Before Pressed Botanicals existed and long before I imagined floral preservation becoming my work it started with a red poppy and a journal.
I was traveling in the Middle East when I came across the most beautiful red poppies. I remember holding one in my hand and wondering how I could possibly keep something so delicate from disappearing.
A woman I met showed me how to carefully place the flowers between the pages of my journal and press them.
It was simple, but I was completely fascinated.
When I opened those pages later, the flowers were still there. They had changed flatter, softer, more delicate but they had been preserved.
After that, I was hooked.
From a Journal to a Studio
I started looking at flowers differently after that.
I became curious about which flowers would press well, how their colors would change, and how something naturally fleeting could be transformed into something lasting.
At the time, I had no idea that curiosity would eventually become my work.
In 2019, I began turning my love of pressed flowers into a business. Over the years, I’ve spent countless hours learning the intricacies of floral preservation and developing the techniques I use in my studio today.
Now, Pressed Botanicals feels like the natural next chapter.
Why I Love Preserving Flowers
Flowers have a beautiful way of becoming part of our memories.
They’re carried down aisles, given during celebrations, placed beside us during loss, picked from gardens, or brought home simply because someone thought they were beautiful.
And eventually, they fade.
Maybe that’s part of why we attach so much meaning to them. We know they won’t stay exactly as they are forever.
Preservation gives us a way to keep a piece of that moment.
When flowers arrive at my studio, I know I’m not simply receiving stems and petals. They often represent a person, a season of life, or a day someone never wants to forget.
Being trusted with them is one of my favorite parts of this work.
Pressed Botanicals Today
Today, my work includes wedding bouquets, memorial flowers, sentimental blooms, and original botanical artwork created for the home.
Every flower behaves a little differently once it enters the press. Colors soften, petals change, and each bloom takes on characteristics that make it completely unique.
That unpredictability is part of what I love about working with real botanicals.
No two flowers and no two finished pieces — will ever be exactly alike.
Through Notes from the Studio, I’ll be sharing more of that process: what happens after flowers arrive, color correction, the flowers I love working with, new artwork, studio life, and the stories behind some of the pieces I create.
But for the first note, it felt right to begin where all of this began.
With one red poppy, pressed between the pages of a journal, thousands of miles from the studio I have today.
I’m so glad you’re here.
— Hope
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