Maree Floral | Utah Wedding Florist

Utah Wedding Florist | Maree Floral

Florist helps

Favorite Amazon Floral Supplies

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We love the convenience and accessibility of Amazon and here are some of our favorite Amazon floral supplies. All of these have been tried, tested, and reordered by us.

Bud Vases

We really love these mixed bud vases. They are very popular for us. We usually use clusters of 3 on round tables or 5-8 for longer tables. Some brides prefer to purchase the bud vases from us so they can keep them after the wedding or let guests take them home. It’s important for us to have a reliable source for these since we use so many!

Purchase them on Amazon here.

Clear Boutonniere Magnets

These boutonniere magnets are the best that we have tried and we have tested many. For all the hundreds of boutonnieres I have used these for I have never had a complaint. They are cost effective as well, I have brought some boutonniere magnets that were as expensive as $6 each wholesale, while these are 30 to 50 cents each. They are also available in green. We prefer the clear, but that is just personal preference. We like to use 1/4 inch waterproof duct tape to secure these to boutonnieres.

Purchase them on Amazon here.

Waterproof Floral Tape

This waterproof floral tape is a workhorse for us. It holds up great, has a duct tape like texture, and great price. In my experience I have found that this item is more expensive at craft stores and traditional retailers so I prefer to purchase it here. I have used some tapes that don’t work very well, but this one really does.

Purchase them on Amazon here.

Plastic Pin Frogs

After accidentally giving away all my metal pin frogs after an event, I decided to give these plastic ones a try! I removed the suction cups from the bottom and used Gorilla glue to permanently glue them to my compotes. They have worked great!

Purchase them on Amazon here.

Bouquet Pins

I absolutely love these pearl push pins and use them to pin the ribbon on my bridal and bridesmaid’s bouquets. I use two per bridesmaid bouquet and three per bridal bouquet. The key is to push these pins into the ribbon at an angle and make sure they pierce a stem to hold them in place. I like the length of these pins because they work well to secure ribbon in place without poking out the other side of the bouquets, so no one gets pricked while holding the bouquets. When people use boutonniere pins for bouquets they are more like to get pricked and they are also harder to insert.

Purchase them on Amazon here.

Bouquet Ribbon

We purchase this ribbon all year long, specifically in the ivory white color.

Purchase them on Amazon here.

Boutonniere Ribbon

We love this ribbon because it’s thinner width makes it easier to wrap around boutonnieres.

Purchase them on Amazon here.

Waterproof Floor Mat

This is kind of a random thing to add to the list, but it has honestly been life changing for me! I rented a studio for a while and had to figure out a way to protect the newly installed flooring. These clear plastic waterproof mats came to the rescue. They protect the floor from falling clippers, sloshy buckets, stains from walking petals and leaves into the floor, and a whole host of other messy floral things. I just make sure to clean under them periodically and make sure no dirt or leaves get trapped underneath them. Now that I am in a home studio I still use three of these mats to protect my concrete floors.

Purchase on Amazon here.

Disclosure: Some of the links on this website are affiliate links. This means that if you make a purchase through these links, I may earn a commission at no additional cost to you. All opinions expressed are my own, and I only recommend products I believe in.

About Maree Floral

Maree Floral is a Utah wedding floral company. We are based near Salt Lake City, Utah and serve all of Utah and the surrounding states.

We offer floral design services to all sizes of weddings, from elopement to full service weddings. If you are in need of a Utah wedding florist, inquire with us here.

Floral tablescape at Siempre Utah by Utah wedding florist Maree Floral

Meet Michaela

Hi! I started Maree Floral when I was a teenager. Catching a passion for floral design when I was seventeen, I have been obsessed with it ever since! I started out making corsages and boutonnieres for school dances and eventually ventured into weddings.

I have written most of the entries on this blog and love sharing my insights on Utah wedding flowers and planning. If there is anything that I can help you with reach out to me at michaela@mareefloral.com.

Get to know me on social media!

Michaela Keel, owner and florist of Utah wedding florist Maree Floral Co.

Why do florists charge more for weddings?

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Why do florists charge more for weddings? An assumption that is made about wedding florists is that we charge more for wedding flowers than other arrangements. This is a common misconception. We would and have charged the same for any large scale event. We do not charge more for wedding arrangements just because they are for a wedding. There are however aspects of event or wedding flowers that make relatively expensive.

