The Floral Investment
The not as exciting part of wedding planning...the money. Transparency is important to us at Fleur Du Nord Farm. When planning a wedding, things start to add up and we are here to try to make your floral dreams come true while also sticking to your budget. Although we are not always the right fit, we do our best to find alternatives to ensure that florals are not the stressful part of planning your big day. Today we are going to breakdown some of the most popular floral items that we see couple's requesting as well as estimates for larger floral installations that you may wonder if they fit into your budget.
First on the list, bridal bouquets. The traditionally large bouquet is typically the focal point at the wedding. Every time someone looks at the couple they see this floral arrangement, so we want it to reflect you as a couple and not detract from what we are all at weddings for... YOU! (sometimes the alcohol...but also YOU!) When pricing a larger bouquet, what really makes or breaks the price is the type of blooms you are using. Flower prices differ significantly by season as well as the effort it takes the grower to grow that specific flower for your wedding. For example, peonies, a classic wedding flower that is loved by many. These blooms are large and fluffy and stand out in bouquets. However, peonies take on average three years from planting to get the first usable flower. That is a long time and many growers factor that three years into the price of the bloom. We see during peak peony season in Vermont (May-early July) that the average price per peony is around $7-$10 a stem! Although we love these flowers and encourage you to use them, we want to highlight how that bloom in an arrangement can increase the price when compared to lower cost flowers like roses which are typically between $3-$6 a stem, or a carnation which is about $1 a stem. We suggest that when thinking about your wedding, start with the bridal bouquet and how you want that to look and then move out from there to the rest of the areas of the wedding where you want flowers. This allows you to figure out your favorite parts that guests focus on, and maybe budget in areas that guest may not look at quite as often or in detail like centerpieces which we can use alternatives to the more costly flowers.
Moving on to centerpieces. We get a request for centerpieces at almost every single wedding we do. There are a few different variations we see based on the shape of the table. For round tables, we typically see one medium sized centerpiece. This simplistic design elevates the table and looks good from every angle. What we account for in the cost is the cost of the individual flowers as described above, but we also have to account for the vessel they are held in. If the vase or container is not visually important to you, our centerpieces come in foam that we have sit in a lomey dish (a clear plastic dish). This style makes it look like the flowers are arranged coming out of the table, which we think looks really elegant (see arrangement by Gather Design Company to the right for an example). If you want a specific container for the arrangement, this container has to be factored into your budget. At Fleur Du Nord Farm, we rent out containers, which we think is a great budget friendly option since we charge less than it would cost to buy the containers outright. If you don't see the container you are looking for, we are always looking to expand our collection so either we can source the container for you, or we will buy it off of you if we think it will make a great rental.
For long farmhouse style tables, centerpieces like the one in the photo above are a great option,
however, less budget friendly as you would probably want more than one to make the table feel complete. Another option is to do a greenery garland. If you want a simple greenery garland, a few bunches of greenery can go a long way so that we can spread the greens along the table. This is what we did for our wedding and I thought it turned out great! (See picture below.) Another option which is at a higher price point is full greenery garlands. These garlands are thicker (you can't see the tablecloth through the garland for example) and make a bold statement on the tables. If you have extra room in your floral budget and want a statement tablescape, we recommend going this route.
On average, we see centerpieces ranging in price from $75 to $130 a centerpiece. But again, this all depends on what flowers you choose! Another great budget friendly option is bud vases! Bud vases use only a few flowers and only a few vases make a big statement for tables. Definitely an option to consider.
The last major floral investment is your ceremony site. Typically we see couples using an arbor at the end of the aisle as the focal point for their ceremony. However, couples are opting for different alternatives that are a fun way to stray from the traditional. Either way, the ceremony site is where a large chunk of your floral investment will go due to the larger quantities of flowers and greenery needed for the installation. A great place to start is thinking about the size you want this floral installation to be. Do you want just the top corner of your arbor done? Do you want flowers lining the aisle? Do you want the full arch covered? Do you want a ground arch? Once you have an idea of what you want, your florist (hey hey!) will have a better idea of the quantity of flowers needed to achieve that look and can give you an estimate. Looking for ideas for your ceremony site? We've got you covered! Check out our Pinterest with a whole board full of ceremony site florals! We also rent out arbors if your venue does not have one for you to use.
Have room to spare in your budget? Here are some fun ideas that we would love to bring to life at your wedding!
Let us know if you have any questions! We are always here to bounce ideas off of and to price things out for you.
