It can be daunting when you begin looking for a florist, a quick search online will bring up hundreds, some with shops, some studio based and some with rather dodgy looking websites. How do you know which florists are any good? How do you decide which ones are worth meeting? This guide will give you a few hints and tips to help you find your perfect florist.
When searching the web for things like florists, be sure to include the area your wedding will take place in, such as wedding florist Cheshire. You don’t want to set your heart on a florist only to discover they are 100 miles away, after you’ve drooled over their beautiful bouquets for half an hour.
Don’t be tempted to book your flowers online with a company that says you can just book your flowers online and they will post them to you. It might seem like a cheap and easy option, but these types of companies are often churning out bouquets production line style with little care or skill. Wedding flowers also do not travel well by post; your flowers should be perfect on the morning of your wedding not turning brown because they were bashed about in the post for several days.
Once you have found a website that seems promising have a look around, does it look fresh and up to date? If the florist takes care to ensure their website stays current and looks perfect hopefully that will be reflected in their work. A good florist will provide examples of their own work and probably a gallery of wedding flowers. Do you like their work and the style of their designs? If they specialise in funky exotic flowers but you want a soft romantic look for your wedding, then move on to the next florist.
Many florists will have a price list or guide to their pricing on their website, this will give you an idea of costs before you book a consultation. Price guides can be very helpful if you have no idea how much things cost. As a rough guide brides spend on average around 10% of their overall budget on flowers. Of course some people don’t want many flowers so that figure may be less. The plant and flower association website has a useful guide to the average costs of wedding flowers.
Once you have found a few florists you like the look of check how they advise you to arrange a consultation, some may ask to you fill out a form online or some may prefer you to phone them. As you are arranging a bespoke service you might want to book appointments with several florists to compare what you are offered in terms of design ideas and costs.
Part two will be posted later this week covering your consultation and looking at quotes afterwards.