I’ve been realizing lately that most of my clients really don’t know what goes into designing a wedding. I thought it would be fun to give you all a little peek behind the scenes. I have a small wedding this Saturday, so today was pick-up day for the flowers. On pick-up day, I go in to my wholesaler and inspect the product. I make sure I have everything that I ordered and that the quality is good and make any last-minute order additions based on what they have available in their cooler. This is also when I pick up any supplies I might need- floral preservatives, ribbon, mechanics, etc. (mechanics are the items you use to make a design like wire, floral foam, corsage bracelets, etc.) Picking up the flowers a couple of days before I do the design work gives me a chance to prepare them properly and allow any closed blooms to open up.

Once I get the flowers back in the shop, it’s time to get them all prepped and hydrated. All of the flowers cared for according to their specific needs. For example, i just finished processing 50 blooms of stephanotis. They have to be float soaked in water for 30 minutes, then sprayed with an anti-transpirant, allowed to dry, and stored in a damp-paper-towel-lined tupperware container in the cooler.

Here is a picture of the stephanotis drying.

I also found 2 odd blooms in my stephanotis today– one with 4 petals and one with 6! They are supposed to have 5 petals.

I am using black magic roses on this wedding. This is my favorite red rose because of it’s great shape, rich color and velvety petals.

Here’s a photo of the stripped leaves & thorns and cut stems from 75 roses! Sometimes this is a messy business!

Lisianthus is another favorite wedding flower of mine. It looks a lot like a ruffly rose, but it’s petals are more papery and it’s quite a bit less expensive. Lizzy comes in white, purple, pink, cream, yellow, and some bi-colors.

So, I’ve got about 5 hours worth of work put into this wedding so far, and I haven’t designed a single bouquet, corsage our boutonniere yet! Preparing the flowers properly is so important for their lasting quality. Making in from the pre-wedding photo shoot all the way through the reception is a lot to ask of flowers– especially when they’re not in water! Proper care and handling at the beginning means that my clients always get the freshest, most beautiful wedding flowers that last as long as possible!

Thanks for reading– always feel free to ask me any questions you may have about flower preparation and care!

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