Weddings are meant to be a beautiful, once-in-a-lifetime occasion, so it's perfectly understandable that we'd want to preserve a few sentimental items from that day, like special photos and the bridal bouquet.
When something doesn't work out or gets ruined, it's devastating, sympathized the members of the "Am I Overreacting?" (AIO) subReddit.
Redditor catmom_mac had been very careful with her bridal bouquet, specifically because she wanted to have it pressed and preserved in a glass frame in her home.
When she received the final product from a preservation artist, only for it to be broken in transit, the Original Poster (OP) couldn't imagine replacing it with a replica.
She asked the sub:
"Am I overreacting by asking for more than just a full refund for destroying my bridal bouquet?"
The OP took care of her bridal bouquet at her wedding so she could have it preserved in a frame.
"I (29 Female) had my bridal bouquet preserved by a company in Wisconsin, and I’m trying to figure out what’s reasonable here or if I’m overreacting and asking for too much."
"I kept my flowers in really good condition. I only carried them for maybe two hours for photos, then they went straight into a vase."
"I dropped them off the next day to be framed and preserved."
"My husband paid for the bouquet preservation, which is why it held more sentimental value for me. I know at the end of the day they’re just flowers. I’d probably be less upset if it had only been my own money invested."
After a long wait and improper shipment, the flowers arrived at OP's home, ruined.
"The artist took about seven months to complete the project."
"When I received it, the frame arrived completely destroyed."
"The glass was shattered, and the flowers inside were shredded."
u/catmom_mac/Reddit
The packaging, or lack thereof, appeared to be the main issue.
"The packaging seemed inadequate."
"It was basically bubble wrap with no real reinforcement, and the box had perforated sides."
u/catmom_mac/Reddit
"The piece itself is a double-pane glass frame with the flowers pressed between, so it’s fragile."
u/catmom_mac/Reddit
The OP reached out to the artist but couldn't agree on a solution.
"She offered: full refund, or remake it and reship it herself, providing new florals (she’s a florist)."
"I asked for: a smaller remake (original was 24x18, and I asked for 11x14), about 60% off the remake, and to have my mother-in-law handle shipping (she regularly ships fragile artwork)."
"She declined and said she will only: remake and ship it herself at full price (or have us pay out of pocket to ship ourselves), or refund everything."
"She said she’s shipped many of these and never had an issue before."
u/catmom_mac/Reddit
The OP wasn't happy with what the artist offered.
"My hesitation is that I don’t trust the shipping at this point, and this piece is sentimental and irreplaceable. A refund feels like it doesn’t really make up for losing my actual bouquet."
"And as for doing something with what I have left, I could make something super small. Only four flowers were halfway salvageable; most were destroyed because they were glued directly onto the glass. Once the glass was shattered, my florals were shredded with it."
u/catmom_mac/Reddit
The OP remained conflicted.
"My husband thinks I should just take the refund and move on, but I feel like that’s not enough."
"Am I being unreasonable and overreacting by asking for a discounted remake and different shipping arrangement? What would you do?"
"AIO?"
Fellow Redditors weighed in:
- NOR: Not Overreacting
- YOR: You're Overreacting
Regardless of whose fault it was, some Redditors agreed with the OP's concerns about this problem happening twice.
"NOR, but I wouldn't trust her to redo it, either. Full refund and find someone closer, explain the whole situation, and see how they can help."
"Are you crafty at all? She already did the hard part of pressing the flowers in a pleasing way. If I were you, I'd honestly be tempted to learn how to do this the right way myself." - Consciious-Strawberry
"NOR. I do understand shipping doesn't always come out perfect. It could be either party... But the shipping, I feel, was done EXTREMELY poorly." - MissChloe1
"Ohhhh, she's packed a MILLION of them and there's NEVVVVVER been an issue before?"
"The shipping 'attempt' in these photos is a joke. It should have been packed more carefully for that much glass."
"I wouldn't trust her to redo it and have it actually reach you in one piece." - louielou8484
"Any time I have to pack ANYTHING breakable, that s**t gets stuffed on the inside (if possible) and every single available grocery bag in the cupboard is getting crammed in there. H**l, I might even put the box in another box with more packing (which I've done before). I want zero movement."
