Whole Lotta Wholesaling

How did people function before the World Wide Web? More importantly, how did people plan a wedding without it? What did brides-to-be do before wedding blogs, planning sites, and The Knot were available? Personally, I think it's a blessing and a curse. On the one hand, it'd be much harder to find vendors, hotels, etc without the internet. Plus, there are millions of great ideas floating around out there, just waiting to be plucked by the diligent web-surfing bride. On the other hand, there are millions of great ideas out there -- ideas from weddings that you want to implement (a fancy term for "copy") and of course, beautiful wedding ideas that you want to top. Ideas that you want to invent and share with the world via Grace Ormonde, and then have legions of brides copy you (that was probably a little too ambitious-sounding, wasn't it?). In any event, I digress...

My purpose in writing this post was to inform all those brides-to-be out there about the greatness of wholesale shops, especially for basic floral needs. Although many don't have their entire inventory online, some do and are willing to work with you over the phone and internet. Wholesale shops often boast better pricing than the rental fees quoted by your florist or venue. This is because your florist and venue are buying their products from wholesale shops themselves, and then marking up the price. So, why bother with the middle man when you can go straight to the source, especially when you'll come out on top?

One wholesale shop I've recently discovered is here in New York -- Jamali Floral & Garden Supply (http://www.jamaligarden.com/). While they have a large warehouse in Manhattan, they also post most of their products online, which are available for shipping. Here are some of the great deals that I've found, including things I'm thinking of purchasing:

Floating candles for the cocktail hour centerpieces, Set of 16: $16

Antique white lanterns, both 20" & 14," for lighting the outside lawn: $22 & $12.99, respectively. Or, a case of 6 20" lanterns is $108; case of 6 14" is $57. Since we'll need several, I may consider buying in cases to save more. The only problem with these, though, is that they are out of stock until "Spring 2009." I called the store, but they won't know an exact date until closer to the end of year.

Aquamarine Acrylic Sea Glass (many colors available), as vase filler or decorative accent, 2lb bag: $11

25in Peacock Feather Spray: $5

7x14 Glass Cylinder Vase, handblown in Poland: $25, or $84/case of 4

Metal Tulip Vases, 9", 12", 15", the unique modern style of these vases may go well with our contemporary theme: $17, $23, $28 respectively

There are TONS of other great ideas and products on Jamali's website, and plenty of other wholesalers out there. My basic advice is to never just accept the price quoted to you by your florist, venue or any other vendor. Take the time to research it -- use the internet! If you can buy it for the same price (or cheaper) than you can rent it, why wouldn't you?