I love weddings. I’m the girl in the back who is usually crying before the bride even gets down the aisle, and I absolutely love planning, creating and decorating for my friends and customers who are making that sacred pledge to their loved one forever.
As I currently plan and create resin preservation pieces for a couple of Brisbane brides this week, it occurred to me that planning for resin preservation (or any other method of preservation) is often an afterthought. For good reason though, as there is a million other things to tick off the list and make sure is perfect before you say ‘I do’, but I really, really implore you brides out there thinking about preserving your bouquet in the future to plan backwards, with your preservation method in mind. (This is, of course completely subject to flower availability and seasons!)
What kind of pieces are right for you?
Pressed Flower Frame
If you know you want something large, beautiful and extravagant, perhaps a pressed flower frame is the perfect decor piece for your living room or bedroom wall. If you think you want a frame, then the best flowers to choose are ones that are easily pressed. Flowers that are relatively flat already, including ranunculus, anemone, hydrangea, cosmos, delphinium and poppies are all great choices for a pressed flower frame.
Resin Block
If you’re after something with ‘wow-factor’, then a resin block is definitely the way to go. A 10 inch square, hexagon or large arch block is certainly a stunning statement piece for your living room or bedroom. There aren’t too many flowers that can’t work in a resin block, but certainly the best ones (in my opinion) are statement flowers that look stunning in their natural, 3D form- think roses, dahlias, carnations, and paeonies.
Resin Coasters
Wild Clover Collective
Just like the pressed flower frame, we need to think about leaves and flowers that can be pressed for this functional art piece. Roses, ranunculus and dahlias can all be pressed to achieve this look, but will look different from their 3D form. It can also be nice to use mixed petals in coasters for something different.
Resin Jewellery
Wild Clover Collective
If you know you’re going to want a pendant, earrings or keychain with your bridal flowers, plan ahead and make sure you/your florist is including small flowers. Florals like wax flowers and wattle look adorable in keychains, while delphinium flowers and small petals look gorgeous in earring sets.
What flowers should you avoid?
There’s absolutely no reason why you shouldn’t include whatever flowers you want in your bouquet, but big, bulky flowers such as king proteas and banksia pods can be difficult to dry and work with. Sunflowers, while absolutely stunning in their own right do require an extensive drying method due to their moisture-filled heads, and will end up costing more to dry as we have to detatch every single petal, dry the heads and reattach the petals back on. This takes aaaaages. Mums can be super fragile and often break apart during the drying process. White roses and paeonies are an absolute favourite of mine, but white flowers often discolour and will turn brown and ‘bruise’ when they have been handled. Succulents also hold lots of moisture and are basically impossible to dry.
Did this post make you change your mind about what to include in your bridal bouquet? Need an extra helping hand with deciding what to include? Let me know!