Refinery Floral  ·  Studio Process

From Bouquet
to Artwork

Your flowers arrived carrying the weight of the most important day of your life. Everything we do from here is in service of that. This is a six-phase journey — careful, collaborative, entirely handcrafted, and made once, for you.

Typical timeline  ·  9 – 12 months
I
Preservation
II
The Queue
III
Planning
IV
Creating
V
Framing
VI
Finished

From drop-off to your door

What to Expect

Phase I
Preservation
Begins within 48 hrs
Phase II
The Queue
The heart of the timeline
Phase III
Planning
Survey sent at 6 weeks
Phase IV
Creating
1 – 3 weeks
Phase V
Framing
Queue dependent
Phase VI
Finished Artwork
Pickup or ship

Total estimated timeline: 9 – 12 months from flower arrival  ·  Every piece is handcrafted and made to order — queue times reflect the care given to every commission ahead of yours

I

Preservation

Begins within 48 hours

When your bouquet arrives at our studio, we receive it as what it is: irreplaceable. Within 48 hours, we begin the preservation process — each stem carefully dried using five different time-tested methods, chosen to honor the unique structure, weight, and character of every bloom and leaf.

This initial stage is about holding the form: the fullness of a peony, the layered petals of a ranunculus, the delicate arch of a sprig of eucalyptus — captured at their peak and held there. Your flowers rest in our care until the queue brings them forward, at which point each bloom is graduated — hand-restored to its original color — and sealed with an archival medium that will protect your piece for decades.

Initial preservation begins within 48 hours of your flowers arriving, ensuring the freshest possible form is captured.

Graduation — our process of restoring each bloom’s original color — takes place closer to your design date, as your piece approaches the front of the queue.

Our archival finish has been tested through eight years of completed artwork, with no fading or deterioration reported.

“If you will stay close to nature, to its simplicity, to the small things hardly noticeable, those things can unexpectedly become great and immeasurable.” — Rilke
II

The Atelier
Queue

Varies · most of the timeline

After your flowers are preserved and ready, they enter our atelier queue — a carefully tended list of pieces waiting to be designed and composed entirely by hand. Because every Refinery Floral piece is made by one of our artists, without shortcuts or assembly lines, there are only so many we can give our complete attention to at once.

The queue is where the character of this studio lives. It means that when your flowers reach the front, they will receive the unhurried, singular focus of a designer whose only task that day is to build something that will last a lifetime. You are not one of thousands. You are next.

The wait between preservation and design is the nature of bespoke, handcrafted work. Each piece in the queue ahead of yours is receiving the same care yours will.

Your Design Survey is sent six weeks after your flowers arrive — giving you time to make your choices early. We review and approve surveys approximately one to two months before your piece is scheduled to begin. When we’re ready to start, we’ll reach out by text with photos as we begin the design process.

The total studio timeline from flower arrival to finished artwork is typically 9 – 12 months.

Good things made slowly, made once, made for keeps.
III

Planning

Six weeks after your flowers arrive, you’ll receive our Design Survey — a thoughtful guide through every decision that shapes your finished piece. Frame style and wood type, size, composition, background color, glass or acrylic, and any special elements you’d like included.

This survey was designed to make the process feel clear and unhurried, even if you’ve never thought about flower art before. Our team reviews every submission personally — and if your choices feel misaligned with your bouquet’s scale or natural palette, we’ll reach out with our thoughts before anything is finalized.

You’ll choose from seven original composition types — Crescent, Oval, Garden, Symmetrical, Kaleidoscope, Calico, and Setting — each designed for a different bouquet scale and aesthetic.

Frame sizes range from 16×20 to 36×36 and beyond, with custom dimensions available. Our most popular size is 24×30.

Interest-free payment plans are available over nine months.

IV

Creating

1 – 3 weeks

Your designer begins arranging your flowers by hand — laying out leaves and stems on your chosen background, building the composition from the ground up according to your survey. Before anything is permanently placed, we reach out by text with photos as we begin, so you can see exactly where we’re headed.

This is a genuinely collaborative moment. You might love it exactly as is. You might ask us to shift something. Either way, your eye is part of the art. Once you’ve approved the proof, we glue down every element with care — permanently composing the piece that will hang in your home for the rest of your life.

One complimentary design revision is included with every piece. Additional revisions are available through our Design Proof Insurance option.

We communicate primarily by email during this phase, with text reserved for the final proof approval.

Nothing is permanently placed until you’ve seen it and said yes.
V

Framing

Varies · queue dependent

Once your design is complete and approved, it moves to our framing queue — where it waits its turn with our local Colorado woodworker, who builds each frame from solid hardwood by hand, with contrasting corner splines and a French cleat hanger rated for up to 50 lbs. These are not off-the-shelf frames. Each one is made for your piece and no other.

Premium wood options include Maple, Alder, Mahogany, and Walnut, as well as White, Black, and Gold. For glass, our Masterpiece line offers museum-quality glare reduction and UV protection. For shipped pieces, we recommend Masterpiece Acrylic — shatter-resistant, anti-static, and archivally protective.

All Premium frames feature contrasting corner splines — a signature handmade detail visible each time you look at your piece.

Standard glass and acrylic are included; Masterpiece upgrades offer significant benefits for longevity and display quality.

Standard glass is not recommended for shipped pieces larger than Small.

VI

Finished
Artwork

Pickup or shipping

Your piece is complete. It has been preserved with archival care, composed by hand, and housed in a frame built for it. If you’re in the Denver metro area, you’re welcome to pick it up at our Englewood studio — and hold it in person for the first time.

If you’re anywhere else in the country, we ship nationwide with thoughtful, protective packaging designed for the weight and fragility of framed botanical art. What arrives at your door is ready to hang.

Something that began as flowers — as the scent and color and weight of the most important day of your life — is now a work of art that will outlast the day itself.

Begin here

Ready to preserve
your bouquet?

The sooner your flowers reach us, the more of them we can save. Fresh bouquets can be dropped off at our Englewood studio or shipped to us from anywhere in the country. We’d love to hear your story.

Book With Us Questions first? hello@refineryfloral.com