For true DIY brides, it doesn’t end with crafting guest favors or painting your table numbers. One of the most ambitious (and fun) DIY projects you can take on is putting together your wedding flowers, and we wanted to help out by sharing 10 tips for shopping at your local flower market!
Without a doubt, we are lucky ladies to reside in Los Angeles near one of the largest flower markets in the country. If you aren’t sure if anything similar exists in your area, we seriously urge you to do a little research. We were surprised to see that some of the smaller cities we didn’t think would have a wholesale mart or flower market actually did! Another great option is to check with the flower market in the biggest city near you to see if any of the vendors will ship, or use a flower delivery service like Flower Muse or Blooms by the Box, whose sole purpose is to provide bulk wholesale flowers to their customers.
We’re excited to take you on a little journey through the LA Market + share some of our best tips along the way! The Original Los Angeles Flower Market is located at 754 Wall St (between 7th + 8th) Los Angeles, 90014. There is a $1 cash entrance fee to enter the mart on Saturdays + $2 to enter on weekdays. Hours for the public: Mondays + Wednesdays 8:00am – 12:00pm / Tuesdays  6:00am – 11:00am / Thursdays  6:00am – 12:00pm / Fridays  8:00am – 2:00pm / Saturdays  6:00am – 2:00pm.
GWS Tip #1: If you are planning to DIY your flowers for a wedding or larger event, consider placing an order with a vendor first. This maximizes your ability to get exactly what you want, in the right colors and quantities. Another bonus: you will be given an invoice with a price quote, which can be preferable to aimlessly wandering around with cash in hand (more on that in just a bit…). Not all vendors will allow for orders without a wholesale license, so we recommend doing a scouting trip first and finding a handful of vendors you like. Talk to them about your desire to place an order + they will often be very helpful and possibly even give you special pricing on your order since you are buying in bulk. Love that!
Occasionally, you may arrive to pick up your order and your vendor will let you know that one (or a few) items didn’t make it or became unavailable at the last minute. Expect that this can happen and then shop their floor for something similar (or sometimes even better!) to take the missing item’s place. Flexibility is key, friends! :)
*Note about bulk pricing / minimums: Almost all items sold at the flower mart are sold in bulk or bunches. Typically, you will not be able to create your own quantities or buy single stems.
GWS Tip #2: Wear comfortable clothing + shoes! This one may seem obvious, but it’s worth a reminder that you’ll be walking around quite a bit, carrying heavy bunches of blooms, so make sure you’re super comfy!
GWS Tip #3: Browse, but don’t be afraid to snatch up something if you really want it. Comparison shopping is very important at a place like the flower market where many vendors carry similar items, so doing an initial pass of the whole mart is a good idea to check quality and prices. That said, if you LOVE something and it feels unique or limited in quantity, we highly recommend you consider purchasing it then so you won’t regret it later if you come back and it’s gone!
GWS Tip #4: Stop at different points to make sure what you are buying is cohesive and will look good together. Every so often, pull off into a corner to check your merchandise. Things to look for: a nice, cohesive color palette, enough focal blooms, but enough fillers too, and a good variety so you don’t end up wasting items that look too similar to something else.
GWS Tip #5: The Los Angeles Flower Market also sells plants, like bougainvillea, succulents, air plants + ferns, so if you are looking to incorporate plants into your decor – or buy something rad for your home or yard – consider purchasing from the flower market!
GWS Tip #6: Set a budget ahead of time. We think the easiest thing to do is shop with cash. Most vendors prefer cash anyway (and a few don’t accept credit cards or have minimums) and this allows you to control how much you spend overall. Believe us, it’s easy to get caught up in the beauty around you, so for all of our fellow flower lovers who might come home with way more than you need, make sure to plan ahead!
GWS Tip #7:Â Shop for floral supplies at the flower mart. Aside from fresh cut blooms, you can purchase clippers, foam, floral tape, vessels, votives and more at great prices. We also saw a ton of amazing decor items, like branches + tree stumps that you can mix with flowers + incorporate into your wedding design!
