Flowers.....just one of many sources of stress for any bride. With all varieties and colors available, it isn't surprising that it makes some brides crazy. But flowers needn't be overly complicated or expensive.

There are two options for flowers (as with most things) you can either find a florist to do them for you, or with a little practice and creativity you can certainly do them yourself. As a matter of fact, I've never paid a florist to do flower arrangements for me. It's just too easy to do myself. And I like that fact that I have more control over what goes into my arrangements and how much I spend.

If you are going to hire a florist, keep a few things in mind;

1. Avoid scheduling your wedding near major "flower holidays", such as Valentine's Day and Mother's Day.
2. Flowers shouldn't exceed 5% of your total wedding budget. If they do, scale them back. It would probably look like too much anyway.
3. There really is no cost difference between silk flowers and real ones. I once had a florist tell me that they were going to charge me 20% more for silk. Silk flowers cost the florist less to provide. What they are charging you for is the fact that those flowers won't die.
4. Don't buy into flower preservation. Many florists will try and sell you this service and it isn't necessary. You can dry your flowers yourself simply by tying a sturdy string around the bottom of your bouquet and hanging it upside down either outside or in a sunny window. Certain flowers don't stand up well to the florist preservation process anyway. White roses, for example, tend to turn an ugly brown color when freeze dried (which is what the preservation process does).
5. Your florist should always provide vases whenever possible for your flowers to remain fresh. This isn't' possible with long cascading bouquets, but with the popular exposed stem look it helps a lot. What you can do with cascading bouquets is just refresh the water in the foam that the flowers are in. Real flowers will be set in what is called wet foam. So just a little trickle of water will keep them hydrated.
6. Always schedule your flower delivery well in advance. I heard of a bride once whose bouquet was much smaller than what she thought it was. Luckily since she had scheduled her delivery far enough in advance, she was able to have her florist increase the size of her bouquet and still get it back to her with time to spare for her wedding. That's a good florist.
7. There is absolutely no substitute for word of mouth referrals. Ask around with friends and family and even other wedding vendors, they can point you in the right direction.

Now the fun part..... Making your flower arrangements yourself. Don't be intimidated. There really is no wrong way to do it, if it looks good to you that's all that matters.
If you are going to do the flowers yourself you will need to find a floral wholesaler in your area. Wholesalers are wonderful because you can get a lot of flowers for very little money. In my area I use Norfolk Wholesale Floral. I was looking for organic rose petals for a cake I was decorating and I wanted to make candied rose petals (yes, roses are edible). The florist that I went to told me that if anyone could get them it would be Norfolk Wholesale. Well I abandoned the rose petals, but fell in love with the store. In addition to fresh flowers they also stock silk flowers, candles and all sorts of things to make flower arrangements. They also rent silk arrangements for weddings. They look a little generic, but all in all it's a cheap way to go.

If you decide to arrange your own flowers I'd suggest doing a practice arrangement in silk. They can be worked with over and over without being badly damaged, so you can get the design exactly the way you want it. You can find silk flowers at a variety of places from Wal-Mart to the local dollar store. Your craft store and floral wholesaler should have a large selection.

Flowers should compliment your wedding, not over power it. So don't think you have to have huge bright arrangements. This is a case where less is usually more. If you are a small person don't carry a huge cascading bouquet, the only thing that will be noticed is the big pile of flowers walking down the aisle. For a more classic look, try carrying a nosegay (small rounded bouquet) or a basket full of flowers.
Remember when working with fresh flowers, always keep them hydrated. Never store them below 40 degrees. They will turn a horrible brown color. Storing them in the fridge is fine as long as it is about 40. Just don't forget that they are there. I was part of a wedding where that actually happened and someone had to go back to the house for the flowers.

Here are some money saving tips when working with flowers, fresh or silk.
1. Be open to using seasonal, locally grown (if available) flowers. Some flowers are quite pricy when they are out of season. For example, one type of lavender hydrangea doesn't fair well in the summer time. They are available but since they are out of season you would have to pay more for them and then hope they hold up.
2. It is perfectly acceptable to substitute a silk flower for a real one in your arrangement if that flower is out of season or out of budget. For instance, lily of the valley can be very expensive. So you would simply substitute the silk flower in place of the real flower. The look is the same at a fraction of the cost.
3. Keep the number of attendants down. Think of it this way, for each bridesmaid the cost goes up exponentially. And there really is no need for attendants at all. You could eliminate them all together and not have to worry about the cost. In renaissance times there were no attendants, just the bride and groom.
4. Think outside the box when it comes to attendants' flowers and the tossing bouquet. One way to keep costs down is to have attendants carry a single flower tied with a ribbon in your color choice. Or why not have everyone carry masquerade masks? They are cheap (and fun) to make and can be made to compliment any décor choice and they don't wilt later. Here is a fun idea for the tossing bouquet. Get several single flowers and wrap each with ribbon and attach a little note, charm or other greeting to them and toss them as you would the bouquet. This way no one feels left out and everyone has a little warm and fuzzy to take home.
5. When it comes to centerpieces, again think outside the box. You could use small potted plants in pretty pots at a much lower cost than a cut flower arrangement. After all twenty dollars goes farther in the Home Depot garden department than at the florist. What about having vintage teapots with small potted plants inside them for an outdoor garden setting? Or having floating candles instead of flowers? If you are having a theme wedding this is a great place to keep the theme flowing. How about some paper lanterns instead of flowers for an Asian themed wedding? Or here's another idea that helps keep the cost of the cake down as well. Why not use a cupcake tree in the middle of each table? This eliminates the need for the huge towering cake and it provides great visual appeal. And when its cake time guests can help themselves. Then you just need a small cake for the cutting ceremony.
6. Don't feel like you have to have corsages for the mothers. It's quickly becoming faux pas. Other alternatives (and an interesting addition to the ceremony) would be for you to each give your mothers a single rose, also a special memento would work here as well, such as a small framed photo.
With a little creativity this is an easy project for the hands-on bride to tackle herself. Congratulations and Happy Planning.