The Beginner's Guide To Wedding Flowers - What happens on my wedding day?

At Emma Jane Floral Design we think your wedding morning should be a blissful stress-free morning of pampering, anticipation and bubbles with your nearest and dearest. This is why we do all running around for you; delivering your bouquets and buttonholes and setting up your ceremony and reception flowers to create your dream wedding day whilst you sit back, relax and take it all in!

But what are we getting up to behind the scenes whilst your sipping prosecco and nibbling croissants with your besties?! For us a typical wedding morning for a 1pm ceremony might look a bit like this;

5am - Get up, get ready, have breakfast and drive to the workshop. We have a busy day ahead so a good breakfast is key!

6am - Check over all of the personal flowers (bouquets, buttonholes, corsages etc) replacing any flower casualties if needed. We recut all of the stems and place them in fresh water to keep the flowers hydrated and then finish everything off with dreamy silk ribbon. I steam all of the ribbon as my last job on the day before the wedding, to allow us maximum time on site in the morning.

Photo by Marta D. Weddings

6.30am - 7.30am - Prepare all of the floral arrangements for transportation and pack the van. A crucial stage in ensuring your wedding flowers arrive in tip top condition, good packing always takes longer than you think, so we allow plenty of time! It's a bit like flower Tetris getting everything packed in safely for the journey!

7.30am - 9am - Final check of the order list and drive to the venue. If your wedding venue is a bit closer, we might have a bit of a lie in (I wish!) or get to site a little earlier.

9am - Arrive at the venue, unpack and unwrap the flowers. We consult with your wedding venue ahead of the wedding, so that we know exactly where to park and unload.

Photo by Cassandra Lane Photography

9.30am - 11.00am - Position all of the ceremony flowers and create any designs that need to be made in situ. Some larger scale designs need to be made on site, for example, floral installation pieces, for these we try to prepare as much as possible in the studio and then construct the install on site. Depending on the scale of the work required and your ceremony time we might arrive on site earlier to fit everything in.

11am - Deliver the personal flowers.

Photo by R.Orange Photography

My favourite part! We always deliver our bouquets in water, keeping them hydrated means they will stay at their best for the longest possible time. I recommend bouquets are taken out of water around half an hour before the ceremony (we usually ask a responsible bridesmaid to be in charge of this), dabbing the stems with a towel will stop any drips on your dress (a big wedding day no no!). Typically, buttonholes are left at the venues reception desk, if there is one, for the groom and groomsmen to collect when they are dressed and ready to go. We recommend leaving it until the last minute to pin buttonholes to lapels, to minimise the risk of breakages prior to the ceremony.

Photo by Cassandra Lane Photography

11.15am - 12pm onwards - Finishing touches and final checks, we will once again consult our order list to ensure everything is perfect and exactly as you envisioned. All of the ceremony designs are given their final tweaks and adjustments. Then, if the wedding breakfast is in a separate space, or we have an allocated space at the venue for unpacking, we can start positioning any centrepieces, setting up candles etc for your wedding reception whilst staying out of sight of your arriving guests.

1pm - 2pm - Your wedding ceremony! We typically have lunch during your wedding ceremony, giving us time for a little tea break and ensuring we are discretely out of the way!

Photo by Upon The Heath Photography

2pm - Once the ceremony is over and you're enjoying welcome drinks with your guests we will start the room turn-around. This can include moving floral designs from their ceremony position so they can be enjoyed during the wedding breakfast; setting up centrepieces and positioning candles, all to create your dreamy wedding tablescape.

Photo by Marta D. Weddings

4pm - One last check of the order list and our day is done! With you blissfully enjoying your wedding reception, we slip away to tidy up the workshop and get some well earned rest ready for takedown the following morning!

Wedding Day FAQs

Do you make our bouquets on the day of the wedding?

No, I typically make all of the wedding party flowers the day before the wedding and keep them hydrated well until the wedding day. This allows time for the blooms to open and means I can take my time to design them without rushing. It also means I get more time on site on the day of the wedding.

Can we deliver wedding flowers the day before the wedding?

The answer is this: It depends.

If we can access your wedding venue it is possible for us to set some designs up the day before your wedding. Typically, we only do this if a two day set up is required and your venue is kept nice and cool. Flowers wilt very quickly in warm conditions. I like to personally check over all of the flowers on your wedding day to ensure everything is in perfect condition and looking its best for you on your big day.

Can bouquets and buttonholes be delivered the day before the wedding?

Potentially. As long as your bouquets and buttonholes are kept cool and hydrated they should be fine to be delivered the day before. I prefer to deliver bouquets on the morning of the wedding so I can double check the quality of all of the flowers and replace any casualties if required.

If you do opt to have your bouquets and buttonholes delivered the day before the wedding, I will leave detailed instructions for keeping them at their best.

Will you be around if anything goes wrong on our wedding morning?

Yes! We limit the number of weddings we work on to one per day, to allow us to be present on your wedding morning. This ensures everything is set up perfectly and means we can rectify any little issues that crop up, usually without you even realising! We want your day to be perfect!

Do we need a room turn-around?

It depends on your venue, if you have a separate ceremony and reception space and no floral arrangements are being repurposed from one to another, then you may not need a room turn-around. In this case we would set up the reception and ceremony rooms on the morning of the wedding and then disappear. I will advise you if a room turn-around will be required for your specific wedding space and floral arrangements.

What happens if it doesn't all fit in one van?

Then we will bring another! Don't worry, we will organise all of the logistics - you can sip away at your prosecco knowing it's in safe hands!

Do we need to provide meals for your team of florists?

No. As lovely as that sounds, we are usually well out of the way before you sit down for your wedding breakfast.

Photo by R.Orange Photography

If you have any questions about what happens on your wedding day or would like to discuss options your wedding flowers, simply fill out the form on our contact page and I will be in touch shortly! Emma Jane Floral Design cover weddings in Mid Wales, North Wales, Shrewsbury, Shropshire, Cheshire and further afield. I can't wait to start making your dream wedding a reality!