Now that I have the Take it or Leave it theme song in your heads, I gotta pick your brains, INTERCOT. Think back to the last wedding you attended. Maybe it was your own. Maybe it was for someone you didn't even know. How well do you remember the flowers and decorations? Did you notice if the bride or bridal party carried real or fake? Did the men's boutonnieres make you think of the prom? Was it a problem for you if little to no decorations were on the tables with flowers?

This is the line item in my wedding budget I am most clueless about. There are so many choices, so many options, and the price ranges make my head spin. Here's what I am thinking -

We have an early May wedding in central NY state. It's too early to buy flowers in bulk from a local grower unless all I wanted was succulents, which I don't. So, florist it is. I'm going to get a couple buckets of the cheapest flowers the florist has and make my own center pieces by putting a couple stems in a wine bottle the day before the wedding, and put those on the tables. For my bouquet I am willing to shell out the money for mine to be professionally done. My budget for flowers is about $400-500. I was quoted $75 to $100 per bouquet! I just want tulips with a ribbon, WHY is this so expensive??? We are getting married on a stage in the theatre where we met (awwwwww!) so I have a blank canvas to play with when it comes to decorations. We want to keep it simple, so I am thinking of getting wire stands, spray painting them gold (colors are plum purple, gold, and silver) and buying hanging baskets of purple flowers (since Mother's Day baskets are available on the cheap) and putting the baskets at center stage where we are going to stand for the ceremony.

That's it. We won't have fountains of flowers, but will it still look nice? Should I forget fresh altogether and go to the dollar store for fake ones? Are there other things you've seen at weddings that are cool?

Thanks!