Works out of home Florist?

Thumbtack.com is great for low price vendors

I dont know if that would necessarily be cheaper. A florist who works from home would have to order things as needed instead of being able to order in bulk due to lack of adequate and proper stoarage space.

Please don't use thumbtack; it's the place where amateurs go. Vendors have to pay to contact you, and good people won't.

Working out of the home is not necessarily going to be more cost effective on your end. Several of my event florists work from home, but the don't necessarily advertise that.

You should make your judgement on quality, price, and the fact that they have insurance, because every venue will want that.

@goingbaldwin thank you! Great site, never heard of it!!

@beachdreams good point... just trying to explore all options.

Where do you live?

Thanks @Celia Milton!

I live in Southern New Jersey

I had one! She was a little cheaper due to not having the normal costs of owning a building. She did a wonderful job. You would most likely find them on Facebook groups or their Facebook pages.

I'm going with a florist who works out of her home I just met with her yesterday for a long time and love her ideas. She has a lot of experience with weddings and cuts out the overhead making it much more affordable!! I'm actually decorating my reception space whereas I wasn't before based on all the crazy prices out there.... definitely try and find someone who works out of their home, but meet with them and make sure to get pics and you like them as a person I think it helps if you gel on a personal level too. :+)

Try Facebook. I worked with an at home florist who promoted thru FB and word of mouth. She really worked with my on our budget and over delivered on the centerpieces.

We got a quote from a florist who worked from home and it's was same price as a local floral shop. If they are a real professional, I doubt you'll save much money. I would look into Costco or Sam's club for bulk flowers.

Oh, no...no thumbtack vendors.

A "works out of home florist" is a not necessarily a ticket to industry discounts. We work out of a home studio, but nobody is getting a cut rate deal because of it. We know we can do what the average individual cannot do, and we expect to be paid the industry standard for our skill. We are fortunate; through sweat, long hours, meticulous attention to clientele, smart advertisement, talent, and intelligence, we have a reputation built on our artistry, and frankly, our clients don't care if we work in their back yards or on their roof tops, as long as we produce what our website shows and what our bona fide reviews indicate we deliver.

Be careful with home florists. True, there are some amazing talents working from a home studio, but there are far more who don't have a clue as to how to run a business that could actually be their primary source of income, and additionally, their work shows that they are dabblers...probably better than the average individual who doesn't know the difference between a daisy and a sunflower, but who still have no natural gift or even on online course in design. Your first clue that you've found an amateur is that they offer other services, like wedding planning. That falls under the "jack of all trades, ace of none" moniker. The second is that they slander their competition. A true pro knows that there is enough work for all of us. A dabbler will be angered by the fact that they can't seem to pull in the clients based on their own work and reputations, and sometimes, they get pretty aggressive when it comes to hooking clients.

We are about to have our attorney contact one of these home florists. She just had all of her Yelp reviews removed because she used quite a few of our designs in her photos and called them her own. That was the icing on the cake. Quite frankly, her work sucks, but with promotions that say "Contact me with your floral quote and I will do exactly what you've been quoted for 25 - 30% less", people do contact her.

Be careful. Look carefully at their photographed work. Do google image searches to determine whether it's their work, or if they've stolen it from their more successful competitors (you ladies have no idea how frequently that happens). Ask the florist "Is this your work, or is this a picture of someone else's work, but you think you can recreate it?"

If you want a home florist, look up "event only". That will narrow it down, but please, be very careful. Eventually, your biggest source of contacts are based on word of mouth reputation and the fact that the venues you've worked with tell their couples about you.

Try local Facebook groups or word of mouth. I decided not to use a florist but when I was looking one suggested that I try to find one who works out of their home to save money, so I think it can be a cheaper option.

I live in Orlando and I was able to find a wholesale florist and her prices were reasonable

The lady making our cake works out of her home and she's awesome!

I'm getting ours from the florist at a grocery store. Their prices are great and they do an amazing job!

I would also be worried about where the flowers are being stored, I would imagine most people don't have walk in coolers in their homes

I think the takeaway is that working out of a home is neither an advantage or a disadvantage....

The cake thing is problematic though. in SOME states, this is legal, but in most, it's not because they are not working out of a health inspected kitchen. AND they're probably not insured.

I have a friend who does flower arrangements for professional events. She volunteered her services. I've been shopping around and I'm pretty certain we are going with Sams bulk flowers. I love simple arrangements, it's perfect for me.

How far down in southern jersey are you? My florist works out of her home, lives in Mercer County. She doesn't travel too far though. I found her on the fb yard sale sites someone posted for a florist and a few people recommended her.

@thecenterpieceflowers thank you for the advice! It was just mentioned to me as an avenue to save a bit of money so I figured I'd ask you all. I definitely will proceed with caution and check quotes from local florists as well

Thanks to the rest of you as well! Some great feedback.

@brieliz I used to live in Mercer county but am in Camden county now.. near cherry hill. I'd love her name to look into if you don't mind sharing!