GWS Tip #8: If you’ve placed a rather large order with one vendor, you may be able to pay for your order and ask them to hold your items on their shelving units for you, so you can keep shopping + pick everything up later. This will keep everything in tact (no dropping or bumping fragile items into people or walls!) and is definitely a better idea than stashing your flowers in the car so you can keep browsing hands-free. Some vendors start to pack up earlier than others, so it’s a good idea to get there early + ask the vendor when they close, especially if you are leaving your purchases with them while you keep shopping!
*Off the record insider tip: Most vendors will usually let you pull from their carts, even as they are rolling them away to pack up. So if they are closing, but you see something you’ve just gotta have, don’t be shy – grab it!
GWS Tip #9: If your wedding or event is on a Saturday, it’s probably going to be best to buy your flowers on the Thursday or Friday before. Talk to the vendors about what will open up in time, or what might open too quickly. Typically, once the flowers are outside of their ideal refrigerated environment, and you re-cut the stems and place them in cold water, they will start the process of opening up almost immediately.
GWS Tip #10: Once you get home, make sure to unpack + prep all of your flowers right away. Almost every item sold at the flower market is unprocessed, so you will need to remove excess leaves + give the stems a fresh cut before placing them in water. And keep your blooms in the darkest + coolest place you can think of, as sunlight and heat will cause flowers to open prematurely or wilt.
For LA DIY-ers, after making your way around the Flower Market, you might want to pop over to Moskatels, a Michaels/Joann type craft store near to the market that has even more supplies + decor at super great prices!
We hope you feel inspired to try your hand at flower arranging after reading through our tips! Are any of you planning to DIYÂ the floral design for your wedding, a friend’s bridal shower, or next dinner party? Do tell, we’d love to hear!
Thanks so much to Katie Pritchard for the photos!
does anyone have tips on transporting bulk flowers like this to your location? I live in LA and would love to take advantage of the flower market, but my wedding is 1.5 hours away (up the mountain!) and I would have to buy Thursday for a Saturday wedding. any helpful advice is greatly appreciated!
Hi Meghan! There are a couple options you could take advantage of. If it worked with your schedule, you could pick the flowers up on the way to your venue. The vendor could pack the flowers in boxes for you rather than newspaper. If you kept your car cool with lots of AC, you could probably transport them in their unprocessed state to the venue and get them in water right away once you arrive. The other option would be to rent or drive a vehicle that can fit buckets for all the flowers. Buying the Thursday before should not be a problem. Just keep the prepped blooms in fresh water + in a cool, dark place until you need them + you should be all set!
I’ve always wanted to go to the Flower Market so thanks so much for all the tips!! Hoping to pick up flowers for a summer bbq next week, so this is great! I love the flowers you picked up there.
the flowers are beautiful…but i can’t those sandals out of my head! could you please give a source for them?
Thanks!
Hi Lex! The sandals are from Sole Society! My current faves this summer!! Here is the link for the pair – http://bit.ly/1rg0qjO :)
Thank you!! I just ordered a pair. ;)
I have done flowers for lots of family members including two sons. I missed out on some of the pre-wedding social functions because of this. To schedule a manicure after the flowers are done and have time for the rehearsal dinner is crazy. I’ve been to weddings where guests have baked the wedding cake, but to give these jobs over to the bride, just seems like more stress. At my own wedding, the bud vases I rented and the flowers I ordered to go in them, never made it to the tables. I had all the personal flowers made by a local florist, thank God. The day is enough of a whirl wind already. Thank for listening.
This is so true.. just did my DD flowers for her wedding.. I missed a lot at the end when the flowers have to be done.. In the end it was worth it but I ended up with a lot of flowers left over…and regrets about missing things…. for a bride..unless absolutely necessary… find a friend or aunt that knows how to do flowers..you will be glad you did.. good luck!
So amazing! I love those photos. I’ll be in L.A. next week. This is for sure on my to-do list.
