When we first trained with the Suspended In Time® floral preservation company, we learned that "we can fix anything".
Well, we were recently put to the test when we received a call from a husband (we'll call him Thad) who wanted us to "fix" the table dome encasement of his wife's wedding flowers. These flowers had been preserved by a different company in a different state, and were literally falling apart.
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| Unacceptable prototype |
It seems that problem started two years ago when the original flowers, which were freeze dried, had turned brown during the preservation process. (Note: Suspended In Time® does NOT use freeze drying as part of its preservation process. We also want to state that freeze dried roses do not normally turn brown, either. Something had gone wrong...) Thad's wife was mortified, and asked if there was a way the flowers could be made whiter. Her lilies were also splayed open, had been arranged differently than the original bouquet. Although the preservationist had been given a cascading bouquet, it did not retain the essential "inverted teardrop" shape when created in the table dome.
Thad's wife begged them to fix the problems, and specifically asked them not to replace the flowers with artificial ones.
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Shipped table dome with
artificial and painted flowers. |
When the bride received her $500 table dome, (which, by the way, is double what we would have charged to do the same thing) it contained artificial lilies, and flowers that had been heavily sprayed with white paint. Nothing about the finished product looked natural or real, and some of it had started falling out during shipping. Thad told us she cried for three days.
Fast forward to February 2012.
Thad had the idea that maybe the table dome could be made beautiful again. It would make an amazing anniversary gift for his wife. After doing a web search, he found Evergreen Dreams (a Suspended In Time® franchise in the Seattle area).
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| Broken flowers from the original |
Thad sent quite a few photos of the original bouquet, the fresh flowers as photographed by the freeze dry folks, the original picture of the freeze dried arrangement, and the table dome that arrived back here in Washington. He also sent pictures of the flowers that were flaking off, falling apart, and sitting at the bottom of the table dome.
Frankly, we were shocked. What a sad state of affairs! I think I would have cried for at least as long as she did.
We discussed possible options for "repair" and "replacement". Of course there was some sentimental value, but it was just not going to be possible to save much of that bouquet. Working within the budget that Thad had given us, we decided to purchase flowers identical to those in the original bouquet and dry them using the Suspended In Time ® process. Once we had a supply of lilies, two sizes of roses, and Hawaiian dendrobian orchids dried, we would decide how to proceed.
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| Left: original Right: replacement |
When we removed the artificial lilies, half the roses and orchids came out with them, basically shattering along the way, exposing the brown flowers that were hiding underneath the heavy layer of white paint that had been applied. (They should have been ivory colored. All white flowers dry a shade of ivory.) We put a newly dried lily where there had previously been a silk one. The contrast between the natural looking lily and the artificially white painted roses was just not acceptable. We contacted Thad, and asked permission to re-do the entire bouquet, inserting some of the original flowers into inconspicuous areas (for sentimental reasons).
Then the Evergreen Dreams magic began...
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| Original bouquet |
Using pictures of the original wedding bouquet, we re-created the the bouquet, making sure that the lilies were the focus of the bouquet, and that it was shaped properly and definitely cascading. We made sure that small roses and orchids from the original bouquet were placed underneath the lilies, on the back of the bouquet, and other places that would not contrast with the natural look of the newly dried flowers.
Thad told us that the bouquet holder had been "padded & white", so we added padding and white ribbon to the handle of the holder.
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Back view showing
crystal bouquet stand
and incorporated original
flowers |
We decided to support the bouquet using an awesome crystal bouquet stand we had seen on line. (A new product invented and marketed by Innovative Floral Foundations.) After contacting John, their ops manager, we found they were out of stock until June! John offered to sell us a prototype, and it worked beautifully!
We offered Thad the opportunity to personalize the table dome by adding an engraved inscription (a value added feature included at no charge to our customers). Thad sent us the wording, and the engraving was added to the base of the table dome.
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| Re-created bouquet preservation by Evergreen Dreams. |
Today is Thad's anniversary, and we are hoping there are again tears...of joy! We think the contrast between the original and our final product is quite amazing.
And yes, I would agree...we can fix anything!
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