Last updated on December 17th, 2022 at 02:01 pm
We plan a wedding for months (or even years) and it’s over. We take photos and save our gowns, or save keepsakes like invitations, napkins, or the cake topper, but what about preserve wedding bouquet? Drying your wedding flowers allows you to enjoy them just as you did on your perfect day.
No matter your level of craftiness, we have the instructions to Preserve Your Wedding Bouquet and save them forever.
Dry Your Flowers (2-3 Weeks)
If you aren’t into DIY, you can always hang your flowers. It’s one of the simplest methods and doesn’t require many tools. Everything is ready except the flowers and a dark, dry place with good circulation.
- Remove excess foliage and trim stems to desired length (no shorter than six inches). After cutting the stems, get your flowers into the dark as soon as possible.
- Remove all ribbon and wire from your bouquet’s base. The stems will shrink as the flowers dry, so tie a few at a time and then bunch them together. This prevents sagging as they dry. You can also dry the flowers separately and then reassemble them.
- Place the leaves on a flat surface (like a screen or tennis racket) and weight them down with newspaper to prevent curling. Press the leaves in a book. Then, press your flowers as described below.
- Hang the flowers upside down in a cool, dry place. Check in on them every few days. Flowers are dry when they feel stiff and the stems break easily.
- Reassemble the bouquet and glue the leaves back on. Finish with unscented hairspray, dried flower spray, or craft spray.
Flowers Should Be Pressed in a Book (2-3 Weeks)
If you don’t have enough space to hang your bouquet, pressing it in a book is a simple solution. You can use the dried flowers in homemade cards, jewelry, or as framed art once they’ve been pressed.
- To weigh down the flowers, find a heavy hardcover book. Because the moisture from the flowers can damage the pages, make sure it’s a book you’re comfortable discarding afterward.
- Open the book and place a layer of cardboard, newspaper, and tissues inside (in that order).
- Arrange the flowers on top of the layers you’ve created. Allow your imagination to run wild when arranging the flowers, as they will be pressed exactly as you arrange them. For a windblown effect, lay the flowers flat on the top sheet of tissue or overlap them. When you’re ready, place tissues, newspaper, and cardboard on top of your flowers in the following order: tissues, newspaper, and cardboard.
- Close the book and store it somewhere cool and dry, taking care not to disturb the flower arrangement.
- Check on your flowers every few days and make sure the blotter (tissue) sheets are clean.
- Your flowers will be completely dry after a few weeks. With your fingers or tweezers, gently open the layers of paper and remove the flowers — your flowers are now ready for your craft project.
Flower dried with Silica Gel (1-2 Weeks)
This is the most difficult way to dry your wedding bouquet. You can use silica gel, which is a sand-like substance made of crystals. It helps to dry the flowers while keeping their color and shape. If you want to keep your flowers in the same shape as they were when you bought them, you’ll have to spend more money and follow a lot of steps. So, if you want to keep your bouquet the same way it was on your wedding day, this option might be worth the time and work.
- Take a picture of the bouquet “before” so that you can look back on it later. Carefully dismantle your bouquet so that the flowers don’t get hurt. Unwrap any sashes or ribbons that keep it together.
- It’s time to get rid of the parts of the bouquet that are soft or mushy. This includes the stems, leaves, and buds.
- One inch of silica gel should be spread out on the bottom of a large, deep container that can be sealed.
- When you put the flowers on the gel, make sure they don’t touch each other or the sides of the vase. Make sure you have more than one container if you need to store more than one thing.
- Cover the blooms completely with silica gel, gently sprinkled to avoid flattening the flowers.
- Cover the container and store away from direct sunlight.
- In four days, check on your flowers. The gel will turn pink when it absorbs moisture, and the flowers should be stiff and dry. Cover again and leave for a few days if any flowers are still soft.
- When the flowers are dry, pour the silica gel into another container and brush off any crystals.
- Once the flowers and stems are dry, reattach them with hot glue or by carefully inserting a wire into the stem, then into the flower head. If the stems are damaged, you can buy green wire stems from a craft store.
That’s it! Try one of these creative ways to preserve your wedding bouquet perfectly.
You can read also:
- Answers To Your Questions About Home Inspections
- How To Maximize A Small Living Space?
- Deep-Cleaning Tips For Homeowners
- 10 Ways To Make Your Home Energy-efficient
- How to Enjoy a Weekend With Your Kids
- How to wipe your Android phone to selling or trading it in
- IN 6 Steps, Learn How to Start a Vegetable Garden
