THE 15 BEST FLORISTS IN PORTLAND OREGON

In this post, you get the top 15 wedding florists in Portland Oregon, and tips from some of them to make your wedding day even better and get more from your florals.

Choosing a florist is hard, and knowing how to make your wedding flowers go far and reflect you is even harder! I hear this from my couples and wanted to make a list of florists in the Portland Oregon area that I have either worked with or seen in action. I put them together in a list (not ranking) and all are equally talented. They all have a unique style, so depending on what you prefer, you will find at least one florist from this list that you will connect with.

 

1. Wildflower Portland
2. Beckoning Blooms
3. Sea of Roses
4. Revel Petals
5. Thistle + Pine
6. Fleurie and Co   
7. Noble Floral
8. Blooms and Twine
9. Brier + Ivy   
10. Color Theory Design    
11. Twin Vines
12. Small Yard Flowers
13. For the Love of Floral
14. Britlyn Simone Floral
15. Swoon Floral Design

 

 

TOP TIPS TO MAKE YOUR FLORAL BUDGET GO FARTHER, GUEST POST BY WILDFLOWER PORTLAND: 

 

1. Repurposing flowers, is it practical?

 

Every year I get a handful of couples who are inspired by the idea of repurposing flowers from their ceremony to their reception- as a means of getting more bang for their buck. Many bridal magazines even encourage using bridesmaids’ bouquets as centerpieces or altar installations as sweetheart table florals, but I talk my couples through the following question, “Is it practical?” Bridesmaids’ bouquets, for example, spend hours out of water (throughout the ceremony, photos etc), and by the start of the reception they’re usually looking pretty rough; are wilting flowers really something you want to feature at your guests’ dinner tables? Also, that beautiful floral altar for your ceremony (which is generally the largest chunk of your floral budget), is typically where couples opt to take family photos during cocktail hour; this would also be the time your Floral Designer would need to disassemble your ceremony florals to repurpose them for your reception. Eek! If you’re going to repurpose, do so with a game plan and account for the timeline and the potential weathering of your flowers. 

 

 

2. Greenery garlands cost a lot of green!

 

Many couples have been miseducated on the cost of greenery garlands and think of them as a way to cut costs. Wrong! Lush garlands of eucalyptus, for example, can be incredibly expensive, particularly if you’re partial to a look that is dense and full; that is because your Floral Designer- who has access to greenery at wholesale costs, has to pay for a high volume of product, as well as pay themselves for the hours of labor that is required to construct each garland. Instead, consider an airy garland- using smilax, and ditching the addition of fresh flowers. You may also consider asking your Floral Designer if they have access to foraged greenery and if so, what varieties that will fit with your overall floral design and aesthetic.

 

3. Have flowers that blow you away but don’t get blown away!

 

I don’t know a single couple who doesn’t obsessively follow the forecast leading up to their big day. Many, with the help of their Coordinator, even make backup plans in case of rain, but what about wind?! Strong winds can knock over centerpieces, blow delicate bouquet petals away, and create an absolute mess! If you’re getting married in a location known for strong winds (e.g., the Oregon Gorge or the coast), have a conversation with your Floral Designer about their weather plan. Experienced Designers know how to weight down their arrangements as well as select blooms whose petals can withstand the elements. 

 

4. Given the time, do a venue walkthrough!  

 

If you have the luxury of time and have planned your wedding for more than a year out, consider doing a venue walkthrough exactly one year, to the day, before your wedding! Seeing your venue on the date you’re getting married will give you an excellent sense of what you can anticipate in terms of flowering plants, tree cover, and lighting at various times of day. Though these things can vary from year to year, ask your Venue Coordinator what you may be able to expect (and if they have photos!), particularly if you’re getting married at a garden, vineyard or another outdoor venue.

 

5. Make a floral keepsake 

 

With the increased popularity of dried florals think about if/how you’d like to save your wedding flowers after the big day. Traditional shadowbox frames are one way of showcasing your bridal bouquet but there are many other contemporary ideas! Things like clear Christmas ornaments filled with petal potpourri or pressed flower frames are decorations you can DIY or enlist your Floral Designer for that additional service.

 

 

  

AVERAGE COST OF WEDDING FLORISTS

 

The cost depends on a lot of things:

• Are the flowers you are wanting in season? If they aren’t local and in season, then they will have to be shipped in from other countries, which adds a lot to the price.

 

• Labor. If you want an installation, bouquets, boutonnieres, and table pieces, it takes an entire team to construct those in a short time so they are fresh and look great. It also takes a few days to process the flowers. Things like de-thorning roses, pulling off leaves, waiting for flowers to open up, wrapping the flowers, putting them in refrigerators. The amount of labor involved in making sure the flowers look good, are constructed correctly, and stay alive through your hot summer wedding include a lot of processing.

 

• Type of Flower. Some flowers are difficult to grow and thus, result in a more expensive cost per bloom. Brenna from Brenna Burnett Florals told me that the Lilly of the Valley is a very tiny flower with a small stem, and an entire bouquet would cost over $1000 because it requires so many stems for a small bouquet and each stem can cost $30 or more. That is a lot for a tiny flower!

