Do it yourself wedding flowers is a daunting task if you are not organized and don't have a schedule to keep you on track. Learn what you can do in advance to make things roll smoothly...
If you have decided on do it yourself wedding flowers, there is a schedule that you should follow to stay on top of things to keep everything running smoothly. There are different things that you can do well ahead of your wedding day.
Three to Six Months Before Your Wedding
Visit a florist of your choice and discuss colors, flowers, bouquet styles and flower availability.
Set up a meeting with the church flower committee.
Make a list of all the floral arrangements you want and calculate how many flowers you will need.
Arrange to have some people help you make your own wedding flowers.
Book your hairdresser for both you and your bridesmaids. Discuss what hairstyles would be the best suited for having flowers in your hair (if you're planning to).
Two Months Before Your Wedding
Revisit your florist to have her help you with the calculations to make sure you order enough flowers. Place your flower order.
Gather all the nonperishable supplies you will need such as containers, floral foam, bouquet holders, wire, tape, spare buckets and scissors.
Make a stop at the location of your reception to help you create a mental picture of what flowers will go where.
Make up all the bows you'll need and store them in a plastic bag.
If you are using any artificial flowers for anything (such as the cake topper or a flower headpiece) you can make them up now.
Two Weeks Before Your Wedding
Go back to your florist and go through all the details. Check with her to make certain that she has the correct date and time for your flower order.
Confirm with the people who offered to help you to see if they are still willing and available to help you.
Touch base with your hairdresser to confirm the date, time, and hairstyle for both you and your bridesmaids.
Visit the location of your ceremony again to discuss final plans.
Pick and condition foliage and garden flowers that you would like to include in your wedding flowers. You want to test these out at least 2 weeks before your wedding to see what foliage and flowers will stand up and which ones will go limp no matter what you do. It's better to find out now than the day before your wedding.
As you can see, there is much that can done in the months and weeks before you get married. If you plan to make your own wedding flowers, you will want it to go as smoothly as possible.
Nadine Visscher has arranged flowers for over 15 years and has written The Beginner's Guide to Wedding Flowers found at http://www.weddingflowerdirections.com
