The Rubber Rose was a famous sex shop in San Diego that YELP now reports as being closed. The image is kinky all the same, as rubber symbolizes sexual deviance and the red rose always means love. A genuine manifestation of this sexy symbol is exactly what Matthew Robert White was seeking when he commissioned Bill Korenowsky of Royal Waterproofing in his basement to buy roses and dip them in various chemical treatments until they found one that preserved the rose forever. Matt was seeking an nonperishable rose product he could sell for $5 each on Valentine's Day. You can read all about Matthew Robert White pop-up retail vision on Digital Journal.
There is something morbidly wonderful about desecrating red roses on Valentines Day, especially when we can use the latest waterproofing science to preserve them, and their contempt for this romantic tradition, forevermore.
Bill Korenowsky, who is getting married this year, is no stranger to florists. He knows just what red roses cost, and where to buy the best ones. He started with a dozen roses and ... well, he never really got one that was beautiful enough or 'rubber' enough for Matt to sell, but he had a lot of fun trying.
Basement Waterproofing Contractor Rose Treatments
Bill Korenowsky did his level best to find Matthew's rubber rose recipe. Here he is holding the best of his Bakor Aqua Bloc dipped roses which are hard as a rock today, but not very pretty.
Bill Korenowsky of Royal Waterproofing holds a Waterproofed Rose.
Bakor Aqua-Bloc® 770-06 is a one component elastomeric waterproofing compound designed to replace conventional hot mop felt ply and/or pre-formed sheeting systems. It's applied in a single application, which cures through solvent evaporation to provide a heavy-duty, seamless, rubber-like impervious membrane. This is a liquid applied waterproof product that is good for year round use.
Dipping the fresh red roses in the waterproofing compound was rather difficult as the mixture was not very viscous. It reminded me of axle grease and as such it was not liquid. and not quite solid, but consistent enough to give the fragile rose a tough time and the finish was not smooth or representative of the flower's true form. So indeed it was an abject failure. But Bill did try his best.
Excellent for use on concrete, masonry foundation walls, parking decks, planters and reflective pools, Bill combines this goop with Yellow Jacket reinforcing fabric to treat cracks and joints. The finished work is a heavy body trowel grade coating that provides a seamless rubberized asphalt membrane.
More photos of Bill Korenowsky dipping roses in liquid waterproofing membrane in a basement garage in Toronto. Bill is being real careful to keep the mixture off the floor and his pants.
There is a video of Bill dipping roses in Waterproofing compound,
The idea of waterproofing roses is not to make black floral pieces but rather to preserve them in a substance that will make them beautiful forever. To be able to transform roses into floral statues is appealing to pop-up retailers and romantics alike, but the dipping experiment has proven unsatisfactory.
The Roses Need Hydrophilic Coatings
Modern waterproof clothing and especially winter jackets are manufactured by spreading a thin layer of resin directly onto the inside face of the fabric, also known as a hydrophilic coating. Some fabrics are sprayed with a polyurethane coating before being made into a jacket and this is something Matt could try next. Polyurethane roses..? This is already a name for a type of crown molding.
Durable Water Repellency (DWR) is a waterproofing treatment that is sometimes sprayed onto fabric (and so could also be applied to flowers), but another way of coating fabric is to laminate or membrane over the surface to form a protective wall from water droplets on the outer layer. A chemical treatment, DWR is not waterproof, but does reduce condensation forming, aiding breath-ability. There is the possibility of 3D printing a protective sealant over a red rose and adding any pigment in any portion of the flower.
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