 

Heather from Sea of Roses says on her blog:

“When my couples want to have large installations and impactful floral & styling elements in their space, but their budget isn’t as flexible- I almost always suggest cutting wedding party personals- think corsages, boutonnieres, bouquets, crowns and aisle petals. I think giving only the couple getting married floral elements can feel extremely personal and special and allow so much flexibility to make statements in other places! Most couples will see a savings of around $700-$1k+ for this alone, allowing you to allocate those funds to something more important.” Read the rest of her post HERE.

 

I personally have seen the average cost for the bouquet, install, and centerpieces can range from $2000 – $12000 depending on the above-mentioned items.  Remember this is just an average and totally depends on what you and your florist decide to do.

 

 

AVERAGE COST PER FLORAL PIECE

This breakdown is a national average and may not reflect each florist’s price points. This also changes depending on the seasonality and availability of certain flowers and the amount of labor involved.

 

ADVICE ON WHAT TO ASK YOUR FLORIST

 

• Let them know what your budget is. They can help you choose what would be the best route and the best bang for your buck depending on what is the most important part of your wedding to include flowers.

 

• Let them know what your vision is. They can tell you what really went into all of those Pinterest images. You’ll be shocked that Pinterest is full of images of weddings that the floral budget was most likely in the upper range.

 

• Let them know that you trust their decision-making. Florists have done this for a long time and will likely know what will look good and what won’t. The work you see on their websites are images of some of their most creative and most fun work. If you allow them to have the ability to be creative and do what they think is best, you will get something better than you could imagine.

 

• Ask them about the process of taking down the flowers after the wedding and if you are wanting to flip the florals (meaning move them from one location to the next between events), ask them what that would look like if you’re wanting to reuse your altar for example, as the backdrop behind your sweetheart table. Sometimes florists will come back to help flip or stay, depending on how quickly the flip must happen.

 

 

MY EXPERIENCE AND ADVICE FROM WORKING WITH FLORISTS

Florists pour their heart and soul into their work and they really want the day to be magical. Especially when it comes to photos of their work. They go above and beyond to make sure it looks good and stays fresh all day.

 

• Trust their vision. They know what will work in a specific season or venue. They have done this before and know when flowers might not work together or on a hot day in the sun. They also can give you advice on how to stay within your budget, what truly is required to make your vision come to life, and be a strong advocate for you.

 

• Do your research. I once had a bride who went with a florist that no one had heard of and when she got her flowers for her elopement days before the event, they were already browning, not what she had asked for, and obviously not from a flower market. She would have had no flowers if Brenna Burnett hadn’t been able to put a beautiful bouquet, boutonniere, and dog collar together for her. You can see that gallery here, and the review the bride gave about the experience here.

 

• Avoid doing DIY florals. Nothing wrong with them at all, however, looking back on your wedding day, you will realize you spent so much time and effort (if it is you or your mother making it) and didn’t get to really appreciate and relax during the wedding planning process. From a photography perspective, you will really see stems, coloring, etc. can sometimes be off. I get no money from saying this, it is just my experience, but the really dreamy photos and weddings have been the ones where there was money invested in good florals. You’re investing in me to document the feeling of your wedding, and absolutely nothing enhances that feeling more than good florals.

 

 

 CHOOSE A SUSTAINABLE FLORIST

There are florists who work hard to reduce their carbon footprint to zero. You should find a florist that takes precautions to use items and source items that do not leave a carbon footprint. These are the things that contribute to negatively impacting the environment and how a sustainable florist can counteract that:

 

• Fossil Fuel Use

  According to Ethical Unicorn, 80% of flowers come from the Netherlands, Kenya, Columbia, Ecuador, and Vietnam. Nothing wrong with that but the amount of energy and fossil fuel required to transport is astounding.

 

• Pesticide use and water contamination

  Choosing to work with a florist that sources most of their flowers locally, and from farms that use sustainable practices, you can support a business that doesn’t add to putting pollutants into our environment.

• Waste 

  Bouquets are typically wrapped in plastic. The shipping containers that they’re in as well as the greenhouses that grow them all use plastic and create waste. Floral foam included. Floral foam doesn’t break down, it has some pretty nasty chemicals in it as well. Sustainable florists will use wire caging or chicken wire to create a frame to build their floral designs. They also use recyclable materials and multiple-use containers so that there is little to no waste.

 

What can you do? 

 

Ask your florist if you can use flowers that are local and in season.

Ask if they don’t mind refraining from using foam and plastics.

 

FLORISTS OUTSIDE OF PORTLAND

 

FLORISTS IN BEND OREGON

• Bend Floral Artistry
• Blomstra Floriography
• Hey You Flowers
• Wild Poppy Florist

 

OREGON COAST WEDDING FLORISTS

• Hanabee Design
• Pacific Coast Floral Design
• Sunflower Flats

 

WEDDING FLORIST SALEM OREGON

• Crowley House
• Belle Fleur Floral Design

 

HELPFUL RESOURCES

 

1. Best 15 Flowers for a Summer Wedding
2. 10 tips for an awesome zero-waste wedding
3. How to Elope in Oregon
4. Setting a Realistic Floral Budget
5. Guide for Seasonal Blooms in Oregon
6. Floral Design Styles