"I can't think of anything more stressful than weddings." And that's from someone who isn't even going to be walking down the aisle. Brent Pritchard, an independent wedding floral designer, wants the flowers at a wedding to be perfect. If the flowers aren't gorgeous, Pritchard says, people will overlook them, and you've missed an opportunity to enhance your wedding.

According to florists, the easiest way to end up with spectacular wedding flowers is to have a give-and-take relationship with the florist you choose. Meaning: You give the florist an idea of what you like and want. You consider suggestions from the florist and take the ones that suit you. You give the florist some flexibility on varieties of flowers.

Michael George, a New York florist whose work has been featured by Martha Stewart and Oprah Winfrey, says that half of his clients know what they want, and his company makes their dreams a reality. The rest of his clientele is more challenging. He estimates that 20 percent turn all the decisions over to him, based on his reputation; 20 percent have bad ideas that he and his staff try to dissuade them from; and the remaining 10 percent he calls "impossible." "They say nothing," George says. "They know nothing. They have no personality. It's like pulling teeth to deal with them."

Louis Guerra, a floral designer with Takashimaya, an exclusive department store in New York City, says it's useless to ask a florist for a bid unless you know some basic details: how many people are coming, for example, and where the reception will be held (so the florist has an idea of the kind and number of arrangements needed).