Preserved Flowers vs. Fresh Flowers

I worked with fresh flowers for more than a decade and even though my love for fresh blooms will never wither or die - unfortunately they do. 

The dried/preserved flower trend hit the globe hard in 2018/2019 and I love seeing that it’s finally spilling over to our shores. Even though it’s becoming commonplace to make use of preserved flowers for weddings, events, interior styling and commercial installations, I realize that there are so many people who are still unfamiliar with the concept and who misunderstand what the fuss is all about.

Let’s dive a bit into the fuss, shall we?

Our preserved flowers and foliage are made from 100% natural flowers and foliage that have undergone specific biochemical preservation processes to maintain their natural form, texture and beauty. 

The preservation process then progresses to the bleaching and/or colouring process - this is where the flowers are either bleached and left in a creamy white/ivory colour or coloured into specific colours. You can literally have an entire rainbow of preserved flowers in every colour imaginable. How luxurious is that? In this way, it’s possible to get flowers in the exact colour scheme you have in mind for your home, event or styled setting. 

Long life span and low maintenance:

Unlike fresh flowers, which have to be replaced by new fresh flowers every few days - preserved flowers provide a long-lasting way to always have blooms in your living and working environments.

Our preserved flowers usually last 1-3 years or longer; however, the way they are handled, their specific variety and the way they are styled/stored also largely impact their longevity.

Apart from their longevity, preserved flowers require far less maintenance than fresh flowers. In fact - the less handling, the better (see more under ‘Care Instructions for Preserved Flowers’). 

Why use preserved flowers for events if it’s just a once-off usage? 

We service a wide variety of brides, floral designers and event stylists. Our preserved flowers are often used for once-off events and even though the blooms will only be enjoyed for a few hours, there are several ways to stretch them out and even re-purpose them:

• Our brides often gift the blooms to ladies attending their wedding. The best part about this is that the flowers won’t wilt and die by the time your guest arrives at home; instead, they’ll have forever flowers to remind them about your special day and for them to enjoy for a long time thereafter.
• Brides also tend to retain several of the blooms as a keepsake for their homes, especially the bridal bouquet (of course!). How special is it that you can take your forever bouquet home, place it in a beautiful vase and keep it as a reminder of your forever love? 
• Floral designers and event stylists often re-use preserved blooms after events have taken place. If the flowers are still intact, they can be used over and over again for events and styling, and in this way it helps to significantly reduce the budget for flowers and makes it way more economic than purchasing fresh flowers for each event.

Safe for allergy-prone people

Preserved flowers are pollen-free and in this way they are super practical and safe if you want to make sure attendees prone to allergies don’t struggle throughout the event with pestering symptoms.  

What about the cost of preserved flowers?

First of all - it’s really important to not compare apples with pears. As indicated above, the process of getting preserved flowers from freshly plucked to preserved is lengthy, costly and labour-intensive. Taking all these into consideration and the fact that they last much, much longer than fresh flowers - do you think it’s fair game to compare preserved flowers’ cost to something that will only last a few days at most? 

Let’s put it this way: Say you allow yourself a budget of R150 per week for a bunch of fresh flowers at your local florist. This amounts to roughly R600 per month if you replace them weekly. If you spend R600 on preserved flowers that will last you for months/years on end - you can actually fill so many spaces in your home with preserved flowers every month and eventually have some extra spending money (perhaps for a few ceramic vases from our range to combine with the blooms?). 

On a side note - I’ve been keeping an eye on fresh flowers costs the past two years and their prices have increased significantly. Truth be told - several of our preserved flower bunches are cheaper per bunch than a bunch of fresh flowers. Consider this and the fact that the former will outlive the latter - does it now make more sense to beautify your life with preserved blooms? 

All in all,  you’ll spend less in the long haul on flowers and I promise they’ll delight you every time you see them. There’s just no getting over the beauty of flowers - whether fresh or preserved.

Let’s break it down

After working with preserved blooms for two and a half years, seeing the joy they bring to our clients, the modern twist they bring to any environment and the creative juices they inspire with their colours, textures and unique forms - we are simply in love with these pretties and we are grateful to share this love, passion and delight with all of you. 

For any further questions related to preserved flowers, please pop an email to info@bloomspace.co.za