affordable and sustainable faux florals

I started Silk Stem Collective in 2019, after using artificial flowers to DIY my sister’s wedding bouquet and centerpieces. I spent hundreds of hours trying to source flowers that looked and felt real, but quickly realized that high end faux florals often cost the same or more than fresh flowers. Together we visited wholesale showrooms and purchased many many styles and colors before landing on her final design. Because we used hyper-realistic artificial flowers, we received tons of great feedback from her guests, with many not knowing they weren’t real!

Rather than try to resell my sister’s arrangements, we immediately pooled our savings and began sourcing and designing luxury arrangements to rent locally in our hometowns, and later online by shipping to couples nationwide. In 2024, we began offering large arches and floor arrangements locally in both Chicago and Minneapolis, and we are continuing to expand this inventory to offer more on-trend and affordable ceremony options .Most of our couples still book online and do their own setup and teardown to save on costs, but we also offer full service options to couples in Chicago and Minneapolis.

We now do over 200 weddings a year and have twelve curated collections of preassembled bouquets and arrangements.. We have no minimum order, and our average couple spends just $500, less than 20% of the average spent with a traditional florist.