Welcome to Elderflower & Fern
Thank you so much for choosing E&F for your bouquet preservation.
Elderflower & Fern is a small home-run business located in Cheltenham, UK. My name is Lorna, and I started working with flowers three years ago, and have been honing my skills to make sure your pieces are the best I can make them, using the highest quality resin on the market, and extensively researched specialist equipment.
I run Elderflower Fern by myself, which means I dedicate different days to different tasks - some days are dedicated to pouring resin for your pieces, and others are for answering your emails and messages, packing orders and other admin tasks.
My sole aim during this process is to make sure you're happy and end up with an incredible piece that you're in love with. However, this is quite a different 'shopping' experience than most people have gone through before, so please read through this pack to make sure you understand how it all works! I'm just one person, not amazon, so patience and understanding are key to making this work.
Key Points
- Timescale is an estimate, not a guarantee. At the moment I'm aiming to have orders finished in 6-12 months, but this can and likely will change regularly. I've had orders take 3 months, and I've had orders take 10 months. At the end of the day, it's a small amount of time compared to forever, which is how long your flowers will last when I'm done!
- Invoices for your orders will be sent once I've received your flowers (assuming you've booked in by paying a deposit). This means you need to know which pieces you'd like before I receive the flowers.
- I won't be able to get in touch that often, but your flowers are safe and I will be in touch to organise design choices and before posting the items at a minimum. If I gave out updates more often, I wouldn't be able to get as much work done on your lovely pieces.
- Follow me on Instagram or Facebook! I post every day and you'll be able to see how me and your order are getting on, as well as some nice behind the scenes content.
- These pieces are handmade. Think of them like a work of art! There will likely be small imperfections such as fleks of dust, slightly uneven edges and the odd bubble. This is unavoidable and should be expected.
SHIPPING INSTRUCTIONS
FLOWERS MUST BE SHIPPED TO ME 1-2 DAYS AFTER THE WEDDING/EVENT. ANY LATER AND THE FLOWERS WILL WILT TOO MUCH TO USE.
1. Find a large enough box to store your flowers without them being crushed or flattened. Trim the stems, and wrap a moist piece of tissue around the base of the stems - secure the stems with an elastic band if possible. If it's a bouquet, keep it together, dont separate the flowers.
2. Place the flowers in the box with a bed of dry cushioning (soft tissue or newspaper - NOT bubblewrap or any type of plastic as this causes flowers to rot faster) and fill any remaining space with more dry cushioning material to prevent movement of the flowers and absorb any moisture on the petals.
3. Include a note with your name, order details and contact details clearly inside the package. You MUST do this or your flowers may be thrown away - we get many deliveries daily, so we need to know that the flowers are yours.
4. Secure the box with tape and add 'fragile' to minimise any damage in transport.
Send with NEXT DAY TRACKED delivery, ideally Royal Mail Special Delivery to:
Lorna Fenech,
6 St Mary's Mews,
Swindon Road,
Cheltenham,
GL51 9FH.
The Whole Process:
More Info About Timeline
I don't currently have a 'deadline' as such for when your order will be completed. My aim is to complete most orders within 8 months. This is however a goal, not a deadline, and may differ depending on how busy I am. Larger orders, and busy seasons, may extend the order time, potentially up to 12 months.
I do not give estimated completion dates, and I can’t accept requests for orders to be completed by a specific date – this is just to make sure that no one is disappointed if the piece takes longer than expected. The process is entirely handmade, and therefore unpredictable.
Things that can cause delay:
Temperature - resin needs to have a room temperature of 18-21 degrees. Very hot weather or unusually cold weather can stop the resin from curing, and therefore cause delays.
Rough Timeline
Order Updates and Communication
Please read through this page, it's very important! I want you to go into this process with all of the information so that you know what to expect.
I send out monthly newsletters which contain general info about where I'm at and which orders I'm working on.
I generally only send out three personalised updates during the time I have your order. These are:
- When your flowers arrive
- When your flowers are dry (to send you designs)
- When your piece is finished
This means there may be a few weeks-months between updates. Once your flowers are dry, your order goes into a waiting list until a mould is free, and you likely won't hear from me during this time. If you haven't heard from me for a while, please don't worry, I'm busy behind the scenes working on your order.
