Flowers are the perfect gift of emotion. Flowers have the same ability to hold on to the emotion of a certain time as does memories. Hence, it is obvious that people across the world like to keep dried flowers with them to preserve their memories. Wondering how to dry flowers? Although it seems that drying flowers might not require skills as such, it in itself is an art!
There are a few steps required to follow to get the best outcome. Read this blog to learn how to dry flowers like a pro!
Preparation to Dry Flowers
Make sure to clean the flowers or the foliage before you try and press them in your desired format. You do not want to have any gunk or dirt that can ruin the book that you might use as that will also stain the flower and the book (if you are using one). Run the flowers through a slow stream of water carefully trying to not ruin the shape of the petals. But, make sure that there is no dirt adhering to any of the petals of the flowers.
Remove Any Extra Leaf
To prepare the flowers, make sure to remove all the leaves from the flower arrangement that you might not need. If you feel that keeping some foliage might add to the aesthetic that you are eyeing for, then you can keep some and even the leaves can be preserved through drying the flowers, but make sure to take any extra leaf off of the floral arrangement.
Make the Perfect Arrangement to Dry Flowers
If you have a big bouquet and you would like to preserve a few flowers and leaves from it, make sure to create a cluster of the floral arrangement and always tie them in a bundle so they do not get scattered and they preserve the perfect shape. Make sure to trim the stems that seem to be longer than desired. Finally, make sure that all the stems are uniform to avoid chances of there being an error in judgment as to how big a book you might require.
Process 1: Hanging Flowers
Once you have created the perfect floral arrangement, you can tie the stems onto a clean surface and let the floral arrangement hang for about 2-3 weeks depending on the time required for the flowers to dry up. You can keep a check on them from time to time. It should be noted that the flower must avoid any form of direct sunlight, as sunlight helps the color of the flower to fade and thus the outcome will not be desired.
Process 2: Microwave the Flowers
To dry flowers in a microwave, you will need silica sand along with the flower bouquet and a microwave. Follow all the steps that we have mentioned previously and once you have tied the flowers at the stem and made sure to have the perfect arrangement, put some silica sand as a base to keep the flower or the arrangement. Next, put the flower or the floral arrangement on the silica sand and then pour more silica sand on top of the flowers.
Once the entire floral arrangement is completely submerged in silica sand, make sure to put the entire bowl containing the silica sand and the flowers in a microwave. Heat it in 30-second intervals. Check the flowers from time to time and once the flowers are in a comfortably dried state, make sure to hang them up for about 24hrs- 48 hours depending on the type of flower you are working with and to get the utmost out of the process.
Process 3: Press the Flowers
This is the age-old process where you clean the flowers, create a floral arrangement. Next, press it between a page of a book and put weights on either side or one side to make sure that the flowers have enough pressure to squeeze any moisture out of its body. This process takes longer and sometimes it is advisable to keep the flowers for months if not days to get the best result.
You can use the dried flowers to decorate around your home or pour resin on it and make it into an art, either way, the memories you have attached with the flowers will never fade.
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