Breathing life into fresh flowers
Having graduated in music education, spending a considerable amount of time teaching, and then more than 5 years devoted to the professional flower business, Ms. Nguyen Thi Thanh Lan only truly found joy when she immersed herself in the production of everlasting flowers.
Lan shares: "My job is to sell flowers, so all the tasks like selecting, trimming, and arranging stems are part of my daily routine. However, with flowers that haven't been sold, after just a few days, they wither and wilt, forcing me to discard them. Each time this happens, I feel regretful and sad. I thought that to preserve the beauty of flowers over time, I needed to discover a technique or skill to prolong their lifespan."
Thinking leads to action, by the end of 2021, as the COVID-19 pandemic became more complex, Lan took advantage of the time "being stuck" at home to research the craft of making everlasting flowers online. She diligently noted down where to find the sources for flower preservation materials, what the flower arranging techniques are, and how to handle and preserve flowers. By mid-2022, she embarked on journeys to visit various everlasting flower production facilities in major cities such as Thanh Hoa, Hanoi, and Da Lat to further her study of crafting.
Ms. Thanh Lan meticulously forming her products.
“Currently, in our country, the number of units producing and trading everlasting flowers is less than 10. Da Lat - the land of thousands of flowers - has an advantage in terms of fresh flower sources, but with its low temperatures and high humidity, this city cannot develop the craft of producing untreated everlasting flowers. It's different for Hue; Hue has a prolonged dry summer, and vast flower fields with diverse indigenous flower species," Thanh Lan further explained.
At the end of 2022, after successfully experimenting with sand covering techniques and flower preservation, Thanh Lan introduced the first batch of everlasting fresh flower products to the market.
To create eye-catching, elegant everlasting flower pots suitable for souvenirs or gifts, Lan imports various expensive flower species and leaves from abroad and neighboring provinces such as chrysanthemums, tulips, white daisies, and roses from Da Lat. The glass vases used to contain the flowers are thick and highly transparent.
Covered-in-sand, individually-dried flowers are meticulously selected by the petite owner, who then conceptualizes and places them into glass vases following the principle of arranging "from the outside in, from bottom to top." Thanh Lan explained: "A person without patience will soon give up and cannot pursue this work. Like me, with a small pair of tweezers in hand, in the early days, I had to painstakingly analyze each petal of every flower. Each type of flower will require a different amount of preserving material, and the duration and process of preservation will also vary. I have had to discard thousands of expensive flowers because their quality did not meet the requirements. Now, it takes me about 3 hours to finish arranging a small vase of flowers, and for larger ones, I have to meticulously work all day to complete."
With a professional and systematic process of preserving flowers from fresh to dry, surpassing strict requirements, Lan’s everlasting flower products not only are safe and fragrant but also maintain their original colors and shapes for up to 10 years.
Bringing the beauty of Hue to the far and wide
With relentless efforts, the everlasting fresh flower products, meticulously cared for by the young woman Thanh Lan, have now come to many places. Customers from Quang Binh, Quang Tri, Danang, Nghe An, Khanh Hoa, Gia Lai... after their first acquaintance, all return to seek out Lan for more designs and quantities. Sharing a mutual desire to preserve the beauty of fresh flowers indefinitely, people will give one another sparkling everlasting flower vases or elegantly-decorated decor products made from flowers, which are very oustanding and sophisticated.
After months of spreading her products with the motto "slow but steady," prioritizing quality over quantity, now, during peak months like the recent Lunar New Year holiday, the petite owner Thanh Lan has released nearly 150 products from her workshop, earning nearly 100 million VND. In 2023, Lan also trained, recruited, and created employment for 6 workers in the local area.
She said: "The reason I chose the name Ancient Capital for my flower workshop is because deep in my heart, I am a daughter of Hue. I want friends and customers everywhere, whenever they hold and admire a flower product, they would cherish and appreciate the two words 'Ancient Capital' even more. People will remember a land rich in fragrance from lotuses and waterlilies; they will remember the Hue women who are always meticulous, kind, skillful, and gentle. I preserve beauty, and I also hope that beauty will take flight and soar far and wide."