Brooke's Blooms

23/05/2026

09/05/2026

Getting married??

Artificial wedding flowers… are they really the easy money-saving option social media makes them out to be?

Years ago faux wedding flowers were seen as:
🟢 cheap
🟢 practical
🟢 everlasting

But here’s the interesting part…

“They last forever” became one of the biggest selling points.

Yet truth be told, the bride only actually needs them for one day.

And the reality today is very different.

Because florists know something many bridal blogs skip over completely:

❌ good artificial flowers are NOT cheap anymore
❌ quality real-touch stems cost serious money
❌ cheap faux flowers photograph terribly
❌ poor silks instantly look homemade

And once you start adding everything up, the “budget” story starts unravelling very quickly.

A proper DIY faux bouquet suddenly needs:
❌ decent stems
❌ realistic greenery
❌ ribbon
❌ wire
❌ floral tape
❌ glue
❌ mechanics
❌ packaging
❌ spare flowers to practise with
❌ proper heavy-duty cutters to get through wired stems

Because many artificial stems contain thick internal wire.
Kitchen scissors simply won’t touch them.

And then comes the skill side…

Social media often presents bouquet making as:
“just hold flowers together.”

Florists know better.

Can you:
❓ spiral correctly?
❓ build natural movement?
❓ create depth?
❓ avoid bulky handles?
❓ balance colours properly?
❓ source convincing greenery?
❓ tape and bind securely?

Because most people do not get it right first attempt.

Interestingly, what sparked this post was seeing some truly awful homemade bridal bouquets being resold online recently…

And instantly you could spot:
❌ awkward proportions
❌ stiff shapes
❌ unnatural movement
❌ obvious fake texture
❌ poor colour matching

Now to be fair:
🟢 professionally designed silk wedding work absolutely has its place
🟢 some florists create incredible faux installations and hire work
🟢 allergy situations can make faux flowers practical

But I do think the internet has accidentally convinced some brides:
“you don’t really need a florist anymore.”

And the truth is…
whether flowers are fresh or artificial, good floristry still takes skill, experience and design judgement.

Meanwhile, professionally designed fresh wedding flowers increasingly start looking surprisingly reasonable for:
🟢 conditioned flowers
🟢 proper proportions
🟢 natural movement
🟢 scent
🟢 seasonality
🟢 expert construction
🟢 and flowers that actually look alive in photographs

For one of the most photographed days of your life, it’s probably worth thinking twice before assuming DIY faux flowers are automatically the cheaper or easier route.

And one final thought…

🟢 Don’t get too carried away with the idea you suddenly need to become a super-skilled florist overnight.

Just enjoy the day…
and get carried down the aisle !!!

01/05/2026

🌸 DIY Brides: What It Feels Like From My Side
I didn’t set out to disrespect florists.
I honestly thought I was being smart — saving money, staying in control, doing the “clever bride” thing.
A wholesaler told me,
“Buy the flowers direct — you’ll save a fortune.”
And in that moment, sitting at my laptop months before the wedding, it sounded perfect.
I had no idea what was coming.
🌷 The Day Before My Wedding…
I woke up with a to‑do list longer than my arm:
pick up relatives from the station
welcome family arriving from everywhere
final dress fitting
nails, hair, tan
pack overnight bags
organise bridesmaids
check in with the venue
rehearse the ceremony
manage the kids
answer last‑minute questions
try to eat
try to breathe
And then — right in the middle of all that — the flowers arrived.
Buckets. Boxes. Stems everywhere.
Suddenly I wasn’t a bride anymore.
I was… trying to be a florist.
🌼 What I Didn’t Realise Until It Was Too Late
No one told me the flowers needed 18-24 hours of conditioning ( rehydrating )
No one told me stems don’t behave like they do in tutorials.
No one told me bouquets collapse, blow open, or look lopsided if you don’t know what you’re doing.
No one told me I’d run out of time, tools, ribbon, mechanics — or patience.
And no one told me that the wholesaler’s job is to sell flowers, not protect my sanity.
By 9pm, I was crying over a kitchen table covered in petals and panic.
🌺 The Moment Every DIY Bride Reaches
I looked at what I’d made.
It didn’t look like Pinterest.
It didn’t look like my vision.
It didn’t look… good.
And that’s when I did what every DIY bride eventually does:
I called a florist.
Begged, really.
And thank goodness — they helped.
But it cost more.
And it added stress I didn’t need.
🌷 What I Wish Someone Had Told Me
DIY your favours.
DIY your signage.
DIY your table numbers.
But your wedding flowers?
Don’t DIY those.
Because:
you deserve a calm wedding morning
you deserve flowers that photograph beautifully
you deserve a bouquet that doesn’t fall apart
you deserve to enjoy the day, not fight with stems and tape
I thought I was saving money.
I wasn’t.
I was saving the wholesaler a sale — and costing myself peace.

18/04/2026

Anyone else for the raffle xx

Raffle time

£1 per number

25 numbers to win this beautiful wall hanger

Please pay using the below details

Account holder: Tina Barker
Account number: 59192229
Sort code: 041450

Still a few numbers left xx

1 Tracey Ward
2 Babs Heys
3
4
5 Louise Morley
6
7 Louise T
8 Babs H
9
10
11
12 Babs H
13
14 Tracey Ward
15 Babs H
16
17 Louise M
18
19 Louise t
20
21 Babs H
22
23
24 Louise t
25 Louise m

18/04/2026

Stunning hanging basket
1 available
I sold out very quickly last time I had these in.

£15

18/04/2026

Mini hanging basket
£6

18/04/2026

£2

18/04/2026

£4

05/04/2026

Flower stall is now up and running 🥰

Please message for my address

04/04/2026

Mini hanging baskets
£5