Shawn Nocher is a sucker for romance: "I cry at most weddings," says the owner of The Floral Studio in Baltimore. "I'm in the right business. It's so sweet when it's really right."

But "really right" doesn't mean really fancy or even really expensive, she says. "I love a classic garden look: stone urns on the table, garden roses, and anemones and clematis—loose, natural flowers, or elegant bunches of calla lilies tied in a twisted bouquet. That is really beautiful with a low V-neck dress."

Flowers should create a mood. "What I love is when a bride is doing a reception that is not flashy. She wants a beautiful, elegant evening. She's in love and wants to get married."

Couples search for floral designers after they have begun other aspects of planning. Usually, the appointment to meet the floral designer is scheduled six months before the wedding—although some brides wait until two months before, while others have details nailed down a year in advance.

"I'm always right after the dress and the venue," Nocher says. "I tell them to bring me pictures of what they like, a picture of their dress, fabrics, and color samples if they've selected them. They should bring pictures of what they dislike, too. That's really important."

 In floral design, brides don't want anything that will steal the show, says Lisa Baker, manager of the wedding department at Radebaugh Florist and Greenhouses in Towson. The show, of course, is the bride herself. "It's more like the style of the dress that is important. If it is a simple dress, they can get funkier with the look of the flowers. If it is a complicated dress, they may want to downplay it with simple flowers."

Clutch bouquets are very popular, Baker says, as are natural hand-tied stems. Brides often shy away from using plastic holders. "They think they are outdated," she says, "though you can cover them up very well."

The days of the huge Victorian cascading bouquet—à la Princess Diana—are over. "But I'm getting brides that are doing artful cascades," says Carole Aine Langrall, owner of A Garden of Earthly Delights. "Something that is more architectural—not cascades from the generation of my mother, the big ones of the 1980s. I don't think you'll see them coming back."

More couples are interested in an organic look. "People ask for green. Succulents are popular—grasses and bamboo—things that are simple but make a powerful statement," Langrall says. "Brides are so much more educated than they were 10 years ago."

She has also noticed a trend toward using two, three, or four varieties of flowers. "There's less variety, but the same amount of stems [in bouquets]. You are looking at something that is cleaner and striking and elegant."

When ordering bouquets, the couple should also ask mothers and grandmothers if they would like corsages or clutch bouquets. Grandmothers sometimes want the corsage, but moms associate them with elderly women of another generation. "If they are doing anything, what I'm seeing are flower bracelets. We do pearl bracelets and tie a flower on," explains Langrall. "They are unobtrusive, not like a pin-on that would perhaps ruin the dress. A lot of mothers are foregoing flowers all together. One third of the moms say 'No, thank you.'"

At the same time, the couple is ordering bouquets, they also must order boutonnieres for the grooms, ushers, and fathers attending. Brothers, stepbrothers, or stepfathers can be offered boutonnieres as well.

When planning flowers for the ceremony and reception, couples can look for ideas that will save money. "We've done centerpieces that are small and inexpensive but really unique," says Baker, "and almost as eye-catching as a $300 elevated centerpiece. Picking something different is going to help get the most out of your money and give you more of a wow factor."

In some cases, ordering seasonal flowers can save money. But it is more important to simply be flexible, floral designers say. It is fine to admit that you love lisianthus, says Baker. "But say, 'I'm open to other purple flowers that are less expensive.'"

In one wedding, Nocher says the couple used candles and rose petals on the tables. It looked pretty, but even something simple can be pricey. It doesn't necessarily cut costs to buy vases and ask the floral designer to fill them. "They've blown money on vases they'll never need again."

The couple should make sure the costs of delivery and having a designer come to the reception site are part of the estimate. The bottom line may depend on the amount and type of flowers purchased, as well as the expertise of the designer. Nocher takes smaller weddings, as well as larger ones, and says the range in spending on flowers is from $2,000 to $8,000.

Baker, at Radebaugh, also says the average is $2,000 to $3,000.

Upper-end floral designers often come with a fatter bottom line.

Many times brides walk in without knowing a budget for flowers, says Nocher. She knows why, too: "They are afraid I'm going to max up to their budget. Actually that's not true. I'm going to give you the best I can give you. If it's more than you can afford, we work backwards from there."