How to DIY your Destination Wedding Flowers (part one: researching local suppliers)

Finding a great local floral supplier.

Today I was able to make some major headway on my assignment for wedding flowers in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic. By contacting a few multi-national suppliers by e-mail I was able to find a listing of florists throughout the D.R. and found 5 (with websites & e-mail addresses) within comfortable driving distance of the resort!

Some of you may wonder why I won't have bulk flowers delivered to the resort by one of those big companies. The answer is simple- time frame. I will be arriving the day before the wedding and can't count on the flowers being delivered on time, in good condition, and fully bloomed. (Did you know that many of those delivery services recommend placing your order to be delivered 2-3 days before the actual event? That's because they often ship flowers before they are fully bloomed.) Buds are indeed beautiful, but that's not the look we're going for here!

If you are going to have a few days before the event, I highly recommend Global Rose. They recently helped me with a vow renewal and I was amazed by the quality of blooms and value in their DIY wedding flowers kit!

For this particular event, I'll need the immediate customer service only an in-person supplier can provide. Yes, I will need to be there to reject wilted flowers and make sure my client is getting the beautiful, high quality flowers any wedding deserves.

Are you hired to purchase and arrange flowers for a destination wedding? Trying to source bulk live florals outside of the country can be a challenge but also a great learning process. You will find yourself consistently outside your comfort zone! Here are my tips for finding your supplier in a place you've never been.

1. Using a map, familiarize yourself with the areas around the destination. Take note of larger cities within comfortable distance from the event. Often a resort is situated away from regular commercial areas, and any floral shops near the resort of course are going to have higher prices. I found that Higüey is about 10 min away and full of florists.
2. Find a search engine specific to the country you are sourcing in. In my case, I found that 1411 Dominican Republic  and Dominican Republic Yellow Pages was a good search engine.
3. Translate the word of what you're looking for to the primary language of the country the event is being held. In Spanish, the word for floral shop is "Floresteria". This will be your search term. There are many free online translating services but my favorite is the one provided by Google.
4. Using Google.com, type your search terms and select "translate page" if the results are in another language. This was a major help for me since my handle of Spanish isn't what it once was.
5. Take note of suppliers in cities within comfortable distance from the resort/hotel. Note everything. The name, phone number, and Street address wherever they're given.

Great! Now you have a nice list of several contacts. Here's the list I was able to generate by searching for floral shops near the Dreams Punta Cana resort (in the city of Higuey and city of Bávaro). I have omitted all results that had no e-mail address. It's good to have a phone number, but unless you're fluent in Spanish, e-mail is going to be the best thing.

Sisay  Av Alemania, Plaza Las Buganvillas, Bávaro  809-552-1231
Floresteria El Tronco  Carr Friusa 1  809-552-0933
Floreste   Juan XXIII 171 
Flores del Caribe  Av Italia 102   809-554-3782   floresdelcaribe@hotmail.com

Tropical Flowers  Carr B Fruisa L-12  809-552-1874 belkishldz@hotmail.com

Notice the street-names seem very foreign- that's Ok, Google maps will sort that out for you. Plus you can always ask directions from someone at the shop later.

In my next post I'll show you how to narrow your results down, and provide everything you need to ask the right questions in a way you'll be understood! This may be helpful to those working in Spanish-speaking countries as I will provide you a "script" for dealing with your local suppliers in Spanish via e-mail.

This blog entry is part of my series called "Destination Wedding Flowers". To read other posts in this topic and gain more valuable insight into DIY wedding flowers, see the series here: DIY Your Destination Wedding Flowers

NEW Get your free printable - the DIY wedding flowers checklist! I made it just for you so you don't forget anything important! Get it here!

Destination Wedding Flowers: A new series

Ok. I need live flowers in the Dominican Republic. Now what?

My wedding is not the only one around the corner! My family is blessed with TWO this October, one in New York and one in the Dominican Republic. Although I've done wedding flowers before, this will be my first time arranging flowers outside of the United States.

