Welcome! Thank you for considering the West Dorset Wedding Flowers team to be the florists for your big day. Your enquiry is important to us and very much appreciated.

I have checked my diary, and you'll be pleased to know that I do have availability for your wedding date. Great news and a good first step.

Over the following few paragraphs I hope to be able to give you all the price and budget information you need to make an informed decision ahead of booking our services, as well as a time-line about how the planning stages work.

But first things first, let me introduce myself.
My name is Jessie Copper and I live with my husband and young daughter in beautiful west Dorset, just a stone's throw from the Jurassic coast. 

I have been a self-employed florist since 2006 when I opened my flower shop in Poundbury. I ran this for ten years with a fabulous team, won multiple awards and gained a huge amount of experience across the entire floristry sector from gift work to funeral work as well as creating and co-ordinating the flowers for hundreds of weddings.
The shop was my pride and joy, but in 2016 I sold it to streamline my career towards focusing solely on wedding flowers and to also allow me to get a better work/life balance.
And so West Dorset Wedding Flowers was born.

Now another ten years later I have undertaken over 750 weddings, worked at practically every local venue within a 90min-drive radius of Dorchester, retained many of my original team members who are all superb, and put a total of twenty year's experience under my belt. In short, all of this means that you will be in great hands with us and I can't wait to get started on creating bespoke florals for your special day.

You may well have found us through our Instagram page, but if not I would encourage you to take a peek there too at this stage. Finding your best fit florist is very important and the best way to do this is to check out my work and make sure that my style fits with your own.

Moving your enquiry forward, here is the link to my current price list.
This is valid for the coming 12mths, and we review it every autumn.

It is detailed and comprehensive by design, which should allow you to build yourself an approximate floral budget. Please take time to consider it thoroughly to ensure that we are within your price range. Whilst we have a minimal investment for our primary bespoke bookings, we can take on smaller secondary orders alongside these so please don't rule us out if your budget is more limited. 

It is essential that my work on the big day reflects you as a couple, and I will work hard getting to know you in order to make sure that it does. Before I even start to create your flowers themselves, my prices are inclusive of detailed consultations, two decades of experience, being on-hand to answer questions whenever you need me, critical liaising with your other suppliers to make sure everything goes as planned, and sourcing the best quality flowers available. 

We are also an eco-conscious business using no microplastic-based floral foam, implementing only biodegradable/reusable techniques, and sourcing as much of our floral material locally as we can which all involves further planning and consideration. The planning process is just as important as the flowers on the day itself and our award-winning bespoke bridal service offers all the guidance, knowledge, reassurance and advice that you will need to bring your floral vision into reality. 

If budget is limited however, we also have a special offer package that we run separately from our bespoke service. You can find out more about that here. 

If you are happy that we are a good match for each other and that my style and approach fit well with your own, then we can move forward with the booking process:

Step 1 - Provisionally holding the date.

The first and most important step is to provisionally book the wedding date with us. There's no deposit to pay to do this; it simply holds the date for you until I see you for your first consultation, and it ensures that you don't miss out on the availability.

In order to do this please follow this link, complete and submit the booking form. 

You may find it helpful to have a Discovery Call with me first to run through your ideas, get a bit more of a feel for whether my work and process works for you as a couple, and to ask any questions you may have at this stage. Just let me know if this would suit you, and I can give you a call right away, ideally today. I know that many couples feel daunted by planning their flowers, and therefore it is also useful to discuss any worries or challenges you feel so that I can address your concerns, reassure you both, and demystify the process.

Just remember though that the wedding date is not held safely for you until I have the completed form returned to me, so it is best not to delay too long, in order to avoid disappointment.

Step 2 - Research and Planning.

Once the date is pencilled in, the next step is down to you:

Before you come to see me for a consultation you ideally need to have chosen and ordered all dresses and suits. Don't forget to ask the dress suppliers for colour swatches of the chosen fabrics where possible.

