How to ship
BEFORE YOUR WEDDING
1. Coordinate who will ship your beautiful bouquet!
2. Share the detailed packaging instructions you received in your email with whoever is sending your flowers.
3. Make sure your packaging materials are ready to go!
POST-CELEBRATION
4. Immediately following your wedding, place your bouquet stems in water and keep in a cool location. If your bouquet is cascading, or is held together by a “cage” containing floral foam, be sure to water foam! Flowers will stay freshest if they are kept in the fridge. Do not leave your bouquet in direct sunlight!
THE NEXT (BUSINESS) DAY
5. Pack your bouquet for shipment using the instructions on the back of this guide.
6. Overnight or 2-day ship your bouquet to us through UPS or FedEx.
Bouquet/Flowers
your flowers, bouquet, boutineers, are bands,
Additions
i.e., ribbon, photos, trinkets
Paper Towels
this will keep your stems hydrated during transit
Pen + Paper
to write order information
Packing Material
refrain from using plastic/packing peanuts inside box as this may wilt or suffocate your flowers
Scissors/Safety Cutting Blade
use to cut small box and any other items needed
Packing Tape
to tape boxes shut and secure small box in large box
Small Box
will act as the vase for bouquet stems/box should be double the width of stems
Large Box
box should fit the height of bouquet leaving a few inches at the top and sides
I highly recommend having a designated person to ship your bouquet after the wedding or event such
as a family friend, family member or wedding planner. I also recommend giving them a copy of these instructions, so they
will know exactly how to get your bouquet to Southern Magnolias safely and within 3 days after
the event, the sooner the better.
Carefully cut the ends off the stems at an angle. Sometimes this can be difficult if the stems are
bundled tightly together. No worries! Make small cuts up the sides of them vertically. The purpose of this is
to let the bouquet get a drink of water easily like a straw.
Place the bouquet in a vase of water and out of direct sunlight until time of packaging. DO NOT
place the bouquet in the fridge or freezer. This will cause the flowers to mold during travel.
Avoid touching the flower petals as much as possible because this will prevent bruising within
the final product.
1. Soak several paper towels in cool water.
2. Wrap the soaked paper towels around the stems of the bouquet.
3. Make sure there is enough liquid for the flowers to have a drink during shipment, but not dripping wet.
4. Wrap a plastic bag (such as a Walmart bag or ziplock bag) around the outside layer of the paper towels
to hold the moisture inside. Do not let any plastic touch the flower petals, only the stems.
5. DO NOT wrap plastic bag around the flowers (only the stems). If you were to wrap plastic around your
flowers, this creates a greenhouse effect and will wilt your flowers.
6. Use a rubber band or florist tape around the stems wrapped in the paper towels and plastic to secure
it in place and to ensure it doesn’t leak.
7. Carefully lift bouquet place bouquet to the side
8. Take small box and tape all edges closed
9. Choose a side of the box to be the opening and carefully slice a 4” X in the middle of the chosen side
(You may be cutting over tape, this is OK as long as you do not completely re-open the box)
10. Push the edges of the X opening down into the box and place box to the side
11. Take the larger box and assemble accordingly, keeping the top open
12. Place the small box inside the large box and secure to the botom
a. Take packing tape and create 2-4 tape “donuts” or pieces of tape that form a circle and stick
them to the bottom of the small box
b. Place small box inside the large box directly in the center
c. Add more tape to side of small box attaching it to the large box as needed to ensure the small
box is secure in the large box
d. Test sturdiness of small box by turning large box to the side and tugging at small box
e. If small box moves, add more strips of tape to secure small box
16. Set large box flat with opening facing up
13. Carefully lift bouquet and place already wrapped stems into the opening of the small box (the X that was
sliced in step 10)
14. Cut a piece of parchment paper (no larger than the width of the top of your bouquet) *This is to create a
barricade between the bouquet and the top of the box - do not tape or tuck parchment down
15. Grab recycled paper/filler and place inside the box surrounding bouquet
a. Fill in any gaps remaining in the large box
b. Do not put recycled paper/filler on top of bouquet this will suffocate the flowers
16. Grab the paper and pen and write your order information
a. Name of person that placed the order
b. Order Number
c. Contents of box (i.e. boutonniere, additional bouquet, any additions) *If sending additions
(invitation, ribbon, etc.) place in a plastic bag to keep dry and add to the box
16. Tape this note card to the inside of one of the flaps of the box
17. Close box up and tape closed, making sure it is not easily opened during transit
18. Please add/write fragile on sides of box and wright top and bottom for carriers to view during transit.