This is so awesome! I did my own flowers last year and this would have been so helpful!!
when were these pictures taken?! i haven’t seen scabiosa yet but the last time i looked at the flower mart was in June.
Hi Kelly,
We went on July 10th! :)
Great article. I did the flowers for my wedding and go there almost every other weekend now to do the flowers for other weddings and events. It’s my little slice of floral heaven. My only suggestion to brides if you’re going to DIY is to do a test run. Doing your own flowers takes more time than you may think and since flowers are unpredictable it’s easy to get frustrated with how your vision turns out- especially if you want something very specific. So every time you have a dinner party or a housewarming use it as an excuse to practices concepts. :)
From my own experience, I second what Heather said: know how long it will take! To be on the safe side, be conservative when estimating the time it will take to DIY your own flowers. GM Floral in the LA Flower Market has an amazing selection of supplies like ribbon and pretty containers. (Think of Michaels, only WAY better.)
I heard people getting bulks of flower at the LA Flower Market. I was there two weeks ago and bought some flowers to practice making bouquets for my Wedding . I love the results and plan to do all the floral arrangements and bouquet for my wedding. thanks..
Does anyone know the average price for grapewood at the flower mart? The type in the picture above?
I’m so glad someone gave me this!! I heard LA flower market was closed to the public so I was disheartened.
couple Qs for you:
how much do things cost?
when you say “place an order,” how far in advance should it be placed, and how do you know what they have?
does each vendor have a list of things they normally carry during that season, and you check off what you want?
thanks! <3
Hi Karen!
Products at the flower market are sold in bulk, so you are getting much better pricing than you would if you walked into a flower shop. The (possible) downside is you have to meet certain minimums + can’t buy by the stem. For garden roses, the minimum is 12, but for some other types, you might be able to order a bunch of five.
We suggest a scouting trip to the market to find your favorite 1-2 vendors. Talk to them about placing an order and ask if your favorites will be available. You can find pretty detailed season lists by googling or searching on pinterest, or check out our GWS seasonal flower guides (http://goo.gl/UhK4Nn) to help determine what will be in season + what look you want for your day.
One of our fave vendors at the LA Flower Mart is Mayesh, and they provide details on flowers + seasons in the flower library on their website (http://goo.gl/elza11).
Hope we were able to help!
xo,
Erin @ GWS
Hi! I was wondering if you shop with a badge and if you know whether or not there is a significant price difference between those with a badge and those that just shop during public times? Also, is the vendor with the craft like containers Mayesh?
Hi there! We did not shop with a badge, so we can’t provide details on the price difference — sorry about that! We can tell you we found it to be affordable from a consumer standpoint, but for anyone hoping to start a floral design business or take on multiple events, we’d highly recommend looking into + applying for a badge. In the 5th photo down, where the containers almost look like kraft boxes, that is indeed Mayesh! Good luck + thanks for checking out our post! :)
xo,
Erin @ GWS
Hi,
So amazing post and i love those photos. One of our fave vendors Whole Blossoms at FL, and they provide details on all wholesale flowers on their website.
Thank you so much for sharing this!!
Very informative Blog Thanks for share this !!!
Awesome flowers. I really like different colors flowers. Thank you so much……….
Thank you very much for this information! Does the flower mart have a website?
Thanks for this valuable information
amazing. images are looking very nice. thanks for sharing this information with us.
Thanks for sharing a great info. This place is great. You always have awesome unique flowers and the arrangements are fantastic. The owners give great personalized service and never fail to impress.
There is various kind of market which deal with different kind of things. But the flower market of Los Angeles provides the best range of flowers with reasonable price. People can use flowers for decoration their houses and send or receive flowers bouquet, As I look your blog … You give the right information about the LA flower market. As you describe the whole things are best and fabulous. I like your ideas
I agree, if you’re going to go flower shopping then a budget is a must. This is especially true if you are planning out a garden or flower bed. After all, you wouldn’t want to spend too much money on all of the different flowers that you’ll likely find.
thanks a lot for these amazing tips
Great Photos. so beautiful.
interesting blog, keep posting