When your wedding guests enter your venue what do you think will be the first thing they’ll notice? You might not realise, but it’s the décor and the overall styling of your event.

Just like your wedding dress, flowers are another important accessory in your wedding that shouldn’t be overlooked – purely because they create great focal points, add dramatical effect and create mesmerising fragrances.

So my advice would be – don’t leave them to the last minute. Once you have confirmed your venue start having a chat with a couple of florists to find out if they have experienced your venue before, check their portfolio and find out what suggestions they would propose for your forthcoming event.

The latter I have to say really comes down to the fundamental question of whether they are a floral designer or not and just like photographers so many people take floristry up as a hobby after going on a short courses offering their services, I felt that it was important this month that you knew the difference between the two so you could make an informed decision.

So in this first part of two episodes covering this topic I talk to floral designer Karen Woolven from Karen Woolven Design who has been in the business from the age of 16 starting out as a Saturday girl before moving on to full time employment in a floral shop and working for various hotels on Park Lane before setting up her own business six years ago.

Karen will be the first to say that floristry is about the training and how an arrangement looks, both good and bad and the principles of how to be a florist. A floral designer is some one who thinks up concept ideas and themes and with their floristry training uses it to their advantage.

To give you an idea of the Karen’s work see a couple of pictures below of a traditional and eco-friendly wedding:

To hear Karens’s full interview head to the Butterfly Journal podcast at www.pierrecarr.com/podcast.

And with wedding fair season underway if you live in London and would like to have a chat with me about your wedding plans why not come down and visit me on Sunday 3^rd October at Coulsdon Manor Hotel, Coulsdon, Surrey or on Sunday 17^th October at Sunbridge Park Manor in Bromley. We will also be at the Birmingham National Wedding Show from October 8-10 for those of you who live further afield.

Next week we look at tips and questions to ask a florist?

Until then Happy Planning!