Tuesday, June 26, 2012

I Want to Preserve My Flowers, But...

I don't really want my bouquet on my wall!

We know your bouquet was beautiful.  But maybe a bouquet on your wall is just not to your liking.  But why not use your flowers in another creative way?  Nobody made a rule that says your bouquet has to STAY looking like a bouquet!

Take a look at some of the alternatives. 

Here you can see Tammy and Kurtis in an absolutely beautiful photograph, that just happens to be nestled in a bed of flowers from Tammy's originally hand-tied bouquet.  The beautifully framed 11" x 17" photograph is the star of the show... with the pink roses and stephanotis as the co-stars!

We could provide the same effect (which uses the photograph as the background) in a rectangular domed frame, or as the back of a shadowbox.


A similar look is found in the frame to the left.  However, the photo is BEHIND an oval-shaped cutout in the mat.

Shari's original bouquet was tear-drop shaped using a bouquet holder.  Using her flowers and greenery, but totally rearranging them, the various shapes and heights of the flowers merge beautifully into  the rocky shore at the bottom of the photograph.


Cassie knew from the beginning that she didn't want her flowers to be in their original bouquet shape.  In fact, she brought in extra flowers from her table decorations to make sure we could arrange them into the groups you see here.

After sketching the original idea with Cassie during her consultation, we emailed progress prototypes until she was totally pleased!

We invite you to visit our website to see other creative ways to display your beautifuly preserved flowers!
www.evergreen-dreams.com


Tuesday, April 3, 2012

Why Choose a Shadow Box?

Shadow boxes are a very popular encasement choice for collectibles and floral preservation.  

Extra Large Mocha Shadow Box
They come in a variety of shapes and sizes, and hold everything from military medals to floral arrangements.

There are pros and cons involved in choosing a shadowbox...the the positives far outweigh the negatives for those who make this choice.  In fact, the ONLY negative that we can think of, is the fact that you have to have a nice size shelf to sit it on, or sufficient wall space to mount it. (Note: due to the weight involved, shadowboxes should always have the support nails or screws secured into a stud).

Those in love with the shadow box concept then have to make two choices: size and style.
Black Rustic Pine
By far, our most popular shadow box style is our "Rustic Pine" model.  The stock colors are white and black, but they can be customized to other colors for an up-charge.  The last few years, the black model is ordered far more frequently that the white.  The nice thing about the "rustic" feel to this box, is that you don't have to worry about any nicks or scratches that are bound to happen as couples move from apartment to condo to home in the future.  There are four different sizes available...the most popular being the "large".  This size usually allows for flowers and other memoribilia to be encased in the same place.  However, some customers prefer to emphasize just their beautiful flowers.  All Rustic Pine models fit around a UV protected acrylic liner.

2" molding in black
The next most popular model has a clean 2-inch frame in a color called "mocha".  The mocha finish has dark streaking on a dark background, and often looks black from a distance.  This contemporary coloring is very popular in the furniture stores right now.  This frame style can be configured around the UV liner, or can be fitted with a UV glass pane on the front, allowing for a deeper depth than the standard liner allows.  This is a great option for flower arrangements that include asiatic or oriental lilies, which work better with a deeper depth.  The same frame style comes in a variety of colors and finishes (such as the burnished gold to the right), as do most frame styles.

We haven't had any requests for this, but a shadowbox can also be fitted with a front dome, which gives additional working depth.

We do have a HUGE variety of other frame styles available.  You can see from these photos how a shadowbox can become very personalized using some of these frame styles.  We have samples of all our frame styles in our office, so that you don't have to "guess" from a picture in a catalog.

You can find an extensive array of finished shadow box projects by visiting the shadow box gallery on our website: http://www.evergreen-dreams.com/floralpreservation/shadowboxphotos.html

Friday, March 23, 2012

Temporary Lawn Signs...The Way to Guide Guests without GPS

Many tech savvy folks these days have GPS systems in their cars or as a smart phone app. 

But many of us, myself included, still live in the map-and-sign age. :)

We recently attended a bridal show that had very clear signs posted at major intersections pointing out the way to both vendors and attendees.  It was AWESOME to be able to follow the arrows and easily get where we were going.  Admit it...most of you find garage sales by following the signs...right?

A little ironically, but great with fortune for us, we had come to the show equipped with prototypes of our new offering...directional signs!   We were able to ask the attendees if they had seen the signs on their way to the show, and emphasize how helpful they were!

Last summer, the organizers of our family reunion were able to get us all to their house in the suburbs by using similar signs.

Because of our common wet weather in the Northwest, we are making our signs of recycled corrogated plastic and vinyl lettering.  No smeared, smudged, or faded writing here, folks!  Signs are double sided so folks traveling both directions can find you. 

For more information, please visit our website! http://www.evergreen-dreams.com/directionalsigns.html