I cannot tell you how much fun I had creating a set of items for Jessica from her wedding flowers. The whites and greens made a classic combination that stunned on her special day. Not as much as she did, though! Her bridal bouquet was perfect for creating keepsakes.
The first step to creating Jessica’s keepsakes was preserving her flowers. I dried them naturally with string and a dark, dry room. This process takes time and patience. In fact, I recommend waiting at least a month before attempting to create anything with flowers that you are drying.
One of the risks of drying flowers is the accompanying fragility. If you are attempting to dry flowers at home, be very careful. Even brushing up against a dried bouquet can send little flowers and leaves flying. Sometimes this is unavoidable. When I find loose pieces by dried bouquets, I save them in a box labeled specifically for the bride. These pieces are often the perfect size for ornaments or jewelry. No part of the bouquet needs to go to waste!
Once the flowers were completely dried, I was able to start working on designing the keepsakes from her bridal bouquet. Jessica requested two large shadowboxes that would pair well together. Extra parts of her bouquet were used to make a ring dish – something I think every bride needs! In addition to this, I created her an ornament. Perhaps the most meaningful piece that I made was the necklace featuring tiny blooms and leaves from her bouquet flowers.
The Art
Since the bridal bouquet shadowboxes would be the most important keepsake, I designed those first. We decided on two angled bouquets that would look complementary together. Working with dried flowers is a bit different than working with pressed flowers. Due to their fragility and stem length, you cannot really place the flowers in multiple arrangements. Instead, plan your design ahead of time so that when you start placing the pieces, you can fill in exactly where you need to.
Jessica’s flowers played out in layers. She had very lush greenery that provided a great backdrop and filler accent to the ivory flowers. You may not know it, but these leaves and small flowers really make up the character of the bouquet. The exact greens chosen can either make the bouquet look wild and gathered or classic and sweet. Jess’s bouquet had such a perfect balance of this look.
With the beautiful leaves in place, I was able to start on my favorite part: arranging the big, light flowers to turn these pieces into a bouquet that will charm for years. As you can see, these whites and creams tied the shadowbox frames and greens together to finish off the art.
The Ornament
Jessica’s ornament is one of my favorite bridal bouquet keepsakes I have ever made. The gorgeous blue ribbon was originally used to tie together her bridal bouquet. We initially contemplated including it in her shadowboxes, but I am so glad we chose to use it to finish off the ornament.
The real stunner is the giant white flower placed a little off-center. These asymmetrical touches draw the eye in and honestly just make me smile!
The Ring Dish
The ornament does have some competition for favorites with the ring dish Jess commissioned from me. Featuring greenery and petals and even a tiny dried rosebud, this is my favorite type of bridal bouquet keepsake.
There is something so meaningful about your actual wedding flowers holding your wedding rings. It is as if every time they touch they are reuniting after you held them against each other on that special day.
The Necklace
Lastly, I created Jessica a necklace featuring some of her flowers. This type of bridal bouquet keepsake can be used for years to come and worn every day. Can you imagine being able to hold a small piece your wedding bouquet and be reminded of that special day? That is why I love the idea of getting jewelry from your flowers.
The Entire Set of Bridal Bouquet Keepsakes
Together, these pieces create a beautiful set of bridal bouquet keepsakes. Each bouquet has so many flowers that it provides more than enough to create jewelry, ornaments, art, and more. Thank you for trusting me with your wedding flowers, Jessica!
Check out more of my custom bridal bouquet work here.