i hate dried flowers. let’s face it: they’re dead. and they’re just collecting dust. friends of mine used to (do you still, ladies? you know who you are…) save every rose, every prom corsage, every memento they ever got from Boys. hopefully they at least tossed the ones from the ex-Boys, since they married wonderful men.

after my own wedding, i pitched my bouquet. i have this great memory of walking out the door the following morning to leave for my honeymoon and not wanting to leave my bouquet inside our house to rot for a week. so i unwrapped the ribbon and floral tape and tossed it unceremoniously in the yard waste bin right before i got in the car. i didn’t save the ribbon, either. i took it off first because it’s not compostable. i’m remarkably unsentimental for somebody who works in the wedding industry.

however! there is a better way!

loreen hospodar of reenie rose will paint your bridal bouquet. and she’s seriously talented. the best part is that it even appeals to my unsentimental self too–her compositions zoom in on the details of the flowers, so the end result looks like the beautiful art that it is. art that i’d want anywhere in my house. to top it off, she’s totally sweet. we met for some java when she came through the pnw recently and i’m stoked to have a new friend, even if she is based in chi-town.

enough talk, let’s see pics.

if you have some good shots of your bouquet, she can even do this way after the fact. and her website is set up so you can register for a painting. basically, she’s thought of everything. so go check her out at www.ReenieRose.com.