Emily Rose Valentine
Owner & Lead Designer
Emily started her career working with flowers as a designer for weddings. Although delivering on a bride’s vision for her wedding day flowers was a fun challenge and satisfying in the moment, she couldn’t help the nagging feeling that her work was futile as mounds of flowers were discarded after each event. If only there was a way to truly make the flowers last forever — and not just in photographs.
When Emily moved to the Pacific Northwest in 2022, she was introduced to the art of floral preservation. There she learned and practiced this art form under the tutelage of Jessica Morin of Florals Preserved. Emily discovered a new method of working with flowers; one that allowed her designs to be enjoyed endlessly.
Since she began creating with this new medium, Emily has discovered that her background in wedding floral design has contributed tremendously to her success as a floral preservation artist. Whether arranging cut flowers in a bridal bouquet or arranging preserved flowers in a flat lay to be framed, the design principles remain the same.
Although her love of flowers is immense, Emily’s love for her little family cannot be matched. Emily is a wife to the most supportive husband and a mother to the sweetest little boy. They now live together in Washington D.C. and enjoy all the things the city has to offer. She loves going on walks, baking sourdough bread, and traveling as much as possible.
Emily’s flower journey is exactly that — a journey — and without her diversified experiences, she would not be the artist that she is today. She is happy to have found her home as a floral preservationist in this wide, flowering world.
All About the Method
Preserve
The preservation process begins by fully submerging each flower in a sandy desiccant for a few weeks to draw the moisture out. This method allows the flowers to retain most of their natural shape and color; although, every flower variety has its own personality and reacts differently to the drying process. When the flowers are ready, each one must carefully be removed from the desiccant to prevent damage to their petals.
Repair
After the drying process, the flowers require quite a bit of doctoring before they can be used in a design. First, any dusty residue from the drying process has to be cleaned off. Then, repairs have to be made if the flower sustained any structural damage. This is an extremely tedious stage of the process since many of the flowers must be rebuilt petal by petal and are especially fragile now that they have no moisture to make their petals pliable.
Design
Now that the flowers are design ready, the real fun begins! While all elements of floral design still apply (such as color, shape, and texture), there is an added challenge of working within the constraints of a frame. Before I commit to an arrangement, I will usually try several different layouts. The final step is to secure the flowers to a backing to be framed. Even in this final stage the design evolves. What can I say, the flowers have a mind of their own!