Simply Sub-LIME: Meeting the Florist

I knew from the get go that flowers were expensive, and after reading previous posts form Weddingbee bloggers and hearing of other flower quotes, I was super nervous. My mom, of course, had another great vendor recommendation, so off we went to meet up with Laurel from Bloom Floral and Event Design. (Laurel - Perfect name for the flower business in my opinion.)

We were so nervous sitting in Starbucks waiting to meet her, but she came in with her book of inspiration, and asked me a few questions about what we wanted.

And what did she do? You guessed it! She put Mr. Pearl and I both at ease.

Hydrangeas, are my favorite flower, when they are in season, we almost always have a bunch of them sitting in a vase on our kitchen table. (Mr. Pearl knows just how to keep his future wifely happy!)

Picture source

I just love that hydrangeas look so soft and airy and yet they're so thick. Plus, they smell fantastic. We decided that we would put hydrangea centerpieces on half the tables, and on the other half we would use some sort of glass vase to hold limes.


I was so excited, everything sounded so great. After talking and going over ideas it was time to talk budget. I knew that there was a number sitting in my head, and so when she asked what I would like to keep it under, I kind of skirted the issue. It was awkward to say the least... but she was professional, and told me she would look over everything and come up with a number for me.

Here's what my flower budget now looks like...Original floral budget 1900
Laurel's floral quote - 900
SAVINGS =1000

Score? Yes, score one for the Pearls, score zero for expensive flowers! YAY.


So how is this possible you ask? Well Laurel explained some of it to me. Laurel works out of her home, which means she's able to cut overhead costs. We're also able to save so much because our flowers are in season! Laurel also runs somewhat of a "green business" no pun intended. She told us that a lot of her brides only take home a few of their purchased centerpiece containers, so she is often able to use them for her next set of clients, continually passing down the savings. What a cool idea!

Laurel was even voted in the top 5 for Best Flowers 2009 in Milwaukee! As with most of our vendors, after finding Laurel we didn't even consider looking for another florist.

We are so excited to see what Laurel comes up with for us! Were you ever scared off by the price of flowers? Did you decide to bite the bullet and shell out the dough? Or go a less traditional route?