One floral trend that I have noticed lately and absolutely love is dried flowers. I first noticed it in Japan a few years ago, and like all Japanese trends, I’ve since noticed it everywhere.
Drying flowers is such a great way to give your favourite blooms a prolonged life, meaning you don’t have to throw them out as soon as they die (that’s kinda the point) and you can also forgo buying any new ones for a while. It’s a win-win! Once we got started researching the world of dried flowers, we discovered that there are a multitude of ways to do it, Ā all of which are easy and make for beautiful centrepieces you’ll want to keep around. Read on for 5 ways to do it yourself.
Fives Ways to Dry Flowers
Option 1: Air Drying
This is the most traditional way of drying flowers. All you need to do is gather up a selection of flowers and tightly bind them with a rubber band by the stem. Then, hang your bouquet upside down in a well-ventilated area, but making sure to avoid direct sunlight. Over the weeks, you will find that the petals change form and colour, and are transformed into delicate vintage hues. These bouquets become great centrepieces!
Option 2: Pressed
Another technique for drying flowers, you’ll be familiar with the flattened look of a pressed flower. Using any heavy book you can find lying around, line a page with parchment or wax paper and arrange your flowers on the page, then close the book. It’s best to position the flowers facing downwards, and make sure that they don’t overlap. The next step is to wait between 7 and 10 days, checking now and again for your perfectly pressed flower to emerge! Read more on pressing flowers here.
Option 3: Silica Gel
Silica gel is made up of miniature blue and white gel beads, which you can find in an Arts & Craft Store. What it does is absorb the moisture from the flower petals. Simply place your flowers in a large airtight container filled with the Silica Gel, making sure the gel covers the flowers. Leave the flowers for 1 – 2 weeks, after which they will emerge perfectly dried. This method is good if you are looking to maintain the shape and structure of the flower which may be lost with pressing or air drying.
Option 4: Sand
Sand is also a great way to dry flowers! Who knew? All you have to do is pour a half inch layer of sand into a sturdy box and gently place the flowers on the sand. Then, evenly pour sand on top of the flowers, and cover completely. Leave the box sealed and in a warm dry place for around 2 weeks. Once ready, gently pour out the sand, and you’ll have your dried flowers!
Option 5: Oven
This porcess is the speedy version, but does come with the risk of burning them so be careful. First, distribute the flowers on a baking sheet on top of a wire rack. Set your oven to 150-180 degrees and bake the flowers for 1.5 to 2.5 hours. Make sure to keep a close watch on your flowers every 30 mins to avoid any burns. When the flowers are crisp and dried, remove from oven and let them cool.
Enjoyed this post? Here’s another DIY on How to: Press Botanicals that we think you may be interested in!
Thanks how to try flowers! And I love your jumper with the big buttons so much!
xx from Bavaria/Germany, Rena
http://www.dressedwithsoul.com
Thanks hun x
How beautiful! I have air-dried one or two bouquets, and they still decorate my living room. But I definitely want to try the sand and silica gel method! Thanks for sharing this!
https://www.makeandmess.com/
Great to hear!
It’s so interesting how trends go. There was a backlash against dried flowers for a long time. Glad to see they’re back.
I know right!
I didn’t know about this trend ! I love the way you arranged the flowers !
https://thefrenchiestblog.wordpress.com
Thanks so much!
Ah I didn’t know all of these ways! Thanks for sharing. Xx
http://www.thoughtsinstyle.com/
Great!
I love pressed flowers so much! Thanks for sharing these tips, it’s a nice way to keep some low maintenance greenery indoors. I like the dried boxwood, I think that’s what it’s called anyway!
Eva | http://www.shessobright.com
I couldn’t agree more!
I love this! I pressed some flowers from my wedding bouquet and have used them in various crafts like coasters. It’s so nice to have flowers from a special event around you home.
Also, unrelated to dried flowers but if you haven’t heard about Girls Night In, it’s a weekly newsletter I think this crowd would be really into. The newsletter hits your inbox on Fridays and it’s all about self-care with enough great tips to take you through a relaxing weekend. They even have a monthly book club in a bunch of cities! http://girlsnightinclub.com?ref=Q3NjZk1FUXU=
I’ve never heard of drying flowers in the oven using sand. Great way to speed up the process! For anyone wanting something really unique, there’s lots of preserved greenery/trees and moss available that’s professionally treated and ready to go. We stock an amazing preserved moss that looks and feels amazing:)
Great read, thanks!
I had no idea there were so many different methods. I would love pressing flowers as a kid using the Yellow Pages. Iād forget they were there until the next time someone looked up a phone number and there would be a pretty surprise awaiting them!
I recently air dried some flowers and the petals still have a great perfume, months later.
Aww this makes me so happy!
This is super amazing. Thanks so much for sharing this post with us. They look so beautiful even after. And the idea is very unique.
Thank you! And it’s so much fun to do as well!