How NOT to Save Money on Your Wedding

One of the trends that grew in the 2009 wedding season (and appears to be continuing in 2010) is couples attempting to save money on their wedding by taking a DIY (Do It Yourself) approach. More and more couples are attempting services that in previous years, they would have relied on professionals to provide.

Wedding Florists in Butler Pennsylvania

Just a week ago, I had a conversation with Rich Dudley, who along with his wife Kathy, owns The Bloomery Florist in Butler Pennsylvania. Rich spoke of how they have seen the growing trend of DIY in the floral industry. He has seen couples start off by shopping for wedding bouquets & floral centerpieces. Then, after gathering ideas and obtaining photographs of floral arrangements, they opt to save money by purchasing their flowers from places like Costco and then attempting to re-create the designs themselves. Unfortunately, this has resulted in an all-to-often negative outcome for the customer.

What many customers don’t realize is that the floral arrangements offered by florists such as The Bloomery, have been designed and created by professionals, with years of training and countless hours of experience. They have the proper tools to work with and they have the means to properly store and transport fresh flowers. They also have the proper connections in the floral industry to ensure the flowers you order, are available on the day you need them.

The other factor that you want to consider is your time. Are you really going to have time on the morning of your wedding to assemble centerpieces, or hand-tie your bridal bouquet? Professional wedding florists have the staff available to ensure your flowers are ready when you need them, without having to risk damage to the flowers by preparing them too early.

Some brides & grooms realize the time crunch and try to address this by delegating the task to friends or family. However, mixing family and friends into business dealings can sometimes create unneeded tension and unfortunately burned bridges. Telling your future mother-in-law that her contribution of floral centerpieces is not your style, can be much harder than just hiring a professional to create exactly what you are looking for. Not to mention, will your family and friends really enjoy your day if they are stuck working?

Does this mean that no one should ever attempt to save money on their wedding, by attempting to create their own centerpieces or bridal bouquets? Definitely not! But if you take on any DIY project, Rich offers the following advice:

• Research – Start off your project by reading and learning as much as possible about what you are attempting. Make sure that your skill level meets the project’s requirements.
• Plan – Thoroughly plan out every detail of your project well in advance. Keep very detailed notes on everything you will need to purchase, along with the dates those items will need to be ordered and delivered.
• Consider - Many florists will work with a DIY bride. Instead of going to Costco, or some anonymous online florist, couples should consider finding a local florist that can obtain the flowers the couple wants and ensure their quality. Local florists, such as The Bloomery, even deliver the bulk flowers.
• Practice – Don’t wait until the date of your wedding to create your first bridal bouquet. Contact your florist and arrange to purchase test flowers. That way you can create a test run several weeks prior to the big day. You may even need a couple of attempts at getting it right. It is much better to find any potential problems in the months, or weeks prior to your wedding, rather than find out at the last minute that what you have planned is not working.

The biggest thing that you will want to keep in mind is that you will only have one chance to get it right. Be sure that before you attempt any DIY project, that you are up to the challenge both physically and mentally.

Rich & Kathy Dudley are owners of The Bloomery Florist in Butler Pennsylvania. You can find more information about their company using the following:

The Bloomery Florist
103 S. Duffy Rd.
Butler, PA 16001

Phone: (800) 729-1711

Webite: www.bloomeryweddings.com