A preserved flower asks for the opposite of what a fresh one asks for: no water, no light, no fussing. Everything below is what actually extends one, and what actually ends one.
The three rules
- No water. Ever. It is not drinking. Water gets under the plating and into the preserved tissue underneath, and that is irreversible. The glass vases sold here are display stands.
- Out of direct sunlight. UV is what fades a colored petal and dulls a metal finish. A hall table beats a south-facing windowsill by years.
- Somewhere dry. A bathroom or a kitchen window is humid enough to matter over months. Anywhere you would keep a book is fine.
What kills one, in order of how often it happens
| Cause | What it does | Reversible? |
|---|---|---|
| Water in the vase | Lifts the plating at the stem, then wicks up into the bloom | No |
| Direct sun | Fades enamel and lacquer; dulls the shine on plated finishes | No |
| Humidity | Softens the preserved tissue under the coating over months | No |
| Perfume, hairspray, cleaning spray | Leaves a film on the finish; solvents attack the lacquer | Sometimes, if caught immediately |
| Handling by the bloom | Bends petals; skin oils mark the plating | Marks, yes. Bent petals, no |
| Dust left to build | Sits in the petal folds and dulls the whole piece | Yes — see below |
Cleaning
Dust is the only maintenance a preserved flower needs, and it needs it about twice a year.
- Do: a clean, dry, soft brush — a large makeup brush or a soft paintbrush — worked outward from the centre of the bloom. Or a hairdryer on its coolest, lowest setting, held about a foot away.
- Do not: anything damp. No cloth-and-water, no metal polish, no jewellery dip, no glass cleaner. Metal polish is designed to remove a microscopic layer of metal, which is precisely the layer you have.
- Hold it by the stem, always. That is what the stem is for.
By material
| What you have | What it needs |
|---|---|
| Gold, silver, platinum, copper, bronze, brass, iron, tin, aluminum, steel — real flowers under plating | Dry dust twice a year. Copper and bronze warm in tone over years, which is the metal behaving normally rather than a fault. Do not polish it back. |
| Glazed and enamel — real flowers under lacquer and paint | The most light-sensitive pieces here. Keep them well away from a window and they hold their color for years. |
| Porcelain | Wipeable with a barely damp cloth, since the bloom is fired ceramic. The stem is soft acrylic — bend it once into shape rather than repeatedly. |
| Cotton and lace | Dry brush only. Fabric holds dust more than metal does, so brush these three or four times a year. |
| Leather | Keep dry. Leather stiffens if it gets damp and then dries out. Nothing else needed. |
| Paper and wood | Dry, out of sun, and do not press the petals flat. Paper takes a crease permanently. |
| Crystal and rose quartz | The only pieces here that tolerate a damp cloth on the bloom. Keep the metal stem dry anyway. |
| Sterling silver jewelry | Sterling tarnishes; that is what sterling does. A silver polishing cloth on the metal only, never on a piece with a flower attached. |
Sizes and what fits what
Everything here is measured stem tip to bloom top, and every measurement on a product page is the maker's own rather than a rounded-up one.
| Piece | Length | Bloom |
|---|---|---|
| Small preserved rose (most metals) | about 5 in | about 2 in wide |
| Gold and platinum rose, short stem | about 7 in | about 2 in wide |
| Gold, platinum and steel rose, long stem | about 12 in | about 2 in wide |
| Glazed rose | about 11 in | about 2 in wide |
| Porcelain rose | about 18 in | about 3 in wide |
| Preserved daisy | about 5 in | about 2.5 in wide |
| Preserved orchid | about 5 in | two 2 in blooms per stem |
| Preserved lily | about 5 in | two blooms on a Y stem |
| Cotton rose | about 9 in in the vase | about 2.5 in tall |
Which vase
| Vase | Fits |
|---|---|
| 3 in glass vase | Single stems and pairs, 5–7 in |
| Medium glass vase | Sets of up to 6 porcelain roses |
| Large glass vase | Sets of 9 to 18 porcelain roses |
Sets that include a vase say so in the option name. The porcelain sets do not include one, which is why the two larger sizes are sold separately.
Ring sizes
Rings are listed in US numbers. If you are unsure, most jewelers will size your finger in a minute and charge nothing for it.
| US size | Inside diameter |
|---|---|
| 5 | 0.618 in |
| 6 | 0.650 in |
| 7 | 0.682 in |
| 8 | 0.716 in |
| 9 | 0.748 in |
Between two sizes, take the larger. A ring that will not pass the knuckle is the one return nobody can design their way out of.
Engraved tags
A tag is about 1 inch across, in stainless steel or gold plate, round or heart-shaped, and ties around the stem. Up to 42 characters. Adding one does not delay shipment.
Text is engraved exactly as typed, so check the spelling before you order — see the terms for what happens if we get it wrong (we redo it) versus if the typo came in with the order (we cannot un-engrave it).
Displaying it well
- Single stems look better slightly off-centre in the vase than upright in the middle — the bloom is heavier than the stem and a small lean reads as natural.
- Pairs cross at about a third of the way up. That is how the photographs are set, and it is the arrangement the two-stem vases are sized for.
- Away from a radiator as well as a window. Dry heat is not as bad as humidity, but it is not nothing.
- If it goes back in the gift box for storage, keep the internal bracing. It is shaped for that piece.