You spend days, hours, and countless pinterest posts, to narrow down the way you want your wedding bouquet to look.  It is perfection.  Then, days after the wedding, most bouquets quietly wilt away in a vase on the kitchen counter.

It doesn't have to end that way. I'm Heba, and after 17 years in the wedding industry as a photographer here in Chapel Hill, I now offer an additional service to wedding clients! I spend a lot of my days in my resin studio preserving bouquets for couples across the Triangle and beyond. Floral preservation lets you keep your wedding flowers forever, suspended in crystal clear resin as a piece of art you can display in your home and one day pass down.

If you've been wondering how bouquet preservation actually works, this is the whole process, start to finish.

Step One: Getting Your Bouquet to Me

Timing matters more than anything else in floral preservation. Your bouquet needs to reach me within 1 to 3 days of your wedding, while the blooms are still fresh enough to dry beautifully.

You can drop your flowers off to me directly, or if you're deep in the post wedding whirlwind (or already on your honeymoon), I offer a concierge pickup service. A family member or your planner can also handle the handoff. The important part is that your flowers stay in water, out of direct sunlight, and come to me quickly.

*Not local?  I do offer a shipping option- please contact me for logistics and instructions!

Step Two: Drying

The moment your bouquet arrives, I begin processing it into drying. I use silica gel, a drying medium that preserves the shape and color of each bloom far better than air drying ever could.

Your flowers will stay in drying for at least six weeks. Every flower dries on its own schedule, and some blooms need up to two months to fully release their moisture. This stage can't be rushed. Moisture trapped inside a petal is the enemy of a beautiful resin piece, so I let every flower take the time it needs.

Step Three: Your Custom Design

Once your florals are out of drying, the creative part begins. I arrange your preserved blooms into 1 to 2 layout designs and email them to you, usually around three to six months after your bouquet arrives.

You choose your favorite, request any changes (one revision is included), and confirm your design. If there are specific blooms you absolutely want featured, like the rose from your grandmother's garden or the ranunculus your florist tracked down for you, just tell me when I receive your bouquet and I'll make sure they shine.

This is also where the fun extras come in. Custom background colors are welcome at no extra charge and really make your flowers pop. You can include mementos too. Fabric from a dress, hair pins, beads, even photos can be worked into your piece.

Step Four: Casting in Resin

After you approve your design, I begin casting it in resin, layer by careful layer. Depending on the size of your piece, this takes 1 to 6 weeks. Building slowly in thin layers is what keeps the resin crystal clear and your flowers perfectly placed.

Step Five: The Finishing Touches

The final stage is all craftsmanship: polishing, buffing, sanding, curing, and topcoating. This takes another 2 to 4 weeks, and it's what turns a resin block into a finished heirloom with a glass like shine.

Start to finish, your project will take 4 to 7 months. Good preservation is slow by design. When your piece is complete, I'll reach out to arrange pickup, and finished pieces can also be shipped nationwide if you've moved or are celebrating from afar.

Which Flowers Preserve Best?

One of the questions I get most often. A few honest truths from the studio:

Colored flowers preserve better than white flowers and hold their color longer. Ranunculus, roses, peonies, tulips, zinnias, delphinium, and dahlias are some of my favorite blooms to work with.

White bouquets are still absolutely preservable, but white flowers dry in a range of shades, from bright white to soft yellow, pink, green, or brown, and the same flower in the same bouquet can dry differently. If you're dreaming of an all white bouquet, variety and texture become extra important.

Red flowers dry into a deep, gorgeous burgundy. Dark purple dries almost black. Succulents, sadly, can't be preserved at all because of their moisture content.

If you're still planning your wedding, share this with your florist! A bouquet with varied blooms, colors, and textures gives us the most beautiful preservation possibilities.

A Note on Preserved Flowers

Preserved flowers are natural, and nature is perfectly imperfect. Your finished piece will show subtle layer lines from the side, and occasionally a petal will show a little bruising that only appears once cast. I'm an artist working with real flowers, not a factory, and I think that's exactly what makes each piece special. Your flowers, your wedding day, held in resin forever.

Ready to Preserve Your Bouquet?

I work with couples throughout Chapel Hill, Durham, Raleigh, and the greater Triangle area, and preservation spots fill quickly during wedding season. If your wedding is coming up, reach out before the big day so we can plan your bouquet's drop off in advance.

Email me at studio@hebasalama.com or call 919.368.1506, and let's turn your wedding flowers into an heirloom.