If you’ve always dreamt of a wedding day filled with botanical beauty, finding a Melbourne wedding florist that rocks your vision perfectly is super important.
Creating a floral wonderland isn’t easy, so you want to be sure to nab the very best flower creatives that you can – within your budget.
This article walks you through the ins and outs of booking a Melbourne wedding florist. It contains hints, tips and ideas to find a florist who’s as committed to your wedding day vision as you are.
How much does a Melbourne wedding florist charge?
OK. I can already hear you asking. How much will the flowers for our wedding day cost? This is 100% a “How long is a piece of string?” question. It depends. The types of flowers you seek, the design of your installations and the amount of work required to pull together your floral vision. These all play a role in the pricing for your wedding day florals.
It’s also important to note that in addition to the cost of your flowers, there are some other costs you’ll need to keep in mind. A wedding florist is also likely to charge:
- A delivery fee
- A travel fee (if you live a LONG way away from the florist you’re booking)
- An installation or set up fee and
- A “bump out” fee*
*a bump out fee is a fee charged if a florist needs to return to your wedding celebration space to remove any florals (this is common when you have hanging roof installations, vases or other florals installations they created for you for your big day).
If your florist needs to move any significant floral installations between your ceremony and your reception location, they might also charge a small fee for this too.
In saying all of this, depending on your requirements, some florists will let you pick up all of your florals for the day. That means you can save a few dollars on delivery, set up and bump in/bump out fees. Gotta love that.
Information to gather BEFORE you contact a Melbourne wedding florist
It’s super likely that when you reach out to any Melbourne wedding florist, they are going to ask you a few questions about your wedding day before they can provide you with a quote. This will include where you are getting married, when you are getting married and how big your I DO crew is.
They might also ask you for a link to any Pinterest boards you’ve pulled together that include flower designs you like or images you’ve downloaded. These images will show the florist the vibe you’re looking to create including the types of flowers you love.
These visual tools help give your wedding florist an initial sense for the kinds of flowers they’ll need to source for you. And remember, if these flowers are in season locally, you’ll likely avoid some price shock as those blooms won’t need to be imported (flown in) from overseas.
Your florist is also likely to want to know how many guests you are hosting, whether it’s a cocktail celebration or a sit down dinner. They’ll ask how many tables you plan to have, if you would like flowers for your cake and and whether you need flowers for other areas, such as on the bar, at a gifts and cards table, on your signing table, under or on signage boards or in bathrooms.
Size matters!
The size of your wedding party matters too. If you and your lover are marrying without an I DO crew, then you’ll need less flowers than if you have a large I DO crew standing beside you both on the day. You’ll also need to consider if parents, loved ones or others contributing to your day need flower adornments too.
Whilst the list of wedding florals can be long and, yeah sure, a little overwhelming, it doesn’t have to be. It’s your day. Do it YOUR way and if that means, just a smattering of flowers, then enjoy the process of creating your dream celebration with creative use of blooms in key locations around your celebration space.
Experienced florists are super well versed in working with all budget sizes. And any florist worth their weight in flowers will be your number one fan, guide and supporter, even with a minimal budget. They’ll know how to create the greatest effect with the budget you have.
For example, your florist might suggest using candles between floral installations on your guest tables to add extra ambience or mirrored plates under your vases. They have loads of tricks up those creative sleeves to ensure your floral budget is used to its full potential.
How do we work out what wedding flowers we need?
There are absolutely no rules when it comes to choosing your wedding flowers. In fact, some people opt to have no flowers at all. But assuming you are planning to have some blooms, here’s a link to a handy checklist I’ve developed so you can start shortlisting your wedding day flowers.
And remember, if your budget blows out, pull back on the types or quantity of flowers you order. Whilst you might want flowers at the bar, no one’s going to notice if you end up with fewer flowers or no flowers at all – they’re likely to be super focussed on grabbing that next drink.
