Wedding Lesson #1: Conquer the Flower Mart Mad Grab

Photo by Bliss Imagery

We woke up bright and early Friday morning to pick up the flowers for the wedding. After visiting the LA Flower Mart several times already to scope out vendors and pick out flowers for tester DIY projects, I thought we had this Flower Mart thing down real good. I had a list of everything we needed. Easy Peasy, right? Well, try shopping at the Flower Mart on a Friday morning, along with hundreds of other DIY brides and florists with the same mission in mind -- must. get. flowers. for. big. day!!!!!

So what rules should you follow when getting your flowers at the Flower Mart?

Rule Number 1: Want first dibs on your flower selection? Arrive early. The Flower Mart opened at 8 a.m. We arrived at 9 a.m. It was grab what you can find by then.

Rule Number 2: Have a list of flowers you need and the quantity you need. This is what we did right and fortunately we found almost everything on my list.

Rule Number 3: Can't find what you need? Have a list of backup flowers ready. I couldn't find billy balls for the bridesmaids' bouquets! Every vendor was out of them! I had to scour the Mart trying to find a reasonable alternative. I found some flowers that looked somewhat like billy balls, but I still have no clue of what they're called.

By the end of the Flower Mart excursion we purchased:

1. Our centerpieces: Purple double stem potted orchids. We ordered these 2 weeks in advance from our favorite orchid vendor. Along w/ moss and the pots, our 12 centerpieces came out to $233

2: Bridesmaids' bouquets, boutonnieres for the groom and groomsmen, sponsors and parents, as well as cake flowers and extra decorative flowers: $100

So all together, our flowers cost us $333 (not including the flower girls's petals which had to be silk per church policy, my bridal bouquet -- won through a blog giveaway, tester flowers or ceremony flowers -- a gift from a friend).