I unfortunately don't have the capacity to update more regularly than this. I am a one woman band, and am working on anything between 50-200 orders at a time depending on the season! This includes all of the steps outlined above, including every aspect of running a business, and if I spent longer on emailing every customer weekly or monthly, I'd have no time to actually make the order.
If you do want an update in between the main three stages, I'll try to get back to you as soon as I can, but I might not have much to tell you depending on which stage your order is at! If I don't get back to you straight away, please don't keep emailing - I will get back to your first message as soon as I can.
I understand this is very different from what we're used to with Amazon and next day delivery - thank you in advance for your patience, and your understanding! I understand how important your flowers are and the eager excitement to have them back. I only have your flowers for a short period of time (even if that is 8 months), so that you can have them for a lifetime. I will not rush your order, but I will finish it as soon as I can!
Payment
Most customers will pay a £40 deposit to secure the date of the wedding. Once I receive the flowers in the post, we will discuss which pieces you’d like and I will send over the final invoice. I would recommend having a think about which pieces you’d like before the wedding if possible. Final invoices will be sent via email and processed via my Website, even if you've paid your deposit through Etsy.
All payments must be completed before the resin process can start. Deposits are non-refundable.
Colour Correction
It is very normal for flowers to change in shape and colour after the drying process. In particular, white flowers and red flowers will likely turn cream and dark burgundy respectively.
I have developed a subtle colour correction technique that can help to bring flowers back closer to their original colour. I use a speciality florist spray developed specifically for use on fresh and dry flowers. The colours might not be exactly the same as they were when fresh, but they'll be as close as I can get them! This is included in every preservation order when needed, at no extra cost.
Social Media
One of the BEST ways to stay in touch and see behind the scenes of your order is to follow me on Instagram! I try to post content daily, and can give you an update quicker than by email. You might also see some videos of your piece being made!
@elderflowerfern on Instagram
The finished piece - what you should expect
I work my hardest to make sure that the preservation pieces I make are some of the highest quality pieces in the industry. I only use the highest quality epoxy resin, moulds, and equipment, all of which guarantee that your piece will be extremely well made. Nonetheless, all of these pieces are still handmade. This means there can be small imperfections in the main body of the piece, or in the final finish of the piece. This includes but is not limited to some trapped bubbles and minor imperfections on the edges of the piece. This is one of the reasons I can't give a time scale - I would much rather take an extra week doing a new topcoat on the piece than send it to you sooner but with a flaw.
Please inspect your order upon reception and contact me immediately if the item is defective, damaged or if you receive the wrong item so that I can evaluate the issue and make it right. Please note that damages do not include:
- A change in the colour or shape of the flowers, this happens naturally during the drying process and is out of my control.
- Air bubbles within your resin keepsake, this happens due to trapped air within the resin. I do my best within reason to remove as many air bubbles as possible using state-of-the-art equipment, but cannot eliminate them all.
- Small imperfections in the finish of the piece, this happens as the pieces are handmade and cannot be 100% perfect. This could include specs of dust, or slightly uneven edges.
Refund and Cancellation Policy
Cancellation I understand that cancellations of events may occur prior to the flowers being sent. If you have paid in full, I will give a full refund of the order, unless cancellation is less than 48 hours before the event, in which case 10% of the order value will be withheld to cover preparation costs. If you have paid a deposit, you will not receive a refund as deposits are non-refundable.
If you would like to cancel your order after you have sent us your flowers for any reason, I will withhold the full deposit paid, or if you have paid in full I will withhold £40 of the refund to cover the costs associated with your sale.
Flowers from cancelled orders will be disposed of. If you wish to receive your flowers back please contact me via email to arrange this. You will need to cover the cost of postage for the flowers to be returned to you.
I cannot accept cancellations once the resin process has been started. I may offer a partial refund at our discretion if you do not want the piece. At least 60% of the refund will be withheld to cover the costs associated with your sale – the resin is very expensive and it would be a huge expense to make the piece and receive no payment for it.
Refunds As per the Consumer Rights Act 2015 (UK) our items fall under the several goods which are exempt from refunds. These goods include perishable goods such as flowers and personalised goods such as our resin keepsakes which are made to your specifications.
Full returns policy can be found here: https://elderflowerfern.com/policies/refund-policy