In the time that I have been doing wedding flowers I have noticed that a lot of brides seem to skimp on or skip over ceremony flowers. A good portion of people keep to a pretty short ceremony so I think most people feel like it isn’t worth spending the money on it.

I definitely understand everyone has a budget and needing to stick to that. People don’t want to spend all their money on their wedding and not have anything left over for future babies, buying a house, getting a puppy, shoe addictions or whatever ?. That said I did want to give you a few things to consider when it comes to ceremony flowers.

1) Sometimes venues need a little love. Obviously you pick a venue that is a good fit for you – but sometimes they have a few quirks. Maybe a few artistic touches that don’t suit your tastes or a few things you wouldn’t mind hiding. Sometimes a well placed archway or a few garlands can really do a lot of magic to create the space of your dreams.

2) There are a lot of pictures taken at the ceremony. Even for shorter ceremonies, there will be a lot of photos to capture the special moments like your vows and first kiss! Having a couple well placed beautiful floral pieces can really jazz up a space to create the look and feel you desired for you day!

3) Whether the ceremony is short or long, most weddings people start arriving about 30 minutes before the ceremony starts. Along with visiting with other guests, they will be spending time soaking in the surroundings and appreciating all the pretty things. Okay, maybe the men won’t notice, but the ladies will!

4) If planned strategically, you can get a TON of value out of your ceremony flowers. The best thing to do is make sure whatever you get for the ceremony can also be used at the reception… which really isn’t hard to do! Garlands can be placed on head tables, guestbook table, on mantles… pretty much anywhere. Archways can be at the entrance of the reception, by the cake table, in a photo booth, as part of the backdrop for the head table. Large floral urns can be on either side of the head table, by the MC’s podium, or again at the entrance. Any arrangements or decor going down the aisle to dress things up can be used as centrepieces, or small little arrangements to accent little tables. You can always find ways to get added value if you plan it out, so long as you have helping hands and the transportation needed to move things between sites.

So again, I do advocate sticking to whatever your budget is. Just remember it doesn’t have to be a HUGE add on to incorporate flowers into your ceremony and that we can help make sure you get the most out of your budget.