DIY Wedding Flowers

1. Keep it Simple: The last thing a bride needs, is to be worrying about wiring and taping flowers on her wedding day. Pick arrangements that create an impact, but require minimal labor and preparation time.
   
2. Be Organized: Make sure before you begin you have all of the materials and supplies you need. Check your vases carefully to make sure they are clean and any price tags have been removed. Create a plan for transporting your arrangements to and from your venue.
   
3. Classic Flowers: Pick flowers that are easy to acquire and even easier to work with. Roses and lilies are often times good choices.
   
4. Practice, Practice, Practice! The morning of your wedding is no time to be experimenting with new flower designs.
5. Have FUN!
   

Flower Care Tip

Gerber daisies are another flower that sometimes droop easily, and of course, it's always at the worst time! So, few tips to keep your gerber daisies looking great.

First, they are top heavy, so make sure to give them plenty of support.

Second, gerber daisy stems not only drink up like a straw but they absorb moisture from the sides of their stems. Often times a droopy daisy that looks like it needs water can actually be suffering from too much water. (They remind me of gold fish....don't know when to stop eating until it's too late!! )

Third, you can soak them in a very cool-lukewarm bathtub. Lying down, with a stem clipped on an angle, will allow the water to easily reach the flower head with a little less effort.

Last, keep the water clean, low, and the stems clipped on an angle. Do this daily and you should have beautiful gerber daisies for your special event.

Flower Care Tip

Hydrangeas are one of the few flowers that pull water not only up from their stem, but also from moisture coming in through their flower petals. Often times at weddings or other events one hydrangea blossom in an arrangement will wilt and make the whole arrangement look bad. Before you stress or rip the arrangement apart, take a spray bottle and mist the flower head with some cool water. Often times the flower will perk right up.

Do-it-yourself Flower Arranging

Martha Stewart has a wonderful posting of tips on basic flower arranging. Whether you are someone who struggles with putting together arrangements OR just want some fun new ideas, this is a fun posting.

She will show you several different arrangement styles, the tips, and tools needed to spark your imagination.

Click HERE to view Martha Stewarts Flower Tips!

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