From blossom to owl pellets? Rabbit poops? Raw sugar cubes?
By Never teh BrideI’ve been meaning to write a bit about floral preservation for ages upon ages, but it seems like every time I go looking for interesting floral preservation methods I stumble upon something even more interesting and my commitment to the topic of preservation goes straight out the window. In a moment, I’m going to tell you about what is by far the most fascinating preservation method I’ve found. First, however, I’m going to share a little bit of offensiveness I found on Keepsake Floral’s web site:
For every bride considering the possibility of preserving her wedding bouquet for years of future enjoyment, there may be someone who tries to discourage her from doing so. Whether it is the bride-to-be’s fiancé (who wants to save some money to buy a beer stein or autographed baseball), a friend or even the bride’s own florist (who may be unaware of the developments in previous years regarding preservation), there can be numerous road blocks for a bride trying to find out more information.
Um…what?! This sort of thing is on par with vendors who tell brides-to-be not to tell their fiancés how much things cost because, “men just don’t understand these things.”
And what’s the deal with the beer stein or the autographed baseball? Maybe Mr. So-and-so wants to save money to buy a new stove or a washing machine…why assume he wants to spend the bouquet preservation money on something so dumbly stereotypical? Shame on you, Keepsake Floral. Does this tick anyone else off or is it just me?
Anyhow, what you see above is not a pile of burnt sugar cubes, charcoal, or rabbit droppings. They’re beads–specifically beads made out of a number of different sorts of florals. The owner of From Blossom to Bead will take your bouquet and turn it into jewelry, a rosary, or a picture frame.
In a process similar to papermaking, the petals are mashed into pulp with several “secret” organic ingredients, formed, allowed to dry, and then strung with other beads to for a one of a kind, handmade heirloom quality piece.
Luxe jewelry it’s not, but if you’re into baubles with a natural, organic look, flower beads may appeal to you. It is an interesting idea. Personally, I don’t think these beads are any more or less extravagant than a fancy glass preserved floral display, but they are significantly uglier…and I’m not just saying that because I want to save some money for a beer stein and an autographed baseball!
December 21st, 2007 at 12:08 pm
I am certain that there are better ways to make beads out of flower petals. My sister had petals from her bouquet made into rosaries for her and her husband and they look much better than that!
December 21st, 2007 at 12:20 pm
Wow, I found that really sexist as well. Why do all men need a beer stein or autographed baseball? And what husband would admit to telling his wife to not preserve flowers just so he could buy the beer stein? One who will be sleeping on the couch for a while…
I think my fiance would protest if I wanted to spend several hundred dollars on preserving flowers. His argument, however, would be that those several hundred dollars could go towards paying off medical school loans, which is a valid argument considering the interest on the loans. And also slightly more worthwhile than a beer stein or an autographed baseball.
December 21st, 2007 at 1:50 pm
I’ve seen some gorgeous beads made out of preserved flowers, but these are not among them. If you’re going to make flowers into jewelry, you need to preserve the color as well as the fact they’re flowers.
And once again I learn that Mr. Twistie isn’t a man. He hates beer and has no interest in baseball, so he’d never want either a beer stein or an autographed baseball. He’d rather have a new bit of equipment for his studio. Frankly, he’s more concerned right now with fixing some issues in the house. Also, he’d never tell me that spending money on something I care about is too frivolous. Mr. Twistie never asked the price of anything for the wedding while I was the one merrily crossing things off the list because I didn’t want to pay for them and they didn’t matter to me. As far as he was concerned, if I wanted it, I should have it.
I’m more than willing to pay for quality, but there’d better be some before I plunk down my hard-earned cash.
Phooey on your sexist and incompetant heads, Keepsake Floral!
December 21st, 2007 at 8:30 pm
i’d much rather have the beer stein and the autographed baseball instead of those flowers. well, maybe not the beer so much but definitely the baseball.