Wedding Flowers On a Budget: 15 Ways to Save on Flowers

Want to save on wedding flowers without sacrificing your vision? It's totally possible. All flowers are not created equal — depending on the season and the scarcity, the cost of blooms will vary. Getting wedding flowers on a budget is all about finding flowers that are in season, choosing your florals strategically, and finding creative ways to save. Discover 15 expert ways to save on wedding flowers!

1. Create a Realistic Flower Budget

The first step to adhering to a wedding flower budget is, of course, setting the budget. A good rule of thumb is to dedicate 15% of your wedding budget to flowers, lighting, and decorations (you can adjust that up or down, of course, depending on your personal vision and circumstances).

2. Buy Wholesale Flowers and Save Big

If you need wedding flowers on a budget then we highly recommend buying in bulk. When you buy directly from a wholesale flower company, you don't have to pay the markup you would in a flower shop. From there, you can arrange your own wedding flowers or hire a floral designer to arrange them for you.

Photo by Judy Pak Studio

3. Arrange Your Own Wedding Flowers

If you can arrange your wedding flowers yourself, you're going to automatically cut out the cost of hiring a professional florist or floral designer. Alternatively, you can recruit talented friends, family, and bridesmaids to help (or takeover) the flower arranging duties. We typically recommend arranging your flowers the day before the event, or if at all possible, the morning of the event. (Check out our wedding flower timeline.)

4. Strike a Balance with Your Wedding Flowers

You’ll want to determine what matters most to you when it comes to florals and prioritize your floral budget accordingly. For example, if you're dead set on having a large bridal bouquet with expensive flowers like peonies, you can offset that cost by going easy on the centerpieces, or vice versa. It's all about creating a balance. Identify the three things you want most out of your wedding flowers, and don't short yourself on those things.

Photo by FreeHope Photography

5. Keep An Open Mind

We’ve all gotten lost scrolling through Pinterest and have probably saved some pretty extravagant wedding flower inspiration photos. If you have a few saved in your wedding board and want to share them with a flower consultant, that’s totally okay. Planning wedding flowers on a budget is all about keeping an open mind and asking a professional how realistic is it to recreate the look while staying within your budget. A floral designer will be able to provide suitable suggestions or alternatives to best fit your budget!

6. Use In-Season Flowers

There are specific times of the year when certain flowers are in season. Determine what flowers are in season and try to stick with that! You can also take a look at year-round flowers. Some year-round flowers include roses, garden roses, carnations, hydrangeas, and orchids. Try to stay away from having your wedding coincide with major holidays like Mother’s Day and Valentine’s Day, as well. Those are very busy times in the floral industry so you can expect to pay more for your flowers.

Hannah Ruth Photography

7. Take Advantage of Statement Blooms that Fill Space

Statement blooms like garden roses or hydrangeas take up a larger volume of space in arrangements, which means you don’t need that many to create an impression since these flowers tend to be a little more costly. These blooms are also known as focal flowers since your eye is automatically drawn to them.

8. Substitute Inexpensive Wedding Flowers for Pricey Blooms

There are so many gorgeous budget-friendly blooms available in different colors and styles. There are also inexpensive filler flowers to pick that can add fullness to your arrangements and volume too. Flowers like dahlia-style cremons instead of dahlias or spray roses instead of ranunculus are just a few alternatives that offer great savings.

9. Only Use a Few Varieties of Flowers So You or Your Florist Can Buy in Bulk

Using one to three varieties can really help to stretch your budget. If you want several different types of flowers, you or your florist will often still have to buy in bulk, meaning there will be lots of extras. You can use these extras in other areas, but that also requires more work. Each flower has to be prepped, cared for properly, and then arranged as needed. You can still make a big impact with just one or two focal flowers, or check out our DIY combo packs that have an assortment of just the right amount of flowers.

10. Repurpose Your Wedding Flowers

Here's another pro-tip when it comes to wedding flowers on a budget: repurposing your blooms. The best part about your ceremony flowers and your bridesmaids’ bouquets is that they’re already arranged and they fit the color palette, so you can repurpose the flowers for your reception. Enlist a friend or two to transport the ceremony flowers over to the reception location. This is a great way to save money on extra decor. Repurpose bridesmaid bouquets as centerpieces or use them to decorate your guest book table, dessert table, cake table, etc.

Elaine Gray Photography

11. Incorporate More Greenery

There’s a variety of inexpensive greenery you can use to create a lush bouquet. Greenery like silver dollar eucalyptus, parvafolia, and leather leaf greenery are just a few to look into! Whether you choose to have more greenery than flowers in your bouquet, or you decide on an all-greenery bouquet, there are many benefits! Using more greenery will obviously cut costs, and the longevity of greenery means your florals will look great all day. No matter the weather, you don’t have to worry about the greenery wilting. Be cautious though, depending on the greenery type, sometimes the price may be just as much as if you were buying flowers.

12. Try Bud Vases

While lush and voluminous arrangements are very beautiful, there’s something about the simplicity of bud vases with a couple of stems in each that we love! If you are set on having pricey focal flowers such as peonies or garden roses, place them in small vases like bud vases. A peony is typically 3-4 inches wide, so you only need a few for a big effect. Your wedding flower budget will thank you for keeping things simple!

13. Skip Boutonnieres and Corsages Altogether

Another great tip on how to save money on wedding flowers is by eliminating boutonnieres and corsages. If you really love the idea of boutonnieres and corsages though, you can always make them yourself using wholesale flowers.

14. Combine Flowers with Other Decor Elements

Another great way to save money is to combine your inexpensive wedding flowers with other decor items like candles! Candles or other decor pieces can help fill the table without having to use a ton of flowers. Plus, candles set the mood and ambiance. You can also bargain hunt for vases, for example, the Dollar Store and thrift stores are a couple of great options to give you the look you're going for on a budget. One Who Hopes Photography

15. Use a Monochromatic Color Palette

Deciding on a color palette can be tough, especially when there are so many beautiful colors to pick from. To simplify your choice and to help save money, stick with a monochromatic color palette. A monochromatic color palette uses the same color in both light and dark shades. There are plenty of monochromatic combo packs to pick from that come with an assortment of flowers. You can also search by wedding color on our site to narrow down your color.

FiftyFlowers is here to help, whether you're wondering how to save money on wedding flowers or need professional assistance brainstorming your entire floral vision. We provide a free, 45-minute consultation to allow you to create what will make your day special. Give us a call or shop online at www.fiftyflowers.com.