Services:

Voted #1 Florist in New England 2004 WHDH channel7 NEWS We provide fresh flowers, custom bridal accessories and embroidery as well as bouquet preservation. We are a solely an Event Florist. All meetings are by appointment only. Please contact us at Rosalind@BellsofIreland.com for information and pricing. We are limited in what we can say if we must decline your lead, specifically that "your request does not meet our needs" if your budget does not meet our minimum order requirements.

I am getting married on May X, of 200X. Would like a price quote on 5 bouquets, 10 centerpieces, and ..... what would you charge?

Ok, lets take a step back here. Asking for a price like that is sort of like buying a used car that you have never seen. In this situation the only thing you have seen is original glossy marketing materials that the car manufacturer put out in the day (and that was 10 years ago).

The only way anyone can determine what price anything is, is to sit down with you and find your likes and dislikes. For instance, anyone can come in at 10% less... but unless you talk to the florlst...and I mean sit down and have a consultation, you will end up with a quote for carnations and not roses...or worse cheap low end- grocery store roses that never open instead of quality lush Ecuadorian or FLP roses. Nor will you find out if the florist is someone you want to work with...and that will be there when you need them (in the middle of a brainstorm or day before panic attack)

In order to talk with any florist , you need to come up with a budget. And NO, a budget is not something you can do on the fly. If you do not figure out a budget, the first florist you will sit down with, will probably put you in sticker shock. You will walk out and possibly burn a bridge with a potential vendor.
In order to figure out your budget: surf the net...
Find out what you like (or even what you are not crazy about) from a wire service that has pictures AND prices. Multiply the items out by how many of each you need, then add 20% for delivery. That should give you working number.

Many magazines and "arm chair" professionals looking for their 15 minutes of fame will tell you to focus on a percentage (5-10%) of your total wedding budget. This a myth that does more damage than good.
Get an estimate of what a realistic budget would be by doing math with actual numbers from your needs, based on generic web images of things that you like. Once you have that number, then you should sit down and talk with your favorite florist to discuss your options. If your budget is $800 or less, you may want to consider shopping for a special promotional package or your DIY options to get the most for your money.

PS. Also any email you send to the florist with the above question, will probably put you into the this person "is not serious" category...and you may end up with anything from a polite form letter response to an irate email sent back.