Flowers—a timeless language to express your feelings.
Through the continents and ages, flowers and their meaning have been peppering history. Its symbolism appears both in modern literature and ancient Greek sonnets. Centuries have passed and we still deliver silent dialogues through flowers.
With Valentine’s Day just around the corner, many of you will be receiving this floral gift from your beloved.
But as with most things in life, flowers eventually wilt and expire.
To keep them for longer, here are five Malaysian businesses that can help you preserve their beauty and create charming memorabilia out of them.
1. Bunga & The Beast
One of the first brands that we came across in our search for flower casting services was Bunga & The Beast. With a tagline of “keeping your special flowers alive”, they provide a number of ways to do just that.
Catalogue:
- Whimsical glass dome
- Shadow box
- Pressed flower service
- Floral herbarium (where flowers are preserved in herbarium oil)
- 18K gold-plated necklace
- 18K gold-plated bracelet
- Loose charms for the necklace or bracelet (minimum order of two)
- Valentine’s locket
Price range: RM75 to RM298
Deposit: No, full payment upon confirmation.
Customisation: All the designs are done according to the condition of the flowers and the suitability of the sizes.
Waiting period: Two to four weeks from the day they receive your flowers. It also depends on the condition of the flowers, as fresh flowers need to be dehydrated first.
Delivery charges: Depending on which delivery service is used (i.e. Grab or local courier services like JNT). You can also opt for self-pickup.
The brand accepts both fresh and dried flowers for casting, though the former is recommended. Any extra blooms not used will be returned to you, because the brand believes they’re sentimental.
Flowers also have an “expiration date”. Similar to makeup, flowers tend to change colour after a certain period of time. So to retain brighter colours, it’s advised that you send over the fresh flowers as early as possible.
However, Bunga & The Beast’s service is not limited to only new flowers. If you have older flowers lying around, you could also turn them into special tokens.
Speaking to Vulcan Post, Bunga & The Beast said, “Some of our customers still keep their old meaningful bouquets from two to three years ago and they can still be preserved.”
2. Tas.Kaca
Another brand that preserves your florals is Tas.Kaca. With an extensive list of offerings, you’ll be spoilt for choice.
If you prefer to have something made outside of their inventory, you’re welcome to discuss it with the brand. Of course, charges may apply for custom pieces based on the complexity of the requests.
Catalogue:
- Clutch
- Floral block
- Coasters
- Pendant
- Bracelets
- Earrings
Price range: RM22 to RM800
Deposit: Yes, 50% upon order confirmation.
Customisation: Yes, the designs are customisable. Tas.Kaca will work based on your preferences.
Waiting period: Two to four weeks from the day they receive your flowers.
Delivery charges: RM8 for West Malaysia and RM14 for East Malaysia. The brand uses courier services so do take that into consideration as well.
Similar to Bunga & The Beast, Tas.Kaca also accepts both fresh and dried flowers. However, to maintain their colours, they recommend having fresh flowers delivered to them the day after you get them.
“But if they’re already wilted and you’d still want to preserve them, we could make it work too. Basically, you can send your flowers in whatever condition they’re in,” they shared with Vulcan Post.
3. Virtuous Gallery
Established in 2021, Virtuous Gallery started off by making resin jewellery. The brand has since expanded its offerings to include flower preservation services.
Catalogue:
- Ring holder
- Keychain
- Alphabet block
- Hexagon block
- Earrings
Price range: When asked, the brand said the price depends on the size and amount of items that customers would like to divide preservations into. The large resin blocks have a starting price of RM400, but smaller items start as low as RM15.
Deposit: N/A
Customisation: Yes, but only for certain designs. They offer various shapes and sizes to preserve the flowers.
Waiting period: Two to eight weeks depending on the product(s) chosen.
Delivery charges: Depends on which delivery service you choose to use (i.e. courier services, Grab, Lalamove, etc.).
Besides fresh and dried flowers, Virtuous Gallery accepts faux and soap flowers as well. They also recommend customers to send over their fresh flowers within three days of receiving them.
4. VC Artsy
VC Artsy is a Cyberjaya-based business that creates various household trinkets with your flowers. They accept fresh, dried, and even wilting flowers.
Catalogue:
- Ring holder
- Small and large floral blocks
- Coaster
- Clock
Price range: RM80 to RM500
Deposit: N/A
Customisation: Yes, the designs are customisable. But it also depends on the size and condition of your flowers.
Waiting period: Approximately eight weeks.
Delivery charges: Depends on which delivery service you choose to use (i.e. courier services, Grab, Lalamove, etc.).
According to their Instagram page, it’s advised to book a slot for your order so that the wait time won’t be as long.
Editor’s Update [20/02/23, 12PM]: We had already listed VC Artsy prior to publishing the article, but lacked specific information on the business. The team recently replied to our enquiries, and thus the information above for VC Artsy has been added post-publishing.
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While searching for these businesses, we were able to find another brand that caters to giving these beauties a new life. However, they have not responded to our inquiries when we reached out to them to learn more about their services.
So, although we can’t break down their services into specific criteria like the above, here’s what we know about them.
Flowerpaperwork is a Shah Alam-based store that focuses on encasing your flowers in resin blocks. We gathered through their Instagram page that they accept fresh and dried flowers, and customisation isn’t a problem. They’ll also return any extra blooms that aren’t used in the process.
- Read other articles we’ve written about Malaysian startups here.
Featured Image Credit: VCArtsy / Tas.Kaca / Flowerpaperwork