Your wedding bouquet plays an important role in your special day. Imagine your wedding pictures without it! Just not as special, right? 

Whether your bouquet is large and grand or simple and organic, it completes the picture.

While the flowers will last for the day, the memory of them lasts forever right along with your gorgeous dress, shoes and jewelry. Choosing your flowers is fun but can be a bit overwhelming. I sat down with LInda Fern Davis at Petals in Melbourne, Fl as I have seen her designs at many of my weddings and all of my brides love her flowers. (And yes, she told me "Fern" is really her middle name. Pretty cool!)  Petals Design Center is located in the industrial part of Melbourne and she has the most unique setting for her store. It has a vintage, rustic, open air feel to the shop. Would actually be a great place for a photo shoot. Just really pretty so you'll have to stop in and see how different it is from the typical flower shop.  Linda is so creative and some of her art work is also hanging in the shop.Linda is super creative and some of her art work is also hanging in the shop. In fact, her shop is a "boutique" with pretty much everything you can imagine from jewelry to clothing……….all unique pieces and not items you would find in other shops.

Before my meeting at Petals, I had no idea how to go about choosing a florist, but now I do! Thanks to Linda and her creative staff!

Listed are a few tips to get you started shopping for your wedding florals:

1.Choose a florist that has been around for a while! (Petals has been in our area since 1985.) Experience counts. Flowers that are not cared for properly will not last thru the day. Good florist make wise choices when selecting where they purchase their flowers. I can say that I have seen some flowers that wilt quickly (NOT FROM PETALS!) and I've always wondered why some last longer than others. So, where those flowers originate from is equally important to how they are cared for once they get to the florist and on to you.

2. Once you choose your dress colors, those are the colors to be used in your florals. Consider that when dress shopping.

3. Visit the florist that you plan to use. Petals has a great slideshow of many of their weddings so you can see first hand how their work looks on the wedding day. So look closely at their portfolio. 

4. Current trends? Last year purple was a popular color. However, color is often dictated by season, i.e. icy silver in winter.

5.  There are no hard and fast rules regarding florals. Today's weddings are more relaxed. So brides should feel free to be creative with their floral designs. 

6. I was curious why most bridal bouquets today are tight vs soft, and flowing. So Linda educated me with two words "Martha Stewart". The longer, draping bouquet, I suppose, are more "old school"  but I still think they are gorgeous and I just know one day one of my brides is going to go in that direction and pick orchids softly draping over the sides. Just. For. Me.

7. And the least fun tip I saved for last: Know your budget before you visit the florist and asked to be shown only choices in your price range. Definitely will decrease your stress and frustration. A beautiful wedding is not determined by how much money you are or not able to spend. Keeping it real will keep you happy throughout the wedding planning process. 

To give you an idea of how cool Petals is here are a few pics of the shop:

Love this right? I can see an engagement couple here! These doors are actually for rent for weddings. Love......like, reaaallly love!

This piece was hand made by the crafters at Petals. They are amazing. Wouldn't this be a great piece to display your engagement picture or sign in book at your wedding? Or a place to display all the bouquets. I could even see this in MY house! Christmas present for me anyone??!!

Petals does color fabulously! That peacock is MR COOL! And he has friends!

My Petals Bride!

Barbara, the delivery person with the two girls that really "rule" the shop: Lilly Fern & Sophia Loren!

Still wanting more? Google tips for choosing a great wedding florist or just go here.