Flowers are an important part of making your wedding ceremony and reception beautiful. Hopefully this guide will make your choices in wedding flowers a little bit easier.

The Shop

When planning your wedding, you should take time and care in selecting a wedding florist.

Choose several florists in the general vicinity of your ceremony and reception site. If the wedding florist is on the other side of town, they may charge more for delivery. Look in the yellow pages, on wedding websites and ask your friends and families for referrals before narrowing down your list to three or four options.

Set up appointments to meet with each of the florists. Before the appointment time, you should decide the following about your wedding:

• Wedding colors (color of bridesmaids dresses, table linens and other decor)

• Number of attendants

• Total budget for flowers, including delivery charges

When you meet with each florist give them an idea of what you are looking for, but also be open to suggestions. After all, they are the professionals!

Bring tear outs from magazines to give the florists an idea of what you types and colors of flowers you are consider. Ask each florist to come up a quote that will meet all your needs. It may also be helpful to ask for a high-end quote if you want to trade out your standard flowers for more exotics, dye flowers to a specific color, or want anything else special.

Once you've visited three or four shops and gathered the quotes, ask for a list of references from each. Call previous brides to make sure there were no problems with customer service, delivery, or quality of the flowers.

The Flowers

A basic package of wedding flowers should include:

• Bridal bouquet

• Bridemaids' bouquets

• Corsages for mothers, grandmothers and other important women

• Boutonnieres for the groom, groomsmen, fathers, grandfathers and other important men

• Centerpieces for the reception

You may also need a smaller bouquet for the "toss," flowers for the flower girl, and other floral decorations.

Though you can find most flowers all year, it's best to choose seasonal blooms because they are more readily available, more durable and less expensive. Here is a general guideline of wedding flowers by season.

Spring

• Apple blossoms

• Cherry blossoms

• Daffodils

• Hyacinth

• Iris

• Lilies

• Lilacs

• Pansies

• Peonies

• Tulips

Summer

• Cala lilies

• Dahlia

• Daisies

• Geraniums

• Hydrangeas

• Iris

• Larkspur

• Queen Anne's lace

• Roses

• Sunflowers

• Zinnias

Fall

• Asters

• Chrysanthemums

• Gerbera daisies

• Marigolds

• Roses

• Sunflowers

Winter

• Camelias

• Forget-me-nots

• Jasmine

• Orchids

• Poinsettias

Now that you are armed with all the information, you can make an informed decision and choose the florist and the flowers that are right for you!

Find many more wedding articles like this provided by Truly Wedding Favors by visiting our directory, Articles By Yours Truly.