Q & A

Question: Will you travel to Charlotte to do a wedding?

Answer: YES! Of course!!

Over the past few years, we have been privileged to do projects in many of the surrounding areas to us. We have had clients from Boone, Lenoir, Hudson, Granite Falls, Lincolnton, Gastonia, and many more. We are thrilled to travel from Charlotte to Asheville and everything in between. Last month we even had a bride contact us about helping with her event in New Orleans!

So, yes, if you are looking for a florist who just loves to help make fairy-tale wedding dreams come true, give us a call. We are always thrilled and honored to participate in any special event.

We look forward to your call. 828.326.7100.

More FAQ's

Can I send flowers to someone?

We love to do flower arrangements and will do as many as we can! However, we do limit our orders so that we can give every order the attention and the time it deserves. We request that you always place orders 24 hours in advance. If our schedule is booked, we will not take on additional orders.

Why don't you keep regular business hours?

The reason we do not keep regular business hours is because we do not have a regular store front. And yes, while we do have things you can come and purchase, most of our work is either done on site for an event or we are teaching classes.

So, while we are not always at our workshop, we are always around and we do try to answer as many calls as possible. If you would like to stop by our Blossoms Floral Design Workshop, we do try to be there Monday through Friday 9:30 am - 12:00.

What is the best way to place a flower order?

The best way to place a flower order is to call a minimum of 24 business hours in advance. This gives us plenty of time to make sure we have the flowers you need and can put the time and care in to your project that it deserves.

Currently our credit card machine is down so we can accept checks through Paypal or you may send a check in the mail. We are working with a new team right now and will have that up and running as quickly as possible.

Do you deliver?

Yes, of course! All deliveries are made in the afternoon unless other arrangements are made. Deliveries to Frye Hospital are free. We do offer a discount to those who pick-up their orders at our Blossoms Floral Design Workshop.

Event Florist

Recently I was asked, "What is the difference between a florist and a special event florist?"

Generally, a florist can handle a wide variety of floral projects at one time. They usually work in a shop, but not always. Florists usually do projects relating to any occasion (prom, funerals, anniversaries, weddings, and holidays).

A special event florist handles larger scale events. Generally event florists specialize in large weddings, corporate events, and floral design as art.

Blossoms of Rachael West Designs focuses on large scale events and floral/plant arrangements for corporate offices and events. We also do funerals. Whenever possible, we do take on smaller projects such as birthday bouquets, anniversaries, dances, and other special events.

Please remember when placing orders we do require 24 hour notice as we do place priority on our events and corporate contracts first. By providing us ample notice we can guarantee your project will receive the attention and care it needs to make the floral accent of your special event perfect.

Please call 828.455.3774 for an appointment to plan your perfect special event.

How do I know if I am getting what I paid for?

My husband and I recently celebrated our wedding anniversary. Unfortunately on that day he was in Atlanta for a work meeting and we were unable to be together, so, he sent me flowers. These beautiful lilies came in a glass vase and were delivered to the house for $95.00

The lilies were beautiful, and I was extremely excited my husband would send me something I truly loved and there is nothing that would lessen the excitement I felt receiving those flowers from him.

However, being a florist I would be embarrassed to send this arrangement. First, there are uncleaned stems in the water which means the leaves below the water line of the vase. Debry in the water creates a breeding ground for bacteria. This is a guaranteed way to shorten the life of your flowers. There was no plant food packet attached to the arrangement.

Second, North Carolina grows a lot of lilies locally and they were in season during the time of our anniversary. The cost for these lilies were a little too high....however, it could have been priced accurately if there had been other flowers, a higher quality vase, or some type of extra embellishment.

Third, the florist called me that morning to say they had a delivery and asked if they could leave it on if I was not home. This is a MAJOR concern to me even more than the others because a good florist knows that if you set a vase of lilies out in the summer sun, even in water, they will open up and be dead extremely quickly. Lilies are finicky and like to grow in sun, but not be cut and in a vase and left in the sun.

Fourth, when the florist called, she mentioned the time they would arrive by. The florist was over an hour late. This was my first contact with them even before the flowers arrived. A big frustration when I was sitting at home waiting for them to arrive.

And last, the flowers, by the next day looked awful and were quickly deteriorating. All of them were dead in a matter of just a few days.

Rachael West Designs take great pride in making sure we include all the special little accents to your floral arrangements and here is how:

~We take care of the little details like making sure the water is clean and free of debry. We provide a packet of plant food which not only feeds the flowers, but more importantly helps keep the water clean and free of bacteria. Changing the water daily and mixing in flower food can double or even triple the life of your flowers.

~We are always happy to use local flowers or in-season flowers to help reduce costs for you.

~If you are not home, we always do our best to make other arrangements for delivery.

