When Nathan and Mary Eberle decided to create handmade paper flowers for their wedding eight years ago, they had no idea it would lead to a career as entrepreneurs in a unique downtown business, aNeMonE Handmade Paper Flowers.

So far, the couple hasn't found any other company that's making and selling paper flowers in the volumes that they are or that's targeting the markets they're targeting, says Mary Eberle.

"There was nothing online when we started, and so far we've only come across a handful of people making flowers like we do," and nobody's making them in such mass quantities, she says.

Located on the second level of River Park Square downtown, the shop's paper creations are an artistic alternative to fresh or fabric flowers, with centers fashioned from beads and stones, bendable wire stems, and a wide variety of colors.

Mary Eberle says the idea originated when the couple was looking for ways they could express their artistic backgrounds at their wedding. Online, they discovered templates for making paper flowers from the Great Depression era, and made about 600 flowers in all for their wedding.

"Those flowers don't look anything like the flowers we make now, though," she says.

Two years ago, the couple began selling their flowers at a kiosk in River Park Square, and they moved into their 1,000-square-foot storefront on the mall's second floor about a year ago. Up until they opened the kiosk, they mostly had specialized in wedding arrangements, working from their in-home studio, Eberle says.

"It grew to the point where as a florist, we needed a storefront," she says. "People don't always think in advance about needing flowers; they need them really quickly."

The business has been a full-time operation for about five years, with six other employees besides the couple. A second location on west Second Avenue is set to open within the next month, Nathan Eberle says, adding that they will hire two to four more employees to staff that store.

"Most people think of paper flowers as being made of tissue paper or crepe paper," he says. "But we use acid free, archival quality paper with beads and stones. We haven't seen anyone else using combined media."

He says the central step in the process of making the flowers is the placement of each petal around a central stem that has beadwork attached to it as the flower's center. Each petal is hand cut and curled, sometimes supported by a wire sewn onto the paper. He says the time it takes to make each flower depends on its complexity, and can range from 10 minutes to four hours.

Prices for the handmade creations also vary depending on the complexity and the size of the flower or the arrangement. Individual blossoms range from $6 to $50, and arrangements can cost between $25 and $300, he says.

Various flowers also are made in an assembly line to speed up the process and to keep prices lower for customers, he says. Some of the business's employees work only in the production process, while others work in the retail store as well as make flowers.

Nathan Eberle says the flowers he enjoys making the most are Gerbera daisies, dahlias, lotus blossoms, and orchids, adding that the most difficult are dahlias with their numerous slender petals.

"We have yet to find a flower that we couldn't make," he says. "We haven't attempted lilacs yet. We could do it, but it would be very expensive and time-consuming."

The Eberles say they've also re-created some flowers in paper that they've never even heard of or seen, other than in a photo that a customer has brought in.

ANeMonE offers its customers the option of customizing an order with specific color schemes or types of flowers. Most of its custom orders are wedding arrangements, which also entail the majority of its sales, Mary Eberle says.

Since the couple started the business, they've made flowers for more than 220 weddings across the country. About half of all the weddings they book are located outside of the Inland Northwest, she says, adding that during this past summer, the business provided flowers for about 65 weddings.

"The No. 1 reason brides use us is because they get to keep their flowers," she says. "It's unique and different. And because it's custom, you get the exact color you want."

She says some brides will have only their bridal bouquet and the flowers for the wedding party handmade, but others will opt also to have all of the centerpieces and other floral decor, such as arches and trees, handmade.

The business also offers the option to rent larger handmade arrangements for weddings, while everything else that is held or worn in the wedding ceremony is bought and kept. One of the pieces available to rent is a life-size tree with more than 1,000 white paper blossoms, Nathan Eberle says.

"It ends up being less expensive than a florist," Mary Eberle contends.

She adds that the business tries to price its products so they're competitive with fresh flowers, and offers a variety of options for brides to choose from.

"It really varies, but the price of live flowers varies as well," she says.

Recently, the Eberles also started offering corporate rentals. Businesses can pay a fee to receive new flower arrangements on a monthly basis, Nathan Eberle says. Two businesses here that rent such arrangements are Sante Restaurant & Charcuterie and Grassroots Wellness Spa, he says.

"We've been adding clients every month," he says. "It's a really great service, and the people that do it love it. We've grown enough now that we have enough inventory, and it's something we're able to take on."

Starting in January, the Eberles say they hope to start offering classes again for customers who are interested in learning how to make some of the flowers they sell. The cost for an hour-and-a-half long class will be $35 per person, and will cover the supplies to make a rose and a dahlia, Nathan Eberle says.

"There might be more people making paper flowers here on their own now because of us," he says. "We end up making more customers with a lot of the classes, though, because people realize how hard they are to make, but it's a lot of fun and people have a great time."

The Eberles say their business has grown steadily. Right now, they say they're mostly focusing on maintaining their growth and aren't pursuing large jobs, although they've been invited to make paper flowers for several events across the country over the last several years.

One of those events, held earlier this year, was a fundraiser called Dining by Design, put on by the Design Industries Foundation Fighting AIDS, for which aNeMonE created an elaborate centerpiece for the event chair's table. Nathan Eberle says those flowers were auctioned off at the event and raised about $2,500.

Town & Country Weddings magazine also contacted the Eberles for an interview on their wedding arrangements for a piece it was planning on handmade paper flower vendors, Mary Eberle says, but the article never ran because the magazine was unable to find any other paper florists on the same scale to profile for the piece.

So far, aNeMonE has shipped its products to eight countries worldwide and every state in the U.S., she says, adding that many of its online shoppers find the store by searching for one-year wedding anniversary gifts, which traditionally are made of paper.

Someday, the Eberles say they hope to open stores across the country, but for now they want to focus on their operations here, including the new store and also finding a permanent production facility in the area.

Creating and selling do-it-yourself paper flower kits is another area the couple wants to explore, as well as expanding their marketing of the business's rental services.

The Eberles says they've been lucky that the poor economy hasn't hurt their business, and that they've reached their sales goals.

"I never would have thought I would be doing this as a living," says Nathan Eberle. "It's just become our passion, and it's amazing to be able to do something so creative and fun as a business and to bring smiles to people's faces. We are always trying something different and new, and we want to keep doing things that make people say, 'Wow.'"