1725 Toledo Rd Elkhart, IN 46516 tracy@sautters.net www.sautters.net

(574) 293-5584 (800) 545-5190 fax (574) 293-7590

The Blossom Buzz

By Tracy Lane

Blooms, Buds, and Beyond

July 17th 2009
 

Wedding season is in full swing at Sautter’s and has been since April. I have to admit that I get a little lax about my Buzz when I am wrapped up in my wedding world.  My creative juices are flowing in a different direction! So I thought I would share a little insight about today’s brides and wedding trends and get my Buzz back on track!

First let me say that the brides of today are sophisticated, savvy, and quite innovative. Makes my job very easy and yet sometimes very difficult!  The easy part comes because they have so much information at their fingertips with the internet that they come into our consultation with stacks of pictures and ideas. That part is great!  I get the feel for their desired look right away! The difficulty that arises from this highway of information is that what is available commercially in the floral world and what these photo shoots show are often two different things!   A photographer in New York City or Los Angeles commissions a floral designer for a bridal bouquet, the designer runs down to the farmer’s market and picks up some really cool flowers, and makes the bouquet. They take the pictures, and presto, it hits the highway!

There are two problems with this, one is that the flowers that are often chosen are not grown commercially, they might have been grown by a local person who grew just one rose bush with a really cool rose. The second problem is that when a bride gets her heart set on a fantastic bouquet she can be very let down to find out that this bouquet has some of the most costly flowers available and the bouquet she fell in love with is going to cost $300.00!!! Ouch!

So this is where we have to shine! It our job to do make these dreams come true without breaking the bank.  I know I am partial but I think a wedding without outstanding florals is like having a cake without icing! I am often shocked when a client’s floral budget is the same or close to the budget for that cake. Flowers cover a lot  of territory!!!!

There are many ways of spreading a glow across the reception without emptying the wallet and again that is where we come in.  We have a large inventory of glassware that we rent for weddings. That keeps the costs down and allows us to use more flowers, thereby getting the look the bride wants. We often split up the centerpieces so we get a burst of color with flowers on some, and incorporate the  clean look so often desired by today’s bride, on the other tables, by pairing them up with a vase or glassware with a single submerged flower and a glowing candle floating on top. Very cost effective!

We rent vases of all shapes and sizes, votives, pedestals, arbors, plants, etc.  We are definitely one stop shopping when it comes to fulfilling our client’s needs. Rentals are a win win situation for all of us. We don’t have to keep ordering and processing items and a bride doesn’t have to buy 22 vases for her centerpieces when she can rent them at half of the price.  She would pay twice as much in a ‘box store’,  even at the often discounted prices!

My next goal is to take pictures of our wedding work and post them on our site! I am terrible when it comes to that and I cringe whenever someone asks, “Do you have pictures of your work?” At the end of a wedding set up we step back, look at the overall picture, smile….and walk out the door.  Shame on us! J Thank goodness we have great word of mouth referrals because my wedding portfolio of pictures is thin!!!  Check back and see if I can keep my word!
 

Thanks for listening to me buzzzz, til next time……Tracy

Wedding consultations are free and there is no obligation. I am always happy to sit down and go over a potential client’s wedding needs to see if we can fulfill those dreams and make her day as special as she would like it to be.  Just call 574-293-5584, ask for Tracy, and we can go from there!