Dazzling Wedding Décor for Less

Centerpieces

Flowers and Greenery

Photo Credit: Rikki Ward Photography

Choose a floral color that pops against the other colors on your table; you’ll only need a few bright blooms per arrangement.

Choose larger flowers. “Use big blooms such as hydrangeas,” Galanakis says. “They may cost a bit more per stem, but you only need a few to fill in the space,” saving 25 to 40 percent on each centerpiece. 

Just dot your arrangements with a few dramatic flowers. Two or three elaborate blooms, even pricey ones like gardenia or orchid, create a more expensive look, saving you over 75 percent over a piece completely filled with the same exotic flowers.

Float a single flower or candle. In a water-filled glass vase or fishbowl, these floating accents can cost under $5 apiece.

Go loose. Frugoli says that a looser floral arrangement with pretty hanging greenery will generally be 20 to 40 percent less than a tightly packed piece.

Go tall. Three-foot lengths of inexpensive curly willow, white birch or flowering branches give height to floral arrangements, and cost only a few dollars per branch.

Go high-low. “I recommend alternating high and low centerpieces so you still have the visual effect of height when you look at the room,” says Frugoli. The savings: 25 percent or more.

Use borrowed glassware. As a stylish freebie, Galanakis suggests using glass cake stands in varying heights to display small florals or bud vases and votives.

Center your tables with natural items. “Large conch shells and a sprinkling of seashells always work with a beach-themed wedding,” says Toya Ellis, wedding coordinator at Caneel Bay in St. John, USVI. Find cleaned and polished shells at your local craft store, using a coupon to get an extra 15 percent or more off.

Side Note: The more greenery you use, the less green you will spend. Think ferns, dusty miller, moss, lamb’s ear and mint.

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