"I feel like this would have been an ideal thing to pack in expanding foam and heavy-duty cardboard reinforced in the corners, or even a wood-style crate."
"Those poor flowers. YOUR flowers, from YOUR wedding day. NOR." - mrsristretto
"I'm sorry, that sucks. It looks very obvious that she didn't pack it near enough to reduce risks as much as possible."
"Personally, especially given her response, I'd take the full refund and ask for any leftover dried flowers from your bouquet to be returned as well. If there are any, of course."
"I wouldn't ask her to remake, as she doesn't seem like she takes much care, and you'd likely just be risking a repeat experience."
"NOR, but I wouldn't trust someone who messed up this fundamentally to try again." - HelpfulName
Others encouraged the OP to take the refund and hopefully use it to buy replacement, replica flowers.
"A full refund entails OP buying all new flowers. The bridal flowers were destroyed." - Outside_Coffee_80
"I think it would be rare for any company to cover sentimental value, but I understand your pain. I would take the refund."
"I agree that this is not correctly packaged given the contents, and I'm surprised these things ever survived being handled by any postal service or courier." - Bynming
"I'm really sorry this happened, but I agree with your husband: take the refund and move on. Personally, I wouldn't even try to recreate it with another florist. The bouquet that mattered is gone, unfortunately."
"I'd just leave a review after getting the refund, saying the packaging was inadequate and your bouquet was destroyed during shipping." - Popular-Web-3739
"NOR. There is nothing that can replace the actual bouquet you used. You have every right to be upset; your feelings are 10000% valid, OP."
"I, frankly, would make her refund me, and then I'd give her a review online if possible. I wouldn't trust her a second time. Especially if she's 'a florist.' How can you be sure she would use YOUR OG flowers? I'm a skeptic, so I wouldn't be comfortable giving her business."
"For the folks that say, 'shipping damages aren't her fault,' I disagree. I've shipped MANY things that were fragile, and I always triple bubblewrap, cover in cardboard, and use packing peanuts, whatever it takes to get my item to the buyer or receiver safely."
"The seller did an atrocious job, especially since she knew how irreplaceable this product is. She failed the OP." - thickhipsthick
"I would also leave a review. If I were responsible for this gross negligence of someone's sentimental property, I would be bending over backward trying to fix it. The fact that she is not is... telling." - Confident_Aioli6360
"OP is owed a full refund of what she paid, plus the money to replace the flowers."
"Over my wedding bouquet, I’d be taking this to small claims court. NOR." - EjjabaMarie
A few suggested a painting instead of flower preservation, since the OP had so few wedding-day flowers left.
"Can you find an artist to recreate the idea by painting or drawing your pressed bouquet, based on a photo of the completed frame before it was broken? After getting a refund, of course." - South_Recording1666
"That would be so cute! I’d love to use crushed pieces of the actual flowers on the paint, too." - SparklyLeo_
"I had this done. She painted my bouquet in watercolors based on the wedding photos after I halfheartedly attempted to dry it, and it rotted."
"It looks beautiful and doesn’t take up a lot of room, 10/10." - sidewalktimbit
"Hi, I preserve flowers for wedding bouquets. I'm really sorry this happened to you!!"
"If I were you, I'd take the full refund and do something with the flowers myself. If you can safely separate the flowers from the glass, you can make your own piece of art."
"One way I love using petals is with Mod Podge and canvas. It looks surreal." - shasha_neequa
"Hey OP. Do you have a local Facebook page you can reach out to and ask if there are any local artists? My grandma used to dry flowers, cut or crumble them, and then glue the flower bits into shapes and make a new art piece out of them."
"Artists are so talented, I bet there's a way these flowers can be turned into something beautiful still!" - conflictedmuffin
After receiving feedback, the OP shared a brief update.
"I took the refund."
"Thank you all for your advice, opinions, and suggestions. I really appreciate it."
Even if the artist initially did a beautiful job preserving the flowers and arranging them into a work of art that the OP could display in her home, she sabotaged all of that work with poor packaging choices.
If the artist had done a more thorough job of packing the project for transit, this wouldn't have happened, and the fact that she wasn't apologizing and trying in every way she could to resolve an issue involving an irreplaceable bouquet spoke volumes about her business.
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