Some businesses start with a plan. Liz Crosby's started with a bucket of hydrangeas and a birthday party.
A Memphis resident for thirty years, Crosby grew up in Richmond, Virginia, in a family that loved gardening, flowers and art. That lifelong love of nature and creativity laid the groundwork for what would eventually become Liz Crosby Studio Botanical Jewels.
The path there began on a whim in the spring of 2025, when Crosby entered a flower show competition through her garden club. The show included a botanical arts division, where entrants built intricate pieces entirely from dried and preserved plant materials. Crosby had never done anything like it, and she was immediately hooked. Soon, she could not take a walk without filling her pockets with leaves, acorns and seed pods, certain it could all be turned into something beautiful.
By her second competition this past spring, Crosby found herself stuck on a design and took a break to play with dried hydrangeas saved from her son Jack's rehearsal dinner. The blossoms seemed made for earrings. She experimented with paints, sealants and glues, producing several pairs to test out. She wore a set to a friend's caftan-themed birthday party, matching the painted petals to her dress, and the compliments that followed convinced her there might be a real market for her work.
Months of trial and error followed as Crosby refined her pieces to be sturdy enough to protect such delicate material. Each blossom is hand-painted on both sides, sealed, fitted with hardware, cured for a full day and finished with a coat of resin for lasting durability. Hydrangeas remain her favorite medium since they dry so easily, though she plans to experiment with other flowers.
For now, Crosby is focused on earrings, with hopes of expanding into necklaces, bracelets and rings as she perfects new techniques. She especially loves custom color matching and sees brides and bridesmaids as a natural fit for her designs. "I hope that those who wear these flowers will enjoy that they are preserved from nature and find joy in the color," Crosby says, "wear them for special occasions or just for whimsy to enhance your T-shirt and jeans."
Beyond the studio, Crosby's life reflects the same love of color and the outdoors that shapes her jewelry. She favors bold hues, especially purple, in her home and her wardrobe.
Crosby credits her friends and family for encouraging her to pursue this new creative chapter, one blossom at a time.
Follow her on Instagram @lizcrosbystudiobotanicaljewels to learn more about opportunities to purchase her earrings, including a pop-up home show in September.
"Bold colors, particularly purple, always figure in my world, whether in my home, clothes or accessories."