Conversations with Rhonda Osborn

Today we’d like to introduce you to Rhonda Osborn.

Hi Rhonda, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
I was born and raised in the Kansas City area. My husband, Heath, and I currently live in Louisburg, KS with our 2 dogs, Jack & George. They like to “supervise” when I make my flowers! I have always loved being creative. As a kid, a new box of crayons was such a treat for me! My mom used to send me crayons and a coloring book during finals week in college as a way to help me relax.

I became interested in forever flowers after spending time with an elderly friend, Marie, who lived in a nursing home. Marie’s son would send beautiful large bouquets of live flowers to his mother every month, but it was such a struggle for her to change out the water in the bouquets because the vases were so heavy. I wanted to find a way for Marie to enjoy flowers without the struggle. Forever Flowers were the perfect answer! My first forever flower project was a bouquet of paper daisies that were made using a pattern and online class that I found on my local library’s website. I fell in love with the process of working with paper and started searching online for other courses. Since then, I’ve taken some masterclasses to learn new techniques using felt, crepe paper, and text-weight paper. My favorite way to learn is to try something and fail and then figure out a better way to do it. I like to play around with different patterns and coloring techniques. It’s fun to see how realistic I can make some flowers, and other times it’s fun to see how abstract I can make them.

I got Covid this summer and quarantined in my craft room. That same week, a friend sent me an application to be a vendor at a holiday mart in our town, and I thought “what the heck, let’s go for it!” I got busy and made a lot of crepe paper flowers and felt flower arrangements for the holiday mart. That was the official beginning of Nifty Forever Flowers. Since then, I’ve been busy figuring out how to start and run a business, how to really use social media to bring awareness to my business, and how to set up my website. I joined a local group in Kansas City called “Craftshow CEO”. They have masterclasses and other resources to help with all of the logistics that go into running a small business. I’ve learned a lot in a few short months!

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
My biggest obstacle was my own resistance to starting my business. My husband gave me the book, “The War of Art” by Steven Pressfield. That book was life-changing. It helped me identify and acknowledge everything I was resisting and to realize that all of my doubts were normal.

Another obstacle has been figuring out what to charge for my flowers and being ok with the fact that my prices are going to be higher than what you will find in a big box store. Most forever flowers you find in big box stores are mass-produced overseas, so they can sell them for a very low price; but you get what you pay for. I use high-quality crepe paper imported from Germany and wool-blend felt purchased from a small business in Illinois. I also must factor in for the time that it takes to create the flowers. That all adds up. But I hope that I can convey to my customers that they are paying for a quality product that will last a lifetime. My creations are often “one of a kind” special orders, so my customers also know they are not going to see the exact same arrangement anywhere else.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
My business is called Nifty Forever Flowers. Nifty means “attractive, appealing, interesting, unique, and fun.” I use crepe paper, text-weight paper, and felt to create flower arrangements and gifts. Each design is created entirely by hand. My goal is to be as eco-friendly as possible, so I often shop thrift stores and garage sales for vases and other accessories for the flower arrangements. My shop has everything from flower-theme hair barrettes and wall hangings to large centerpieces. If it is something to do with flowers, I can probably make it. Lately, I’ve been getting a lot of custom orders. I love to work directly with my customers to create an arrangement or gift that is custom-made for their loved ones.

Some of my flowers look identical to real flowers and others are very abstract. That’s what keeps my creativity going and keeps this business such a fun thing that I get to do.

Nifty Forever Flowers will not wilt or die, never need water, are easy to clean and arrange, are sustainable and hypoallergenic. What’s not to love about that?!

What makes you happy?
The process of making forever flowers makes me happy and calm. Each part of the flower is individually cut from the paper or felt. I often add color to parts of the flowers, using different mediums such as watercolors, pan pastels, and sometimes even using food such as berries to do natural coloring. I then shape the petals and leaves and arrange them. The whole process is very relaxing for me. At the end of a stressful workday in corporate America, going into my studio in the evening to create flowers is exactly what I need.

I also love to see the joy on the faces of people who receive my flowers. During the time of Covid lockdown, I created bouquets for all of the residents at Little Sisters of the Poor in Kansas City for Mother’s Day. They sent me pictures of the residents with their flowers and the joy on their faces made me so happy. Being able to bring joy to others through my flowers is a great honor to me!

Pricing:

• Bud Vase Bouquets $15-25
• Individual Flowers $8-30
• Full size bouquets $50+
• Free shipping on orders over $50

Contact Info:

• Website: www.niftyforeverflowers.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/niftyforeverflowers/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/niftyforeverflowers

Image Credits
Sarah Miller