When it came to choosing the amount of flowers we'd need for the wedding, Mr. Jet and I were très clueless when it came to who gets what.  At the most basic level, I figured me and my bridal party would each carry a bouquet and Mr. Jet and his guys would all have boutonnieres - but beyond that, I wasn't sure what the floral protocol was.

Since we aren't using a traditional florist, I consulted with my BFF Google to figure out who exactly we should be supplying flowers for.  Turns out, the rules are - there ARE no rules!!  Most research I did told me the following parties should receive flowers:

• Bride
• Bridal Party
• Groom
• Groomsmen
• Ushers
• Parents
• Grandparents
• Ceremony Readers
• Any and all "honored guests"

Sounded simple enough until I read about "honored guests".  Aren't all of our guests honored??  Well, not 'honored' like, you're-lucky-to-be-invited, but you get what I mean.  I guess if we were having a huge 300+ person wedding and wanted to make our immediate family feel more special - but for our 160 person soirée, it doesn't make sense for us.  Also, since our ceremony reader is in the wedding (MOH K), we killed two flowers with that stone!


We narrowed down our list to: 

• Bride's Bouquet (hey, that's me!)
• Bridal Party's Bouquets
• Groom's Boutonniere
• Groomsmen's Boutonnieres
• Junior Usher's Boutonnieres (mini version of the groomsmen version)
• Mom's Pinned Corsages
• Dad's Boutonnieres
• Nana's Pinned Corsage

This covers all of the bridal party, our parents and our only living grandparent/officiant-extraordinaire.

I'm glad we've kept it simple, although after seeing this today courtesy of Sam at Curious Floral Crafts...

I wish we bought flowers for EVERYONE WE'VE EVER MET.  EVER.

Can't wait to get these beauties in my hot little hands - word on the street is they're shipping out to me this week!  

Okay here it is...

I don't like flowers.

Not that I HATE them, but I am just so indifferent to them.  When I smell them it reminds me of funeral homes which is bad.  When I see them, I'm like, "Oh those are pretty..." and onto the next thing.

When we started to look for florists, I was given the name of a local vendor a co-worker used for her daughter's wedding.  I was also told to be prepared for ultimate sticker shock.  Yes, I will pay $30 a plate for a guest at my wedding.  NO, I WILL NOT SPEND $125 ON MY BOUQUET!!!!!

Flowers are outrageously priced.  They die quickly and all you have to show for it are the photos that you'll hardly ever look it.  I'm a romantic, aren't I?

I just could not justify the cost of paying that much money for something I cared very little about.  I agreed to meet with this vendor though, just to see if I could get away with some babies breath and green elegantly arranged for way less than fugly red roses.

Mr. Jet and I met with said unnamed vendor and she proceeded to tell us that babies breath was ugly and "so out of style" while showing us a decades-old portfolio where all of the pictures looked like this:

K, no thank you.

I left with a $900 quote in-hand and a bad taste for florists in my mouth.  I had heard good things about a few other vendors and our local supermarket florist, but I think my mind was made up.

I want fake flowers.  Screw it.

I started googling "faux flower bouquets", "fake wedding flowers", "realistic looking silk flowers" and finally came upon Sola Flowers.

They're flowers made of sola wood (yes, wood) that are peeled and shaped into different flower breeds.

I found a shop on Etsy called "Curious Floral Crafts", who specialize in these bouquets, boutonnieres, and corsages.  

They were pretty and well-priced and best of all - THEY WON'T DIE!  ULGH!!!!!!

I messaged the shop owner, Samantha and ordered a few samples so I could see them in person.  I read on her site that the photos did not do the actual product justice.  So imagine seeing this:

And thinking to myself, "How could that possibly get any better?!"  Sam sent the samples and I really was blown away!  I'd show you another photo, but really - don't you get my point?

Her samples were all hand-made and beautiful.  They are delicate like real flowers, but will last a lifetime if stored properly.  And she can dye to match nearly any color - the options are limitless!

Much to the chagrin of my traditional family members who shouted "WOODEN FLOWERS?!", I set up an order with Sam for our wedding flowers:

1 Bridal Bouquet
2 Maid of Honor Bouquets
5 Bridesmaid Bouquets
1 Jr. Bridesmaid Bouquet
1 Groom Boutonniere
7 Usher/Dad Boutonnieres
2 Jr. Usher Boutonnieres
3 Pinned Corsages for Moms
1 Pinned Corsage for Nana

All that for HALF the price of my average local florist.  And again I must insist, they will last FOR. EV. ER.

I've already paid the deposit to Sam and we scheduled the shipment for mid-August.  Another convenience to note!  I'll have my wedding flowers 2 months before the wedding - no need to anxiously await a day-of delivery on the big day!