It does not get more OCD + DIY than this. I'm currently in what I'd consider phase 3 of DIY-ing my wedding florals. 1. Get floral quotes and decide to sell your soul another day & do your own. 2. Do your research + pick a flower wholesaler to buy from. 3. Trial runs!!
In my last post I mentioned that I was still going to hire a florist for my centerpieces and only do my own bouquets. But it wouldn't be my wedding unless I changed my mind an extra amount of times before coming to a final conclusion. PLUS the game changer was really this wholesale website that I found. Not only did they have all of the flowers that I wanted (or close to), but this company is literally made for the DIY bride and comes complete with numerous tutorials and a customer service team that's super helpful (including waving the usual $ minimum to allow you to do a test run).
More on my trial runs & the wholesaler next week when my order comes! But for now - we talk spreadsheets baby! The 2018 me that would facetime her bestie CRYING over excel sheets and formulas I couldn't figure out would be so proud.
What I've found you need to have organized if taking this project on:
What arrangements you plan to make
Which flowers/greenery go into each of those arrangements and how many of each
An overview of what flowers you'll need + the quantity that specific flower comes in
The tools/vases you'll use to create
Your projected cost VS your budget
I personally couldn't imagine doing this without a trial run or two. Yes, it's going to cost me around $175.00 to do a test of my centerpieces but I'm just factoring that into my total budget and it is way worth the savings I'm still overall going to be making. Here are a few screenshots of the spreadsheet I made - which I am HAPPY to share with anyyyyone (message me from the "contact" page and I'll email it over!), or you can just take a few ideas from it to make your own!
Doc allows me/you to plug in the budget, and as I go in and add the cost of each floral, they'll automatically calculate in my projected cost section, and then also automatically calculate how much I have left in my budget (or of course if I'm negative). I just can't tell you how much joy it brings my OCD-failed-every-math-class-ever brain, seeing those numbers auto sum.
This is where I track what flowers each arrangement I'm making will require. I included a drop down under "tools needed" because from my research I feel like I'll use different tools (pin VS foam VS tape) depending on the project. My intention with this doc is to be overly organized and prepared and make sure I have enough of everything I need to avoid stress but also not excessive amounts of what I need to avoid over spending. Side note: If anyone out there is considering DIY florals and you're reading this like WTF is a pin frog or floral foam??? Just search these things on YouTube and there are ample tutorials.
Now when I get the florals I ordered for the test run next week, I'll have a much better idea of how many stems I'll need for my centerpieces and can go in and adjust the document as needed.
Hit ya girl up here and I'll send it on over if you want to use! :)
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