Flowers from Puducherry, seashells from Goa and Andaman, and leaves from Kochi — these are some of the memorabilia that Shivaani Vaishnavi wanted to preserve forever. Placing them in between pages of books or simply storing them away in a box was not working anymore. That's how the artist and painter turned to resin to preserve these precious souvenirs and with it, the beautiful memories of her travels. A few YouTube videos, silicone moulds from Amazon, resin from BohriAli (an e-commerce platform specialising in art supplies) and a lot of hard work later, she cracked the art. Magnets, pendants, keychains, fridge magnets, bookmarks...who knew reminiscing could look so pretty?
The 23-year-old is a certified memory preserver today and has fulfilled over 450 orders across India. "It is clichéd, but I derive inspiration from nature. It's all about the details with nature and I like to pay attention to details too. Whatever I make is usually tiny," she says. And cute, we add! Her ocean series, which she launched in July, was a particular hit. Just imagine a piece of the ocean on a coaster, such was the effect. She also experiments with coffee beans and other themes like day and night, mountains and beaches and so on. It is because she experiments so much that she receives 25-30 orders per month. She also gets requests from people to preserve the fur of their dearly departed furry best friend. Clearly, her over 4.2k followers trust her.
But if you think you can master the art too, be assured that it'll take some time before you can call yourself a pro. Why though? "Just one of the many things to keep in mind is that moisture doesn't work well with resin at all. So one has to be very careful with flowers and leaves and ensure that they are dried properly before actually proceeding to preserve them," says the Hyderabadi. Storing them in a box filled with silica gel can help absorb all the moisture and retain the colour, FYI. "If flowers don't dry properly, they could decompose, defeating the whole purpose of preserving them," warns the artist who has taken over part of the living room as her own corner.
Having pursued her Bachelor's in Architecture from JBR Architecture College, Shivaani is currently preserving memories full-time but has started looking for jobs. Don't be disappointed! She fully intends to continue to help seal your memorabilia.
Working with resin
- Resin comes with a hardener
- When you are ready, mix the two
- It takes 24 hours to dry
- Add the flowers and so on
- You can also use colour pigments
Some of her work
For more of her work, check out instagram.com/shivaanivaishnavi
