When someone hands me flowers or something special to preserve, I know I’m being trusted with more than a flower or a trinket, I’m preserving that special moment in time for them. They might be from a wedding, a celebration, or a goodbye. By the time the finished piece is in their hands, it’s been through a process most people never see and would probably never think about…
It starts with drying. I place the flowers in silica to draw out the moisture while protecting as much of their shape and colour as I can. This process is challenging making sure you are putting an even amount of silica on the florals in a way that doesn’t damage the flowers. In some cases I open and shape the flowers themselves, handling the delicate pieces with so much care. After several weeks of drying, I remove the silica. That sounds simple until you’re cleaning grains out of delicate petals and trying not to damage the very details that make each flower beautiful. It is especially challenging because each petal is brittle and can break and crack as I handle them. I have to shake and dust off petals and buds trying to get as much of the silica particles off so they don’t show up in the finished piece.
Next comes the design. Which blooms should sit together? What deserves to be front and centre? I arrange the flowers, step back, change my mind, and arrange them again. Sometimes I redesign several times. Once I’m happy with the composition, I cover the florals in epoxy first. Then I recreate the design in the piece and pour the initial layer.
That first pour isn’t the end of the surprises. Air can hide inside the flowers or other items being preserved, leaving little holes that only show up later. I make the first cuts, find and fill those pockets, and seal any wood in the piece before building up the remaining epoxy layers.
When the pours are finished, there’s still finalizing the product design, cutting, sanding, and cleaning to do. I work through finer grits, sometimes all the way to 3000, until the surface feels the way I want it to. Then I apply the finishing oil where the design calls for it.
It’s slow work. It takes patience, problem solving, and a willingness to look closely at every stage. But that’s part of the honour of making these pieces. Someone trusted me with flowers that they wanted to love throughout their life. I want the finished piece to feel worthy of what those flowers or items mean to them.
Do you have something special tucked away from a day you wish you could hold onto a little longer?