My biggest hurdle seems to be to find a reputable wholesale fresh-cut flower supplier in D.R.! This will take every ounce of business sense I have stored up in me, and with the help of some high-school Spanish courses I might still know the proper conjugation for "I know I sound crazy but I need like 200 high-quality lilies by 9am tomorrow so who is your farmer?!"

Because I'll be learning so much in this endeavor, I'll share what I learn with you, and maybe this will help a few other brides planning destination weddings to save time and money! (I wasn't able to find anything helpful on this topic online).

This might even help a few people who for whatever reason (quality, price, etc) are looking for new suppliers for their craft but aren't sure how to go about it and strike a killer business deal that is the best solution for everyone involved.

Easy Method: Get flowers shipped 2-3 days in advance using a great supplier (I personally recommend getting one of Global Rose's fantastic wedding combos.)

If you can't do the easy method, try the below.

Part One: Researching Floral Suppliers Abroad
Part Two: Contacting Your Suppliers With bonus Spanish vocabulary and script!
Part Three: Meeting, Purchasing, and Arranging (final series post)

Stay tuned and "Follow" if you think this will be of help for you or someone you know!

NEW Get your free printable - the DIY wedding flowers checklist! I made it just for you so you don't forget anything important when the time comes to do the arranging! Get it here!

Wedding Ispiration Wednesday: Don't sweat it.

I'm very much in the early stages of planning my wedding with Robin, and it has already provided me with valuable lessons! Here are some ways I've been able to turn the stress into positive energy.

-Focus only what matters most! Yes... ONLY. For example, why should colors matter so much unless there is a specific color that has symbolic meaning to you? Why waste time looking online for the symbolic meaning of a certain flower or color? That is second hand information that has no bearing on your personal life experience. If it doesn't matter- it doesn't matter! Things tend to look coordinated in the end by virtue of your personal style and taste- just think of your home. It's not all just one or two colors, but it's still "you".

-Involve the people you love! They won't mind. There are lots of details of wedding planning that are fun... But those details can be overwhelming for just one person to deal with (aka YOU). So be honest and open with your loved ones about where help is needed. Let them know, see if they're willing, check in once or twice, and let it go.

-Give yourself time! If you truly have a vision for your wedding ceremony, give yourself time to accomplish that. If a simple court wedding before the ceremony will help you remember that a ceremony is just "ceremony", then go for it.

-Be proactive! Think in advance about what upcoming obligations may hold you back from getting the wedding stuff squared away. I'm having to do a lot of planning a year in advance  because I'm still a full time student with a full time job, and I'll be in classes right up till my wedding day. Be considerate of your future-self and do most of the "heavy lifting" in the beginning when energy is high and distractions are few.

-Consider the importance of your commitment! I want my mind to be focused more on marriage itself and my future husband than on silly details of a wedding. By keeping myself reading the Bible and seeking advice on how to have a healthy marriage, I keep my head in the right place and keep the Devil from stealing one of the most beautiful times in my life away from me with vain distractions.

 These are just a few things that have really helped me to handle all the things that have come my way, and deal with other people's stress about my wedding. Yes- OTHER people are more stressed than I am... and the last thing they need is for me to be a bride-zilla!

Never stop learning, growing, and reaching!
~Laura

PS: I have purchased a copy of this book, I saw it recommended on a favorite blog of mine. Have you ever read it? Can you recommend any others? I'll let you know what I think!

The amazing three-armed flower girl!

Something struck me as odd when I looked at this lovely flower girl dress. It's the little girl- she has three arms!! hahahaha...

I took it as a little reminder to have fun and not take things so seriously when wedding planning.  If you're interested in this dress despite the three-armed girl, check out The amazing 3-armed flower girl on projectwedding.com

Oh the wonders (and BLUNDERS!) of Photoshop.

 Tee hee... I hope you're having a lovely Summer. I've been thinking a lot about my flower girls (yes I'll have two!)... that's four arms all together!! hahaha... sorry I couldn't help myself. But what do you think about fairy wings on a flower girl? Too costumey? My ceremony is outdoors along the forest line. It might fit in well with our magical theme but not totally sold on the wings yet. hmm...