenery like Tree Fern, Seeded Eucalyptus, Pittosporum, Ming, and many others are for you.

For cleaner more structured bouquets try Salal leaves, Galax leaves, or Aspidistra.

This is a first in a series of articles that we will be composing for our Budget Brides.  These will help you find the right flowers for the right price.