After skipping the July post thanks to vacation… I’m back at it with this month’s intimate wedding post, this time, all about florals! It’s really easy to bust a floral budget with a few pricey blooms…. ahem, peonies, I’m looking at you…. but there are plenty of ways to find cost effective flowers for your big day. Have a small bridal party… or no bridal party. Less people to outfit with florals = less moolah. Stick to greens. Make your bouquet as the bride a show-stopper, but stick to the basics for your girls. Simple bouquets of just baby’s breath or greens can be really dramatic and beautiful. DIY. If you’re ok with the basics (roses, hydrangeas, tulips, etc.) grocery stores can be a great alternative. Just recently, I threw a bridal shower and wanted some centerpieces for the food table and the two high-top tables I had rented. I bought $50 worth of flowers between Trader Joe’s and Fresh Market to more than fill them up! (pink roses, white roses, pink peonies, white peonies, baby’s breath & lots of greens) Order wholesale. This is actually what we did when we got married… fiftyflowers.com is where we ordered everything. I think we spent under $500 for 6 bouquets, boutonnieres and all the loose flowers we had on the tables. ** If you do DIY, make sure you have someone to arrange them OR you leave yourself plenty of time to do them. For table arrangements, use floral styrofoam or tape grids to hold your flowers upright. Scour thrift shops for vessels to hold table arrangements or use what you already own. For that bridal shower I threw, I grabbed one of those plastic shoe storage boxes and put some foam in it… made my arrangement and then stuck the whole thing in a pretty basket I already had.  (photo above!)