Top Tips for Booking Your Wedding Florist from Hannah at Hannah Burnett Florist in Plymouth.

An honest interview with one of the best Florist in South West to help you plan your perfect wedding.

We photographed many weddings with Hannah’s stunning wedding flowers arrangements. Wedding flowers are a big part of your wedding day.  Today we asked Hannah  to share her top tips for choosing your perfect wedding florist.

 Hannah, how did you get into wedding floristry?

I always wanted to be a florist from the age of 14. I did some work experience from school in a flower shop and loved it! So from there I went to college, then worked in a shop for 10 years and here I am today, running my own business and loving it. 

 What is your favourite part of being a wedding florist?

Every day is completely different. There is such a huge variation of occasions we provide flowers for, and they are often for such massive events in someones life. 

Flowers are something that can say so much when you can’t really put it into words. 

 What is the starting point for flower design?

My first question is normally a colour scheme and style. This of course dictates how your final design will look. 

We try to use Bridesmaids dresses as a base to tie colours into. We try our best not to match exactly, as flowers are such a natural item and sometimes a very matched look can become too much. It is best to go with flowers which are similar in colour but also those that compliment the theme, it creates a much more elegant look overall. 

Style is dictated often by the couples taste and then of course the venue. If you are holding your wedding in a beautiful countryside venue, then you would not necessarily want exotic flowers for example. So we work with the couple to create a beautiful overall look that ties everything together. 

 How far in advance should a bride book a  wedding florist?

If you have your heart set on a particular wedding florist, then get in touch with them as early as possible! We generally take bookings two years in advance for key dates. 

 How much of the wedding budget should be allocated to flowers?

We understand that not everyone has the same budget, and that sometimes you are not able to spend as much as you would like. We will always try to create flowers for every budget.

However, we would suggest that 10% of your overall budget is a good amount. This generally gives you an amazing scope for really beautiful memorable arrangements. 

 Which flower will always be in fashion? 

The Rose. It’s a classic! 

There are so many colours and shapes of roses these days, they really do lend themselves to every style and colour theme. 

We are so lucky to work with the very best of suppliers and have the highest quality growers at our finger tips, both in the UK and in Holland.

 What is your favourite flower?

That’s a difficult question for a florist! I think overall it would have to be Lily of the Valley. My Mum had it in her wedding bouquet, and it is one of the few flowers that are still very seasonal, so it is all the more special when it flowers every May. 

 Top three flowers you would choose for a perfect wedding and why?

There are so many gorgeous flowers to choose from but I would suggest for a summer wedding, peonies, hydrangea and roses. 

Peonies are beautiful and blousy, and they give such a stunning scent. They really are an eye-catching flower. 

Roses are an elegant classic. They can provide a beautiful structure to any style of wedding bouquet and there are so many beautiful shades. 

Hydrangea are a really beautiful flower. They are so much more versatile than people think – people often get put off because of their size. They make beautiful displays for centrepieces, but they also lend themselves to simple Bridesmaids bouquets, chair ties and large scale venue decorations. 

Every florist has their own favourites, but these three certainly make a beautiful display. 

 As a wedding florist what would you do if a customer asked for unseasonal flowers to be used in a particular floral arrangement?

It is quite common for us to be asked for a flower out of season, particularly peonies!

Sometimes it is possible to still get a flower if it is out of season, but the cost of it of course goes up, so it really depends on the couples budget.

It is always difficult to disappoint when the Bride really does want a certain bloom, so we always try out try best to find the nearest alternative. We have never had a disappointed Bride so far! 

 What do you love most about doing weddings?

It is always an amazing feeling to finally give the bouquet over to your Bride. After so many months of working together, it’s fabulous to see their happy face! 

Weddings are such an exciting process from meeting couples initially, to planning out their designs. Ordering flowers from our fabulous suppliers and of course creating beautiful arrangements and delivering them on the wedding day, but handing over the bouquet is the best bit!

 How do you help couples come up with ideas for their wedding?

Often couples have a design in their mind before they come to us. Our job is to bring that design to life! We ask our couples to bring with them a colour swatch, and some pictures of styles they like. We then chat through ideas and put together flowers to show them how their bouquet may look. We also set up a mood board which both the couple and we can add too. This is a great way to get the ideas flowing and bring their vision into reality on their wedding day.

 What trends can we expect to see in wedding flowers?

Foliage has been a big trend for a year or so now, and it’s not going anywhere any time soon! Couples love the rustic foliage trails on tables and in other venue decor, as well as incorporating lots of foliage in bouquets. 

We’re also seeing bouquets getting bigger year on year, and pastel shades are also super popular at the moment. Blush and white have been huge for years but we are seeing the addition of pale blues and peaches too. This really does give a beautiful cool, relaxed vibe to the day. 

Pampas grass is a growing trend and although you may not want this in your bouquet, it looks fabulous in larger venue decor. 

 Wedding Florist top three tips for brides and grooms?

Trust your wedding florist – You have chosen them to be your florist because you love their work and their style. Work with them, take their advice and let them create the flowers of your dreams!

Choose seasonal blooms – You will get so much more for your budget by using beautiful seasonal blooms. Even if you want to have more choice flowers for your bouquet, choose to mix in fresh seasonal blooms for your venue flowers. You will create the most memorable displays for more reasonable cost

Compliment not match – Be open minded about the colours you would like for your flowers. Take along a swatch of your dress and your bridesmaids dress material and let your florist work their magic bringing colours and flowers together that will make stunning arrangements.