One of the biggest costs when ordering wedding day flowers is those you purchase for your guest tables. Just think about it. If every table requires one large centrepiece and you’ve got 10 or more tables in total, that flower spend grows super quickly.
If you’re opting for long tables of 20 or more guests, you’ll likely want multiple vases or arrangements along that table.
Before you get too carried away though have a think about all of the other items that will appear on your guest tables. Menus, place cards and guest gifts might already take up some space. If you have chosen a family style sharing menu, serving plates and platters will also be a feature of each guest table. You’ll need to make room for candles too if you’re adding those to your tablescapes.
So take all of this into account before you decide on the size, style and quantity of floral arrangements required for each table.
Other “stuff” to do before you contact a Melbourne wedding florist
Finding the perfect florist is a very personal decision. Your bestie may have used a florist they rave about but that style might not reflect the two of you. By all means, seek referrals. That’s a great way to get started.
Before you reach out to any florist, check out their social media accounts and website to make sure you’re on board with their signature style. Facebook and Instagram accounts are the perfect place to start to see other weddings and events they’ve styled.
In addition, if the florist is nearby, perhaps swing by for an initial chat. Those who’ve created florals for wedding before are likely to have more images in store to show you.
Important note: Some florists will actually charge you a fee to come in for a consultation. So check with your local florist before heading to their bricks and mortar store to understand their process and any costs involved.
The next thing to do is to consider where your fav florists are located. Most Melbourne wedding florists will deliver all across town for a delivery fee. This is standard practice.
But if your florist needs to travel a long way to get to your wedding ceremony and celebration/reception space, they might also charge an additional travel fee.
Expert tip
Floral budgets can blow out REALLY quickly when you add a hanging floral installation to your reception space. That’s because these floral installations usually need to be created on site and require a fair bit of labour. There’s likely to be another fee as well if the florist needs to come back and take down roof installations, arbour installations or collect vases you may have hired or borrowed.
One other thing to check out before you make contact with Melbourne wedding florists, is to see if they have a minimum spend for wedding orders. Sometimes these minimum spends will exceed your budget. Take a look around websites (particularly under FAQ sections) to see if the florist you love has a minimum spend in place.
Alternatively, head to their Instagram or Facebook page and flick them a quick message to see if they have any minimum spends in place.
How much notice does a Melbourne wedding florist need?
If flowers are a super important component of your wedding day, you’ll want to get onto booking a Melbourne wedding florist ASAP after you’ve chosen your wedding date.
Availability of Melbourne wedding florists varies. Whether they are able to accept your booking depends on a few factors. These include the size of your order, the lead time required to buy your flowers and how busy that wedding florist is already on your chosen date.
Given 2020 saw many weddings cancelled and re-scheduled to 2021 and 2022, many Melbourne wedding florists already have pretty full calendars. So, I would suggest contacting your favourite florists sooner rather than later. You won’t need to decide on final designs straight away. But if you get your floral superstar locked in (this is usually done by paying a deposit), you can sort through the nitty gritty details a little later.
Hey Lovers Wedding Day Flowers Hot Tips
Reuse
One of the biggest tips I offer to my couples is to think about how flowers can be re-purposed across their wedding day. For example, let’s say you have gorgeous flowers lining your aisle. Those flowers can be reused on tables in your celebration space at your reception. Equally, bouquets can be put in vases on tables including guest tables, your cake table, at the bar or on your Gifts and Cards table.
Reusing your flowers across the celebrations means you get to enjoy them for the entire event.
Gift flowers at the end of your celebration
There is nothing more gorgeous than being gifted flowers at the end of any wedding celebration. You might gift your flowers to your parents or grandparents or other who are super special to you both.
You could even gift them to family and friends who have helped you in the lead up to or on your wedding day itself. Coupled with a hand written note, you’ll be putting smiles on dials left, right and centre.
Plus it saves on buying additional gifts for those closest to you.
