Welcome to Elderflower & Fern
Thank you so much for choosing E&F for your flower preservation.
Elderflower & Fern is a small home-run business located in Cheltenham, UK. My name is Lorna, and I started working with flowers five years ago. I’ve 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. I usually advise giving me a few business days to respond to messages.
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, so patience and understanding are key to making this work.
About Me
I'm 26, from Cheltenham and I work from my home, where I live with my fiancé Josh, two dogs Olive and Honey and cat Gizmo!
I have an university background in Law and Anthrozoology
I work for a trade association in the office Monday - Wednesday 9-5. This means my preservation work mainly takes place on Thursday - Sunday.
I have a chronic illness, so being able to take breaks and work on my own schedule is key ♥︎ Sometimes this affects my timeline for orders, but I do my best to keep on track!
Key Points
- Timescale is an estimate, not a guarantee. At the moment I'm aiming to have orders finished in 12 months, but this can and likely will change regularly. It is common for orders to take longer them 12 months when I am working on busy seasons. 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 I will send you a monthly update email to let you know which orders I am currently working on.
- Follow me on Instagram or Facebook! 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
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ONE
Find a large enough box to store your flowers without them being crushed or flattened.
Trim the stems with scissors, and wrap a wet 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.
Alternatively, if your florist has any spare Oasis, you can place the bottom of the bouquet into the oasis (topped up with water).
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TWO
Ideally, ask your florist for the cardboard transportation box that the flowers were stored in. This is the perfect way to keep your flowers upright inside the shipping box. Alternatively you can buy one of these for less than £5 on amazon. If you have an oasis, put it into the bottom of this box with the flowers.
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THREE
Fill the bottom of the box with soft paper padding e.g. newspaper, kitchen roll, tissue paper or packing paper. Make a hole in this (see photo) for the flowers to sit in securely. Place the flowers into that position, upright not led down otherwise the flowers will be flattened.
DO NOT USE BUBBLEWRAP or any other type of plastic, as it will cause your flowers to ROT.
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FOUR
Make sure the flowers are secure and cannot move. Once in this position, gently fill the spaces around the sides of the bouquet with more soft tissue paper. Lastly, fill the remaining space above the bouquet with more tissue paper, ensuring that there is enough to prevent the bouquet moving but not squashing it down to prevent damaging the flowers.
The Whole Process:
More Info About Timeline
My floral preservation work does not currently have an estimated timeline. The best way to think of it is more like a commissioned piece of artwork than a normal product that you would buy. I don’t know how long it will take because each order and each bouquet is so unique, and I will never rush. I spend hours working on each individual flower, and one order can take anything from 30-50 hours of work.
I keep you updated monthly via email so you know which orders in the waiting list I’m currently working on, and when I’ll be moving onto your order.
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.
I 100% understand that you want your special flowers back as soon as possible, and I work as quickly as I can without rushing orders. A nice way to think about it is that your flowers should be back home with you in time for your anniversary - what a special way to remember your lovely day with the actual flowers that you carried down the aisle!
Order Updates and Communication
Please save the email ‘admin@elderflowerfern.com’ to your contacts, as this is how I will send you updates and your invoices and otherwise they may go into your junk folder.
An email will be sent to you once I receive your flowers to confirm their arrival and to confirm which preservation shapes you would like. I will then send you your invoices via email.
Monthly Order Update Newsletter
Each month I will send an update newsletter to you via email using the email you booked with. This will let you know which orders in the waiting list I am currently working on. For example, I might currently be working on ‘January orders’ which means flowers that were sent to me in January.
I will also say which designs I’ll be completing and sending out each month e.g. January designs (flowers that were sent to me in January), so that you know when to expect your designs if you’ve ordered a block piece.
Keeping a track of these emails is the best way for you to stay updated. I unfortunately don’t have the capacity to email each customer individually to say where your order is at, and most of the time I won’t have much more info than what’s contained in the newsletters.
When your flowers are ready for designs, I’ll email them to you to choose from (block pieces only, not tea-light holders or ring holders). I’ll then send you a form to sign to confirm you’re happy with the design before I place the flowers into resin.
Once your order is complete, I’ll send another email to confirm your current address and you’ll be sent tracking details for your delivery.
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 your invoices. 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 will likely turn cream/yellow and red flowers will turn very dark.
I have developed a colour correction technique using airbrushing that can help bring flowers back closer to their original colour. Any photos you can send of the flowers fresh are really helpful for matching the colours as close as I can! Please note photos from your photographer will usually have been filtered, and so the colours might look different than the photos you or I took of the flowers when they were fresh.
Colour correcting isn’t an exact science and though I can definitely make the colours brighter, I can’t make them exactly the same as fresh. In particular white flowers will always dry a creamy beige/yellowish colour even with colour correction.
Please see photos of previous work on my website and social media as an example of how your flowers will turn out!
Social Media
One of the best ways to stay in touch and see behind the scenes of your order is to follow me on social media! I’m the most active on Instagram and I try to post content and stories daily.
@elderflowerfern
on Instagram, Facebook and TikTok
The finished piece - what you should expect
Flower preservation, as amazing as it is, isn’t magic! Your flowers will go through a huge process, and more likely than not, they’re not going to look exactly the same as they were when fresh.
They’re fully dried out during this process, and in most flowers this causes changes in colour and shape as the water leaves the petals. Bruises appear on the petals caused by fingers touching them and this makes the flowers sometimes have translucent spots when dry. When being encased in resin, the flowers can change colour and shape again! Resin is like a thick honey consistency before curing, and so it can move the petals around when poured around them. Flowers can also darken slightly during the curing process.
All this to say, it’s really important to have realistic expectations for your flower preservation pieces.
I work my hardest to make sure that your preservation pieces are keepsakes that you can treasure and bring you joy! I only use the highest quality epoxy resin, moulds, and equipment. Nonetheless, all of these pieces are still handmade. This means there can be imperfections in the main body of the piece, or in the final finish of the piece. Pieces will not have a factory-perfect finish. This includes but is not limited to some trapped bubbles and imperfections on the edges of the piece. Please know I’ll never send out a piece if it has a fixable flaw, and I always make sure every piece is as good as I can make it!
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