Things to Consider When Shopping for Floral Preservation

Answering these questions and viewing a preservationist’s brochure and website should help you make your decision. Remember, in order to receive a floral keepsake of the highest quality, you must not only consider the price, but also the customer service and design expertise offered by the company with which you are entrusting your precious wedding bouquet and special occasion flowers. Keepsake Floral will provide you with superb customer service and artistic quality beyond compare.

Don’t be afraid to contact the companies you are interested in! A great company will be happy to talk with you and provide you with materials that should help you make a decision. Remember that these are your special flowers and the only thing, next to your ring, that you can keep. Don’t toss them away! Treasure them with the right company. Treasure them with Keepsake Floral.

How long has your floral preservationist been in business?

Keepsake Floral has been preserving special occasion flowers for brides and other customers nationwide since 1994. We are used to working with clients from around the country and abroad and have been providing professional flower preservation for every sort of special event, from weddings to memorials, for more than 12 years.

How easy is it to place your order? How accessible is your Customer Service Department?

At Keepsake Floral, all it takes is a phone call, email, fax, or a visit to our website to place a deposit, and we’ll take it from there! We require NO design decisions at the time of deposit and we HAPPILY welcome last minute and after-the-event orders.

If placing your order at least 2 weeks before the event, we’ll send you a complimentary Floral Express Kit. This kit includes everything you need to overnight your bouquet to us. For orders placed closer to the event, we will be happy to rush you our Floral Express Kit*. Once we’ve received the bouquet and have begun the preservation process, our design consultants will help you make selections for your completed piece. Keepsake Floral’s customer service ranks at the highest of satisfaction rates with our customers. During standard business hours there is always someone at our facility to answer the phone and your questions. After-hours help is offered as well. (*See Pricing & Ordering for more information).

How much customization can I do for my keepsake? How many design options are there to choose from? What does “custom-made” really mean with your company?

Hands down, Keepsake Floral provides the most extensive selection of design options available in the industry. We allow our brides to customize their keepsakes from start to finish, selecting from more than 20 shadowbox frame styles, 25 oval frame styles, 15 fabric linings and more than 10 floral layout options to start from, with room for design customization within the actual keepsakes. You may choose our double matted display option for a shadowbox frame, or we’ll design your flowers in a simply elegant frame. Your dried flowers can be reassembled to look like your bouquet, or turn them into a piece of floral art in our topiary display. At Keepsake Floral, your design options are practically unlimited, as far as how you want your flowers displayed within the frame.

“Custom-made” at Keepsake Floral means custom-personal attention, custom-timelines, custom-inclusion, custom-designs, custom-framing and more!

• Our shadowbox flower keepsake frames are cut, assembled and glassed right here in our floral Preservation Studio.
• Our fabric backgrounds are cut and assembled right here in our floral Preservation Studio, allowing our clients to provide their own fabric (i.e. bridesmaid dress fabric) to be used as their background with no problem!
• We GLADLY incorporate your special items into your keepsake!
• Our Design Consultants work with you to determine the layout, look and feel of your keepsake. Just because you have an invitation doesn’t mean it has to be in the same location as every other keepsake.
• Our designers use the preservationists’ notes about your flowers, photographs of your flowers and floral items (i.e. pearl pins, etc.) you include, plus the custom drawing created of your design, to custom-design your keepsake.
• Special upgrades and options are available to make your keepsake as unique as you are!

What does the quality of the work look like?
Does the company take pride in its work?

Simply look at the artistic quality of the pictures within the brochures and websites from the floral preservation services you are considering. Consider the professionalism with which the company presents itself as you “meet” the company for the first time. Look for a company that provides its customers with anesthetically pleasing and artistically designed keepsakes. The craftsmanship and artistic talent displayed in a company’s literature and product photography will surely indicate the standard of beauty, quality and integrity of the piece that the company will produce for you. The keepsakes pictured in the literature and website for Keepsake Floral and the keepsakes created for our clients are all meticulously designed. Although floral preservation is an art form that is reminiscent of an older generation, Keepsake Floral’s offers designs that are elegant, clean and contemporary.

Can you wait to make your final keepsake design decisions until after you’ve seen the bouquet?

You can with Keepsake Floral! In fact, we encourage you to see your flowers before making any design decisions! This allows you the chance to look over all of your options and incorporate any special items you would like. Just get your order started with a deposit, and confirm your final order selections with a design consultant after you’ve sent the flowers to us. That way, we’ve seen the bouquet, and so have you, so you can make the best decisions for your final preserved floral piece.

Does the floral preservation service enclose each arrangement within a virtually airtight environment?

Some floral preservation companies will preserve flowers and give them back to the bride without enclosing them in a virtually airtight display. If flowers are not displayed in a virtually airtight environment, they will not last more than a few months due to dust and humidity. Humidity and dust are primarily what causes flowers to fall apart over time. All of Keepsake Floral’s oval and jewelry box domed Plexiglas frames and shadowboxes with glass fronts are virtually airtight, preventing humidity to come into the display, and keeping the flowers dry and dust free for decades of beauty. Keepsake Floral’s tabletop displays have either a glass or Plexiglas top to protect your flowers.

Will the flowers still look like they did on the day of the event?

Yes, your flowers will maintain their original shape and beauty. The colors will deepen during preservation, but they will still look realistic. White flowers, depending on the variety, have the tendency to turn a creamy or ivory tone, while colors like reds and purples will be darker in their preserved state.

I don’t live in your area. Is it hard to do this long-distance?

No, not at all! We work with clients around the country every day. Our floral design consultants are happy to work with you from start to finish via phone, or in our design showroom.

How much will this cost?

We have keepsakes for every budget. Prices start below $100 and go up beyond $500, according to the size of the keepsake you select.

How much is your deposit?

Our standard deposit is $225, which represents about half of the price of our most popular-sized keepsakes. ALL of your deposit goes toward the price of the finished keepsake you eventually choose. Should you choose a keepsake that costs less, the difference will be refunded.

How long will it take to get my keepsake?

The process takes approximately 10 to 14 weeks from the time we receive your flowers and confirm your order. Your flowers are carefully handled through more than ten detailed procedures to become your custom-crafted wedding or special occasion keepsake.

How long will my keepsake last?

You can expect it to last for decades! We include care instructions with every keepsake so you will know how to best display and care for your keepsake. In general, keepsakes, like fine pieces of art, should be kept away from direct sunlight and excessively humid areas. Your flowers should also stay behind their protective glass or Plexiglas to protect them from any humidity, dust or other environmental factors that may cause the flowers to break down over time.

Is floral preservation all you do?

Yes! Keepsake Floral’s business is exclusively the preservation of special occasion flowers and has been for more than 16 years. This allows us to focus entirely on your special flowers, perfect our art, spend time with our clients making customized decisions and offer the best products available.

Do you provide floral preservation for other occasions?

Yes! We provide preservation for sympathy or memorial tributes, special anniversaries, proms, Quincineras, bar & bat mitzvah celebrations and have created beautiful keepsakes using everything from Hawaiian Floral Leis to traditional Jewish Ketubahs and everything in between!

Can I see a floral keepsake sample?

Absolutely! Visit one of our Preservation Partners, located in cities all across the United States and Canada. Visit our Preservation Partner section of this site to find the Partner closest to you.