~Sometimes things happen. If a situation arises where we are running late, we will call.

~We offer, for anyone who would like, a photo of their arrangement. With technology literally in the palm of our hands, there should never be a time when you cant see exactly what you are getting... and paying for.

~We don't tack on a huge delivery fee at the end to make up our costs. Delivery is free for all of our weddings to one local destination and to Frye Hospital. Repeat customers also may get extra perks like free delivery.

~We would also be happy at any time to show you pictures of our work or provide references any time.

If your florist is not doing these things for you, you should definitely give us a try. We guarantee you will be pleased.

Rachael Wests Designs and Blossoms
828.326.7100

Proper Centerpiece Height

This week I have been working on designing with a bride the perfect centerpiece for her wedding.

The arrangement she dreamed up is over-budget so we have been trying to re-design it to fit with-in her budget. Normally, that does not pose any trouble, but for some reason, this time it has been very complicated to find the right vase at the right price that also matches all the other needed components of the design.

We finally created a smaller version that fit all the parameters we had hoped, but then were presented with a new problem......now smaller, it would block the view of the seated dinner guests making dinner conversation very difficult.

SO, what is a good height for a tall table centerpiece?

Well, it's a great question, because even I, who have researched it out numerous times, found many different answers.

One tip I have used....and it's not scientifically proven, documented, or anything else---it's just easy for me to do, is this:

Sit up to the table. Place you elbows on the table, bring them together, as well as clasp your hands together. Rest your chin on the knuckles of your hands while sitting up nice and tall.

For a high arrangement, you do not want to go under your eye level. This usually tends to be a minimum of 18 inches and averages out around 22.

Again, this is just to give a general guideline and hopefully will help eliminate some of those awkward moments at a table.

Your flowers should be the accent of the table, not the biggest distraction.

We LOVE questions! Please feel free to send in yours and we will get them answered for you.
Rachael West Designs
828.455.3774
www.RachaelWestDesgins.com

FAQ's for Weddings

Q: Will you travel to do a floral design project?

A: Of course! If you have a destination in mind, whether it be an hour away or a plane ride away, please feel free to contact us with the details and we will be happy to look at your individual situation. We would be honored to be a part of your special day.

Q: Is there a delivery fee for my wedding flowers?

A: All of our brides receive free delivery to one in town location. Multiple locations, great distances, or other unusual circumstances will be determined on a case by case basis.

Q: Do you charge for a wedding consultation?

A: We offer a 45 minute wedding consultation for no cost.

Meetings that run really long may be billed a $50.00 consultation fee. The reason for this is that this is our time, time which is irreplaceable. We work only with serious brides and we custom design each invoice as per the bride's requests. This also take a great amount of time. The fee will then be applied to the bride's invoice and go completely towards her wedding if in fact she does approve the invoice and sign our contract for wedding floral services. Brides who choose not to use RWD, after a consultation and requesting an invoice be prepared, will be charged for time.

Q: I am on a tight budget? Are my options limited?

A: You would be surprised at how many fairy-tale weddings we have created on a budget. With a little planning and a whole lot of creativity we can come up with something that you will be excited about.....and your budget!

Q: Do you take credit cards?

A: Currently we can only accept credit cards via Paypal, but with our upcoming expansion that will be changing. We appreciate your patience with this. (There are no additional fees to our customers for this service.)

Q: Why don't you maintain a store front?

A: Simple---cost! It takes a lot of time and money to run a shop and that's not where and how I want to spent my time and money. Running a business is not my strength, but doing flowers---that's my passion! By not having a store front, I can serve each of my clients better, focus on creating wonderful floral designs, and having fun doing it.

Q: Do you rent vases?

A: YES! It is one of the small things we do to set ourselves apart from other florists. If we don't have the perfect something you are looking for, tell us! We just might be able to get it and add it to our collection. Please note: we do NOT ship vases.
Q: My cake baker wants to put the flowers on the cake herself. Is that ok?

A: We have worked with many bakers who want to put the finishing touches on their design, and yes, we would be happy to supply the coordinating flowers for them to do that. We also have had the opportunity of placing the flowers on a countless number of cakes and would be honored to assist in this if needed.

Q: How can I cut costs and still create the look I want?

A: Let us help you come up with a plan where we can use many of the arrangements twice in the day....for example: use the ceremony arrangements at the reception, use the toss bouquet at the sign-in book, and in a major pinch...well, you could use your bridesmaids bouquets in vases at the reception. They will need water by then anyway, right?!!

Q: The flowers I want are not in season, can you still get them?

A: Most of the time the answer is yes. Most of the flowers used today in the wedding floral industry comes out of greenhouses and farms, so, getting your perfect flowers should not be a problem.

Q: Have your own question?

A: Contact www.RachaelWestDesigns.com with your question. We will get it answered for you.