Why was I spending $1,000 on centerpieces I wasn't 100% happy with?!?!
This question nagged at me and I kept feeling bad that we were spending so much money on flowers that I didn't even like. So I decided to call the florist and cancel the centerpieces. We're still having them do the bouquets and boutonnieres because it wasn't an extra charge to have the dahlias in my bouquet...and also by that point, we'd already put in a deposit and couldn't completely cancel our contract with them. I figured there had to be a way to get cranberry dahlia centerpieces, or at least not spend so much money on flowers I didn't want.
First, I thought I could create these DIY pumpkin centerpieces that I blogged about before and swap out the pink flowers for cranberry dahlias. According to the instructions, it only costs about $25 to make each one, and even with the extra cost for dahlias it would be affordable. I researched inexpensive glass bowls and I also looked up where I could get flowers on the cheap. I checked out online flower wholesalers, and cranberry dahlias weren't even that much! We could totally afford to get enough for this project. I'd already planned to buy some mini white pumpkins so I would just need to order extras from my mom's local nursery. I'd seen so many other brides DIY their own flowers, and this centerpiece seemed do-able.
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{source}But then my mom had another suggestion. A woman at her job who recently got married purchased all of her centerpieces from Stew Leonard's. Stew Leonard's is a supermarket located in Connecticut and Westchester, New York that is known for its fresh milk products and specialty foods. A person dresses up as their mascot (a cow) and walks around the store. It's like a farm version of Disneyland and I remember loving going there as a kid. Anyway, they also have a floral department and this woman my mom knows had brought in a picture of what she wanted, and they replicated it exactly for a reasonable price. My mom suggested we check them out and see how much they would charge for a cranberry dahlia centerpiece.
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{source}We went a few weeks ago and we're able to afford the exact centerpieces I want from them! We asked for cranberry dahlias, pale yellow stock and hypericum berries (all flowers that will be in my bouquet) and each centerpiece from Stew Leonard's will cost about $25 less than what our other florist was charging for rose centerpieces. It's a savings of about $55 for each centerpiece over what the other florist would have charged for the same flowers. Stew Leonard's is so much more reasonable! I wanted to see a mock up, so the florist did one for us this past weekend and I LOVE IT. It's exactly what I want. Here's a sneak peek:
Pretty, right? I'm so glad this worked out in the end. It's dangerous territory to want a specific flower but it seems like everything will work out for us! And now we're spending less than $1,000 on flowers I actually love.
Good for you! I agree that you shouldn’t spend money, especially so much money, on something you aren’t absolutely thrilled about. Your centerpieces are going to look beautiful!
ReplyDeleteYay, congrats for you! I love the dahlias! We were lucky - I was dead set on having a million sunflowers everywhere, but they are cheap in the summer/fall, so it worked out. We also went with a florist from a smaller town as opposed to someone from San Francisco, which would have cost twice as much per centerpiece.
ReplyDeleteYay, congratulations on the great find! I always drive by the Stew Leonard's and am tempted to go in!
ReplyDeleteI just wanted to let you know that I love the floral department at Stew Leonards! I have recently started using them for centerpieces for parties that I have done. I have used them twice and the flowers come out gorgeous and got tons of compliments, AND they are much cheaper than most other places. Love them! And love the colors.
ReplyDeleteWoooo! You know I love me some Stews. We're there at least once a week - no joke. It's kinda sad. And yes, Mr. B always hits all the buttons like a 5yr old. LOL
ReplyDeleteI'm SOO glad it worked out for you. We went there looking for flowers too on the recommendation of a friend. We were really disappointed. The guy never called us back, never answered any of our messages or emails and was rude to my mother when we were there. Every time we walk past the floral dept in Yonkers Mr. B mumbles something under his breath. I'm sooo glad it worked out for you though - friends of ours used them for their wedding and really loved them. They were even able to get her ranunculus when every other florist said it wasn't possible. Can't wait to see everything!!
@Lindsey M: That's awesome--so glad to hear you've used them and liked them. So far, I'd only had that one recommendation but based on our mock-up, I see they do great work!
ReplyDelete@Dancy: Oh no, I'm sorry your experience with them wasn't great. It's so strange because the guy my mom and I have been speaking to (at the Yonkers location) has been really friendly and helpful. But I'm happy to hear your friends liked them. Whoever you spoke to must have been having a bad day or something--weird!
That is so cool and great job Savvy Lady. To this day, I still haven't been inside Stew Leonard's! I hear it's so much fun inside.
ReplyDeleteThe only flowers we had were my bouquet and the bouts and those were Whole Foods flowers my cousins wrapped the night before!
I am so excited for you! We had dark burgundy dahlias in my bouquets and on the tables as part of the centerpieces and loved them! So glad this worked out cheaper for you. The sneak peek pic is so pretty! Can't wait to see the whole thing.
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