Florals are central to event design, but their ephemeral beauty fades. Hold on to their charm by turning blooms into art, with Darien Hoffmann’s floral preservation outfit Rejoice and Blossom.
Preserving flowers is nothing new. Many can remember hanging a treasured arrangement to dry upside down or tucking a bloom into a book. In recent years, artists have been immortalizing arrangements in resin—a longer-lasting approach that turns florals into art, furnishings and jewelry.
Darien taught herself everything and practiced with garden flowers before debuting Rejoice and Blossom in 2019. She and her fisherman husband, Kieran, run the business out of a warehouse in Naples. The couple’s 5-year-old son helps unbox bouquets and dry the flowers. Darien often color-corrects the blooms with floral paint to preserve the vibrant hues. She places each flower into a resin-filled mold, quickly arranging flowers, one layer at a time, before the resin dries in about an hour. The pieces then cure in a 78-degree room.
Rejoice and Blossom makes coffee tables, serving trays and earrings. For one project, Darien outfitted a pair of glittery lace-up boots, with a resin heel, with peach spray roses, eucalyptus and Craspedias—hey, why not?