Flowers...Wholesale or other ideas?

I'm not a florist, so any florist HIB's may have better advice. My mum did our bouquets, buttonholes etc. Some of the stuff can be bought from hobbycraft.

Depending on the type of bouquet, all the flowers were wired and put into an oasis that was on a handle (imagine a large, green oasis ice cream). The oasis had been soaking in water overnight.

There is also a spray you can get to put on the flowers so they dont loose moisture. (we didnt use it, as couldnt find it anywhere). I've also seen spray glitter for flowers and decorative hair pin type things to put into the centre of each rose etc.

I'd google 'flower wiring' for a start, then oasis, bouquets etc.

Hi,

Where abouts in South Yorkshire are you? I'm on Sheffield and I know there are wholesale flower markets where you can buy larger amounts of flowers etc - lots of information about them and discussion of going there and doing your own flowers on sheffield forum www.sheffieldforum.co.uk

I suppose the thing to cinsider is how far in advance would you have to get the flowers? do you have the skills and expertise to keep them looking fresh for the required amount of time.

Do you really want to be doing flower arrangements the day before your wedding? I know I wouldn't!

Not trying to put you off, just being realistic about it!

I have read some blogs and the like about doing your own wedding flwoers, from both the flortist and bride perspective which were interesting - if I get a mo I will try and find them, but have a google there's plenty of discussion on it.

I doubt the stall holder would sell individual stems at a discount as their prices to buy in will be the same, but they might be able to order you what you need and pass some of a discount on? won't know unless you ask!

TBH for the work involved my florist is an absolute bargain i think! definitely not worth my time in doing the table centres and wouldn't have a clue how to create my bouquet or the BMs,or even the buttong holes!

Well the plan is to do a run this year to see how much work it is. I'm really creative and have no issues arranging flowers etc. My aunty used to be a florist so will be asking her for tips but really want to do it myself.

I have seen all the bits I need to get, its really just the stems. I'm in Barnsley so might check out the sheffield forum.

I hate paying a lot for anything lol, so would rather do my own. Having said that I'm also making my own cake too so will have to be super organised!

How much do you think we will be talking for a florist to do a rose teardrop bouquet, and two church pillar displays? I'm thinking everything else will have to be fake as we are on a tight budget and already pushing through it.

The venue supplies fresh flower table displays so that is no worry.

Are you set on fresh flowers, some ideas below if not, a little bit of searching on you tube will show you how you can make fabric flowers.

This is a REALLy long thread, but I am sure there is mention of the wholesale markets and doing your own flowers etc:

https://www.sheffieldforum.co.uk/topic/123474-wedding-flowers/

I'm afraid I have no idea about the cost of your bouquet though, mine are all different to that.

Those images are amazing! It's my OH who wants me to have a fresh bouquet for myself (and I agree) but others dont need to be....mgiht look into those style....although I would find that more of a challenge than flower arranging lol.

Thanks DarkMoomin...next on our list is to get a flower quote...maybe it wont be as bad as I think ?

Definitely shop around, I think florists can vary massively (and IME some can be really up them selves, and some which seemed to be better florists to me are reallyhelpful and accommodating!) I would recommend mine but a Sheffield city centre one probably isn't much use to you!!

I'm not sure about South Yorkshire but in West Yorkshire, the wholesale flower markets won't allow you in unless you can prove you are in business. If you Auntie used to be a florist does she still have her trade card? If not, then you could have problems. Most wedding flowers have to be ordered around 2 weeks in advance (fresh ones) from the wholesaler so they have time to source them from the growers/auction houses. I doubt you will get any discount from a market stall holder as they make little profit on their produce as it is. Also, unless you aren't particularly bothered about what flowers you get, they may not have enough of everything you need. Supermarket flowers aren't the same grade as wedding flowers ordered by your florist so you need to be careful that they are good quality to last the day. Also you could have the same problem as trying a market stall in that they may not have what you want or enough of everything. Added to this is the stress of doing all this on the morning of your wedding when you should really be enjoying the day and being pampered! To be honest, if you intend to do a dummy run as well, then you will probably end up paying out as much as it would cost for your florist to do it anyway.

Regarding the costs of shower bouquets, it depends on which flowers you would like but they have an average price range of between £70 - £100 for the most expensive. Hope that helps

Thats really helpful, thanks.....after doing some research I may have to just go to a florist after all! I am making my wedding cake too, so might have too much to worry about there as it is!

I want a white rose teardrop with a few blue accents and peacock feathers. As we only want mine and two church displays maybe it might not be so bad afterall

Roses are fairly reasonably priced at most times of the year (except around Valentines Day) so it shouldn't be mega expensive. Try and go for out of town centre shops as they tend to be cheaper than city centre. Try for 3 different quotes and see what they come up with. The fact that you are only wanting one type of flower gives them lots of scope for adjusting the design to suit your budget too. Regarding the church, all churches will have flowers in anyway but if you want something specific, have a chat to your minister and see what the church ladies charge. Depends on the church as to whether they ask for a donation or charge a set fee. Also worth asking if there are any other couples marrying on the same day and they may be willing to split the cost. I once did a wedding in Sheffield and the church lady had done two magnificent pedestal arrangements for the ceremony at no charge so it's definitely worth asking the vicar.

Thanks...i will have to put that on my to-do list. I did discuss flowers briefly with the church when I booked and discussed prices. Apparently the lady who does the flowers wont do weddings as she doesnt feel confident enough to do them! But then again she had only just started and we have another year to go, so that might change....we will have to ask.

The Sheffield flower markets are open to the public - I've been! However we didn;t buy and I have gheard that they are not massively cheaper than a florist - just have a big range you can go and look at.

when you say a tear drop, do you mean a shower?

I am having a long trailing concave shower bouquet which will probably have some more expensive flowers in (certainly having peonies) and mostly flowers rather than foliage (which I am told puts the price up) and I've been quoted £80 - but I think its going to be a fair sized bouquet!

it was inspried by this:

Yeah i think so. i basically want this:

Only with a trail hanging down and White roses instead....maybe with a few blue flowers if possible.

Ooo I likt this one, is this the sort of shape you mean?

yeah, maybe with a bit more foliage to the drop, less flowers I think too.

Or even like this, something a bit looser...

Oh that's nice!