You also need to have done plenty of personal research into the flower types and design ideas that you would like for your big day. To do so, it is easiest to use the internet and social media to collect ideas and then set up an electronic Pinterest board where you can bring them all together in one place. There is no need for you to know all the flower names or technical terms; the pictures will communicate to me what you do and don't like, and this will give us a good starting point for your in-person appointment.

I have written a blog post about planning your flowers, the early stages of decision-making, and progressing your ideas, which may help you. 

And this second blog about pricing and cost priorities may also be a big help.

Step 3 - In-person Consultation.

Once you have done all this, you are ready for a consultation. We usually say that 3-6mths prior to your big day is plenty of time for this, though if you're ready earlier you are of course welcome to come to see me sooner.

Just call me or drop me an email to book an appointment when you think you're ready. In the days following the consultation I will put together a detailed and itemised quotation for you, and a deposit will then be required moving forward to keep the date reserved.

Meeting in-person is by far the best and most ideal way to start your flower planning, not just because it makes it easier to share and discuss ideas, but also because it's so nice to get to know you over a coffee.

It is also best to wait for your first consultation until that bit nearer the time because flowers are the 'icing on the cake'. They finish off the bridal look, hair-style, table-scape, cake design and venue plans, and it is much easier to start making floral decisions when many other aspects of your wedding have already been considered.

However, I appreciate that this is not practical for every couple. Perhaps you live abroad, or need to move your planning on sooner due to an impending new arrival, job relocation or house move. Every client is different, and we are flexible with our planning to ensure that it fits around you and - most importantly - ensures that you feel confident with the process as it unfolds. So let us know about your situation and we can move forward accordingly.

Step 4: Finalising your order.

During the weeks or months after your first consultation you can amend your order at any time, either by dropping me an email, chatting over the phone or by coming for additional consultations. The cut off -point is 4 weeks before the wedding day so around then we need all the fine details confirmed, and the final balance is payable at this time. During the final four weeks the order cannot be changed at all, enabling us to place the stem-counts with our growers, finalise staffing and confirm arrangements.

On the big day your flowers will arrive promptly and we will seamlessly add the finishing touches to your perfect day.

I would also love to tell you about a couple of other things that might interest you -

'To Have and To Hold' special offer package:

As mentioned above, this is an alternative to my bespoke wedding service, and is perfect for those couples who are on a more restricted budget - follow this link to find out more.

It is aimed at those couples who know they need flowers but aren't all that interested in deciding on the finer details, preferring to leave those choices to the expert. 

It is a low-contact option and differs greatly from our main bespoke service, but if your costs are spiralling and you are open-minded about your flower choices this could be perfect for you.

Styling and Props:

We are experienced with dressing spaces and rooms, and are more than pleased to be asked to take on any additional styling required at your event. Booking separate stylists and florists can often be confusing for both you and the venue/suppliers, so do consider having us add the non-floral decoration too.

I have an extensive hire range available, which is often especially useful to couples who are having a DIY wedding or making certain floral aspects of the day themselves.

It will save you the cost and effort of buying lots of items yourself which you may have no use for afterwards, and our per-item hire prices are very reasonable, starting from just £1.50.

The items available include vases both large and small, urns and milk-churns, candlesticks, votives and lanterns, signage, mirror-ware, and larger installation items such as hanging hoops and arch frames.

To see the full up-to-date range please go here: 'Something Borrowed'

And if you require items that we don't currently supply, we may be able to source them for you.

I think that's it for now!

Just remember to complete and return the booking form asap. It's always worth doing this as early as possible to avoid disappointment.

And please don't hesitate to ask if you have any other questions at this stage.

Talk soon, and best wishes -

Jessie Copper

Creative Director

West Dorset Wedding Flowers

The UK Wedding Florist of the Year at The Wedding Industry Awards 2021

 www.westdorsetweddingflowers.co.uk

07740 981765

THE WEDDING INDUSTRY AWARDS

2022 onwards - now proud to be a National Judge

2021 – National Winner - Best Florist

2018 and 2020 – Regional Highly Commended Winner

2015, 2016, 2017 and 2019 – Regional Finalist

2014 – National Highly Commended Winner