Think sustainably
There are a few ways to ensure you keep our planet happy as you plan your wedding flowers. The first is to choose flowers that grow locally and are in bloom at the time you marry. This means that your Melbourne wedding florist will be able to source the flowers locally, without having to ship them in from other parts of the country or the world!
Here’s another way to win on the sustainability front. Insist that your florist doesn’t use foam to create your wedding day flower installations. Many Melbourne wedding florists are now using alternative materials to create their botanical beauties. The other thing that you’ll notice is that reputable and sustainable florists try to minimise their use of plastic wraps where they can.
Sustainable tip number three is to consider using dried flowers. Dried and preserved florals are most certainly on trend right now. That is probably because they look breathtakingly beautiful!
Plus, in a world that has been filled with so much uncertainly lately, dried and preserved flowers keep well. So if your wedding day moves for any reason, you still have your floral installations ready to go.
Lead with your budget
Decide on a firm budget and work super hard to stick to it. Flowers can cost thousands and thousands of dollars and there’s no judgement here. What florists create for weddings these days is absolutely mind bogglingly amazing. So if flowers are your priority by all means, go all out.
But if flowers aren’t part of your top 5 priorities, set a firm floral budget first and then work backwards from there with your florist. Florists will be able to tell you what you can realistically achieve within your budget.
And don’t stress. Finding an affordable wedding florist in Melbourne is not impossible. But as with all things weddings, it can take a little time and some solid searching to find your perfect florist match.
If you’re time poor, consider hiring a wedding planning (like me! – sorry shameless plug) to help you source a botanical magician who can bring your day to life in blooms.
Back against the floral wall and really need some more creative ideas?
Remember, you have other options if your floral budget is a little light on.
Consider heading to one of our many local Melbourne markets for in season blooms. You can drop these into vases and vessels yourself.
Or seek out local TAFE and floristry course students who might be looking for a challenging project to build their portfolio of work. They will LOVE you forever for giving them the opportunity. Plus they’re likely to go the extra mile to make your florals pop.
Shop around for vases and vessels
Placing your flowers into gorgeous vases and vessels can completely transform your wedding day spaces.
Take the time to fossick at opportunity and thrift shops and check out your local homewares stores for bargains. Consider inexpensive options that you might find at Ikea, Kmart, Big W or similar.
Source uniquely shaped vases and vessels to house your botanical beauties. You’ll create Instaworthy moments you and your guests will swoon over.
Ask your wedding venue what’s included in your wedding package
Some wedding venues and celebration spaces offer limited florals as part of their wedding package. Many spaces have indoor plants, dried floral arrangements and potted plant installations that you might be able to incorporate into your day. Make sure you check this out when you are touring venues.
Take pics on your phone if you need to remind yourself of what’s included in each space that you tour. It can get a little confusing to remember after you’ve visited a few different venues!
Ask your florist if they have any additional styling items
Melbourne wedding florists tend to create floral masterpieces for a whole range of weddings across the state. That means they’re likely to have gathered an eclectic range of styling bits and bobs over time.
From vases, candle votives, to twigs, dried flowers, moss and more, they may well have just the thing for you in their Poppins bag of goodies. Whilst I wouldn’t depend on this being the case, it never hurts to ask.
I can assure it’s always a complete bonus when your florist produces the PERFECT accompaniment or two to compliment your wedding day blooms. Florists often hire these items out for very reasonable prices. Some will even throw them in for free, if you are placing a large order.
Feeling a little overwhelmed thinking about how you’re going to bring your wedding day floral fantasy to life? Get in touch. I can help.
Need a hand pulling together your floral vision for your day? Want to source a reputable Melbourne wedding florist who fits your vibe perfectly? I’m your person.
If you’re feeling confident to go it alone but just need to order those crazy 3am floral visions you’re having, head to Etsy. You can download my handy Florals checklist and Florals at Glance pages. Planning your wedding day florals like a wedding pro has never been easier! You’re welcome.
So there you have it lovers. Your ultimate wedding day florals guide including hints, tips and simple ideas to nail your wedding day look like an absolute pro.