Botanicals. I still smile when I think about them. Botanicals helped me have the wedding of my dreams, and I cannot imagine having worked with a better team. Period.
My husband and I were married at Cafe' Brauer on 7/17/2010, and Botanicals did our flowers. The only regret that I have about Botanicals is that I can't work with them all the time.
For you brides-to-be, here's my experience: Initially, I hadn't heard much about Botanicals, but they are one of the few florists that are on the "approved" list provided by Café' Brauer. In doing my initial research on flowers for our wedding, I kept on coming back to Botanicals website - I love their aesthetic - from the color palettes that they choose, to the textures, to their ability to create statement pieces. I was not a bride that was interested in monochromatic pink roses, or a flurry of carnations, and I loved everything that I saw from Botanicals and really had a sense that they could help me get the look I was going for.
My initial meeting with Botanicals was fantastic. My wedding coordinator and I met with a floral designer and had such a great meeting. I really felt like she understood the direction that I was giving her ("the flowers should make you smile"), even if I wasn't 100% specific. After our meeting, we had our floral showing about a week or two later. AMAZING. What can I say, I walked into their presentation room and felt totally transported. Botanicals had absolutely heard what I had to say and translated it into flowers. To be honest, my biggest issue was pairing down my choices because I loved it all!
What happened next could happen to anyone, and I think that Botanicals handled it with the utmost professionalism. Apparently, my floral designer decided to leave the "industry." (Understandable to me since I would hate to work every weekend) Botanicals reached out to me directly and promptly, told me what had happened, and let me know how they were going to handle it - I was being assigned another designer. The new designer had been briefed on all of my previous discussions, as well as everything that had been included in my initial showing. Essentially, as happy as I was with my initial floral designer, Botanicals upgraded me to one of their most senior, experienced floral designers, Nikki Lee. In my mind, as challenging as this situation could have been, it was not even a bump in the road. Botanicals handled everything as I would have hoped and expected, and this only worked to strengthen my trust and regard in their professionalism.
In terms of my new designer, I cannot say enough positive things about Nikki Lee. She picked up right where her colleague left off. She was calming, had great input and advice, and helped me build off of the initial design that had been developed. In the end, I had the most gorgeous flowers, and they had so many details that made them special to me. Nikki went the extra distance and managed to find PEONIES in JULY! Not only that, she integrated a special flower for me into my bouquet and in the flower arrangements in remembrance of my mom. When you're someone like me that notices and cares about details, having every detail "right" when they mean so much meant everything.
Getting married can be a stressful time for anyone. Trust me, my husband and I paid for our wedding, and I was working on all the planning while traveling full time. Working with true professionals in their field made the biggest difference. I would work with Botanicals again in a heartbeat. They were worth every penny. When I think of my wedding day and all that was special and meaningful - I see my husband, my family, and I see the beautiful flowers and candles, and I smile. read more
