Meet Jackie Patel

We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Jackie Patel a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Jackie , thank you so much for taking the time to share your lessons learned with us and we’re sure your wisdom will help many. So, one question that comes up often and that we’re hoping you can shed some light on is keeping creativity alive over long stretches – how do you keep your creativity alive?

I wish I had a simple formula to answer this question! As a flower preservation artist, keeping my creativity alive is extremely important for me to be successful. Most of my commissioned work is to transform fresh bridal and memorial flower bouquets into displayable frames after the flowers are fully dried and flattened. Because these flowers are very sentimental, there can be a lot of pressure to ensure the dried/flattened flowers match how the flowers looked when fresh. This is where my creative design skills must come into play- it’s not always easy to arrange the dried flowers as the client expects.

To keep my creativity alive, here’s 3 action items I take regularly:

1) Dedicate time to focus on the task at hand. For me, I usually get stuck creatively when designing a pressed flower frame and the dried flowers do not match the fresh flowers that the client delivered. Unfortunately, during the drying process, many flowers may change color and/or shape, making it difficult to mimic the fresh bouquet. To overcome these issues, I force myself to design multiple versions of the bouquet and then let the client choose which they like best. This can be very time consuming and at times frustrating, but I’ve found that forcing myself to focus on completing one design at a time ends up making it easier to get past those creative road-blocks.

2) Do the research to continuously improve. While this can be applied to many steps of the process for my work, it has especially helped in the flower pressing step. I cannot tell you how many hours I’ve spent researching how to best preserve different types of flowers and leaves so that they will retain their colors without molding. Some flowers need to be pressed petal by petal between multiple pieces of paper and cardboard, while other flowers need to be ironed and then set between pieces of foam and wood so that they do not mold. Though a lot of time is spent on YouTube, reading blogs/books and following larger flower preservation Instagram accounts, the most beneficial task for me is simply the trial and error of my own flower preservation techniques. As I continuously research better methods, I often have ideas that lead me down the right path.

3) Try new things & see new places! This one is the most fun, and something that helps improve your life beyond just keeping creativity alive. Exposure to people, places, and experiences outside of your typical routine will undoubtedly broaden your creative horizons. As an example, it was on a recent trip to Spain that I saw some of the most incredible intricate, little flower tiles lining the walls of a restaurant that led me to expand my design scope for a large pressed flower frame. It was also on this trip that I found pressed flower jewelry dishes when shopping in a boutique, which inspired me to start experimenting on how I could offer something similar.

Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?

I’m a flower preservation specialist, which means that I transform fresh flowers into lasting works of art to be displayed for years. Whether it’s wedding bouquets, memorial bouquets, or just because bouquets, I love being able to keep fresh flowers out of the trash by turning them into precious keepsakes. My most popular type of flower preservation is a pressed flower frame, but I also offer many resin products such as coasters, ornaments, trays and kitchen boards. Though I’m based in Dallas, TX, clients can ship their bouquets to me from all over the country and I will ship back their final product(s).

This year, I’m looking forward to expanding my product list and DIY class experiences. If interested in learning more about flower preservation or my products, check out my website www.FlowerPatels.com and/or Instagram @flower_patels413.

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?

1) Be curious – Do research on whatever interests you and become an expert on it. Sometimes this isn’t fun and glamorous, but it is essential when getting started. When first learning how to press flowers, it took months (& years for some flowers) to figure out the exact steps for how to minimize the mold and maximize the color retention.

2) Be vulnerable – Don’t be afraid to take risks and put yourself out there. For me, posting on social media can be difficult as I don’t want to be annoying/obnoxious/weird, but realizing the benefit of increased sales makes it worthwhile.

3) Be patient – Focus on yourself and what realistic goals you can achieve. It can be hard not to compare yourself to larger companies/competitors/influencers who may be further along than you are, but don’t let that stop you from pushing forward.

How can folks who want to work with you connect?

I’m always looking for florists, event planners, or any wedding/memorial vendors to collaborate with. The bulk of my business is wedding bouquet preservation, so getting to partner with anyone in that industry (even if outside DFW) is great! Please let me know via email / text if interested.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.FlowerPatels.com
• Instagram: flower_patels413
• Other: [email protected]