We recently connected with Natalia Cornejo and have shared our conversation below.

Natalia , thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. How did you come up with the idea for your business?

I began experimenting with flower pressing in 2018 after a friend returned from vacation and gifted me a small booklet filled with flowers she had preserved from a hike. Botanical flower pressing dates back to 16th-century Japan, but until that moment, it was entirely new to me. The flowers were so beautiful that I decided to press more and design mini cards. Before long, I was crafting framed florals and gifting them to close friends and family for birthdays and special occasions. What started as a simple creative outlet gradually became a form of self-care—especially after long, intense days in my role as a home visitor.

When I moved back to Florida from Charlottesville, Virginia, during the pandemic and transitioned into new work roles, flower pressing remained the one constant in my life. By then, my friends had already suggested multiple times that I turn it into a business. But the idea of my self-care hobby becoming burdened by the stress of running a business haunted me, so I ignored it for years.

The biggest shift in my journey happened while working at the International Rescue Committee (IRC) as a Child Protection Caseworker. By that point, I had already dedicated much of my career to working with refugee and immigrant communities, but in this role, I experienced several epiphanies. Hearing my clients’ personal narratives—stories of resilience, childhood experiences, and trauma—allowed me to draw deep and meaningful connections to my own. The recurring theme that impacted me most was mental health: how early life experiences, survival, and adversity shaped each family’s unique perspective on life.

With every home visit, I found myself increasingly drawn to my clients’ stories, eager to understand the experiences that shaped them. More importantly, I began recognizing generational patterns—patterns that mirrored ones I had seen in my own life. This curiosity ignited a deeper passion for mental health. The work I did with the IRC was incredibly meaningful, but as burnout set in and personal realizations surfaced, I knew I wanted something more: to engage in the raw, therapeutic conversations I couldn’t have in my current role.

After much reflection, I applied to multiple MSW programs and was ultimately admitted into Florida State University’s MSW program. A few months in, I quit my job, and my journey into mental health work officially began with a renewed sense of purpose. Through all of these transitions, flower pressing remained my grounding force. As I delved deeper into my coursework, field placements, and my own self-care, I began exploring ways to merge my botanical design practice with a nature-centered therapeutic approach.

My career coach and mentor gave me the final push I needed to turn this vision into reality. She reminded me that I had the power to shape Pressed For Memories into anything I wanted and needed. Now, two years later, I have officially merged the benefits of botanical design with therapy, using mindfulness and nature-centered conversations to help heal intergenerational trauma.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

As the daughter of immigrants, my family’s understanding of mental health mirrors that of so many others like me. Mental health issues such as depression, anxiety, and stress either “didn’t exist” or were severely downplayed. We never discussed or acknowledged them in any context. We “got over” things by working, eating, distracting ourselves, or counting our blessings. While these techniques demonstrate remarkable resilience, they also rob us of the opportunity to recognize, accept, and express our need for emotional support. Admitting you saw a therapist was the equivalent of saying you were crazy. And convincing family members of the benefits of therapy rarely got far—there was always a greater fear of airing family matters to strangers.

Through years of conversations with both my clients and my own family, I realized I needed a more creative way to introduce the benefits of therapy. Framing it strictly from a Western perspective rarely, if ever, resonated with my parents. Diagnostic labels and discussions of medication felt intimidating and unfamiliar. Before delving into healing intergenerational trauma, breaking family patterns, addressing dysregulated nervous systems, and understanding the impact on child development, I knew something was missing.

This is where PFM came into play. I discovered that using nature as a lens—one deeply tied to human experiences—offered a more accessible way to engage in these conversations. Foraging flowers, observing seasonal changes, witnessing natural disasters, noticing greenery in unexpected places, and recognizing the cyclical patterns of nature all served as powerful reflections of our own internal processes. I began to see that relating to our environment and Mother Nature felt less intimidating and, from a cultural standpoint, made far more sense than discussing diagnoses and pushing medication.

This perspective aligns more closely with my cultural identity because it weaves me back to my ancestors. It also opens the door to conversations about decolonizing mental health—something I won’t delve into here, but I encourage others to explore. In many ways, this is the heart of the work I hope to accomplish as I continue merging my passion for mental health and botanical design.

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

One lesson I had to unlearn was, “You have to separate work from your personal life to be successful.” While maintaining healthy boundaries is necessary, integrating personal values and passions into your work can be profoundly fulfilling and even enhance your success. PFM is more than a business – it reflects who I am, my values, and my connection to nature and community. Rather than compartmentalizing my life, I’ve found strength in allowing my work to be an authentic extension of myself. This approach brings more significant meaning and satisfaction to what I do, keeps me motivated, and ultimately helps me connect with others more genuinely. So, instead of creating strict separations, I focus on creating harmony between my values and professional goals.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

One of the biggest tests of my resilience came when I launched Pressed For Memories while balancing my MSW program, field placements, and my own healing journey. At the time, I was navigating the emotional weight of my work in mental health, constantly holding space for others while trying to find ways to stay grounded myself. Flower pressing had always been my personal outlet, but turning it into something bigger—a business that merged art, therapy, and cultural identity—felt overwhelming.

There was doubt. A lot of it. Could I take something that had been so sacred to me and turn it into something sustainable? Would I lose the joy in it? Could I juggle it all without burning out? The fear of failure, of losing my creative refuge, almost kept me from moving forward. But resilience isn’t about certainty—it’s about stepping forward even when you don’t have all the answers.

I started small, creating with intention, reminding myself that this wasn’t about making a perfect business but about sharing something meaningful. Every workshop I led, every piece I crafted, and every conversation I had about the connection between nature and healing reaffirmed why I was doing this. I realized resilience isn’t just about surviving hardships—it’s about redefining them. It’s about taking what feels heavy and reshaping it into something that brings connection and purpose.

Looking back, the hardest part wasn’t the work itself; it was trusting myself enough to take the leap. But just like the flowers I press, I learned that beauty can be preserved through change. And now, every time I see Pressed For Memories grow, I’m reminded that resilience isn’t about pushing through alone—it’s about allowing yourself to evolve in ways you never expected.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://pressedformemories.wordpress.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pressedformemories/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/natalia-cornejo-42320a39/

Image Credits

All photos taken by Natalia Cornejo