Fridays in January 2009 will be reserved for a five-part series on choosing your florist. There will be great tips and ideas to help you plan well, be more efficient, and save time and money!

"Preparing for Your First Meeting" Part Two

The best time to meet with potential florists is after you have booked your venue for Ceremony and Reception. There is little point to meet before these decisions have been made, since the florist will not be able to suggest and quote on site specific designs. For instance, if you are unsure if your Ceremony will take place in a small Church or a large one, it my be challenging to estimate costs of the floral designs as accents only, or focal point extravaganza.

Before meeting with a potential florist, start a wedding flower file of photos, ideas, must-haves and general ideas - anything that will help your vision for your wedding day.

Photos of wedding flowers from on-line sources, magazine ads and editorial spreads are great indicators of the style and design you have in mind for your wedding. Start cutting out those photos! Here's a tip - collect photos of flowers you DON"T LIKE. This has proven a valuable tool to use as you add and eliminate ideas.

Think about making a list of descriptive words that will help you and your florist to get on the same page. The big catch-phrase the last few years has been "simple and elegant" - words that personally hurt my ears because they mean SOOO many different things to different Brides. Be more specific! Think about it lots and come up with interesting phrases that will get to the essence of the design you want.

Also take photos &/or fabric swatches of your dress, and the Bridesmaids' dresses. This is invaluable to help decide on what flowers will best work with your overall vision. If no photo or fabric swatch is available, take a few paint samples from your local hardware store to show the florist the colours you have in mind.

The last thing you need to think about in preparation for your first meeting with a florist is budget! I can't tell you the amount of Brides that come to the first meeting saying they have no idea what they want to spend. You may not know the exact the amount you want to spend, but you should know a range of prices you'd like to stay within - try to determine a low end and a high end price that you are comfortable with. A good exercise to do is ask yourself if you want to spend $ 10K on your flowers. If your immediate impulse is no way!, then ask yourself the same question with a different amount, say $ 5K. Continue through with different amounts until a number "feels" right. At least this way you'll have a starting point.

Check back next Friday for Part 3 - "The First Meeting"