Factors that contribute to the cost of wedding flowers:

1.) Premium Flowers

For starters, wedding flower arrangements often contain premium flowers that most people do not buy in everyday arrangements, such as dahlias, garden roses, and peonies. These stems often run about $5 to $10 per stem wholesale. A large quantity of these flowers definitely adds up.

2.) Freelance Labor

Labor is a large factor when considering the cost of wedding flowers. On average we spend between 20 to 40 hours working on each wedding. Wedding florists usually hire freelancers to help prep arrangements, transport arrangements, and setup and takedown of floral installations on wedding days.

3.) Hard goods and rental items

Florists often source and provide hard goods such as bud vases, compote vessels, arches, and other items that are used in conjunction with flowers to make arrangements. Whether a couple outright purchases these items or rents them from the florist, there is a cost involved in that.

In addition to vessels we also source large amounts of chicken wire, floral foam, or other structural supporting material to create arrangements.

Moab Utah wedding florist at the Red Earth Venue.

Some more things to consider

Your wedding’s location

Where in the country your wedding takes place will have a large impact on your floral budget. I am a florist in Utah, which is a landlocked state, and that means that for weddings I pay more for freight costs than those closer to major ports may. Something else to consider is the distance your florist will need to travel. We do weddings 30 minutes from where we are based to weddings five hours from where we are based. The travel time and travel expenses your florist incurs will reflect in your floral quote.

Your florists experience

The experience and skills level of your florist will also greatly affect your floral quote. If your florist has a unique style you are drawn to, it is likely they have spent years developing the skill level needed to achieve it. An in demand florist will likely charge more than a florist who is inexperienced because they understand the value they bring to your event.

Learn more about wedding floral pricing here.

Styled Shoots from a florists perspective

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What florists want photographers and planners to know about styled shoots. Most of us florists love styled shoots but there are some things we would like those planning styled shoots to know from a florists perspective.

We LOVE styled shoots

Most of the florists I know (myself included) love doing styled shoots. It is a way for us to ‘let our hair down’ and do something creative that we don’t usually get to do. If your inspiration is something unique, colorful, and beautiful we are in!

Be prepared to cover flower costs

If you really want to work with a florist for your styled shoot, reach out to them and ask for a quote on the designs you want.

Many vendors planning styled shoots want florists to pay for the flowers themselves. This is not something that is feasible for floral businesses as the cost of flowers per event is anywhere from a few hundred dollars to a few thousand dollars. If I said yes to every planner or photographer that asked for free flowers I would be in serious debt haha.

At the very least offer to cover the florists costs for the shoot.

Unless you yourself are a photographer, don’t promise images in exchange for labor.

I have been part of several styled shoots that were not planned by a photographer and the planner promised me images of my work in exchange for labor. Then the planner does not hire a photographer to specifically take pictures for the participating vendors. They plan on the attending photographers (who have often paid for tickets to be at the shoot) to provide pictures to the other vendors. This is something that has been a pain point for both attending photographers and vendors alike. We both end up feeling taken advantage of. Vendors because they often donate hours of labor for a shoot and sometimes do not receive pictures back. Photographers feel frustrated because they have paid to attend a shoot and find out they are expected to provide a free gallery to other vendors.

Podcasts for florists and flower lovers

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Every florist knows that during design time it can be really trying to work and listen to your own thoughts. Especially after several hours of designing by yourself it can start to feel lonely or crazy. To combat this I have found the following flower podcasts!

  1. Botanical Brouhaha podcast
    • I absolutely love this podcast. Amy McGee has a calming aura and along with her guests shares great insights into the floral industry. As a former wedding florist she knows many of the struggles faced by event florists and discusses them with her guests. I have gained so much insight from their conversations. She interviews both flower farmers, retail florists, and wedding florists.
    • Website: botanicalbrouhaha.com
    • Instagram: instagram.com/botanicalbrouhaha/
  2. The Flower Podcast with Scott Sheppard
    • I love Scott Sheppard’s enthusiasm for flowers. The love he has for flowers shines through his conversations with guests on his flower podcast. He interviews florists from all walks of life and offers great insight as he has been part of the floral industry for over 30 years!
    • Website: theflowerpodcast.com
  3. Coffee, Wine, and Flowers Podcast
    • This is a great podcast geared towards wedding florists specifically. Sarah Wahhab is a wedding florist based in southern California. She shares helpful information on growing your wedding floral business. She covers topics from how to use social media to how to overcome imposter syndrome as a business owner. A great podcast for any florists looking to expand their business!
    • Website: mulberryandmoss.com