A bouquet fades, but you don’t want to part with it, especially if the flowers come from a wedding, a date or a prom. Here’s how to dry flowers from a bouquet at home so they keep their colour: 6 proven methods, in a book, upside down, in silica gel, in the microwave, with an iron and with glycerine, plus which flowers dry best and what to make with them. More about this flower in gypsophila: types, care and bouquets.
Approximate; depends on the flower and room humidity
When and which flowers to dry
Dry flowers while they are fresh, ideally 2–4 days after you receive them, when the buds have opened but the petals are still firm. Wilted flowers look dull once dried.
Flowers that dry best: roses, hydrangeas, lavender, gypsophila, statice, spray chrysanthemums, lisianthus, mimosa, grasses and eucalyptus.
Fleshy flowers dry poorly: lilies, tulips, callas and orchids are best kept in silica gel or simply photographed.
Before drying, strip extra leaves, pat the stems dry and take the bouquet apart into single flowers.
Method 1. Pressing flowers in a book
Best for flat flowers and petals, for herbariums, cards, frames and phone cases.
Place the flower between two sheets of baking paper or tissue inside a thick book.
Stack more books on top as a press. After 3–4 days, change the paper so the flower doesn’t go mouldy.
After 2–3 weeks it’s ready. Cut bulky buds such as roses or peonies in half or separate the petals before pressing.
Method 2. Hanging upside down
The easiest way to keep the shape of roses, lavender, gypsophila and grasses.
Tie 3–5 stems with a rubber band and hang them heads down in a dark, dry, ventilated place such as a wardrobe, pantry or loft.
Darkness preserves colour and hanging keeps stems straight. After 2–3 weeks the flowers will be dry and brittle; mist them with hairspray so the petals don’t fall.
Method 3. Silica gel
Silica gel, whether unscented cat litter or a florist’s product, preserves both shape and colour best.
Pour a 2–3 cm layer into a container, set the flower head up and gently cover it on all sides so the granules get between the petals.
Close the lid for 3–7 days, then gently brush off the granules.
Methods 4 and 5. Quick: microwave and iron
Microwave: set the flower in silica gel in a heatproof bowl and heat at medium power in 30-second bursts, checking each time. 1–3 minutes in total, then leave to cool for a day.
Iron: for flat flowers and leaves. Place the flower between sheets of paper and press without steam on the lowest setting for 10–15 seconds at a time until dry.
Method 6. Glycerine: soft flowers that don’t crumble
Mix 1 part glycerine with 2 parts warm water and stand freshly cut stems in it for 1–2 weeks.
The plant absorbs glycerine instead of water and stays supple; this works best for foliage, eucalyptus, hydrangea and twigs.
What to make with dried flowers
A herbarium or a frame of pressed flowers, see our guide to making a herbarium.
A dried bouquet or arrangement in a vase.
Jewellery, keyrings or coasters set in epoxy resin.
Cards, bookmarks, candle decoration and gift boxes.
A scented sachet of rose petals and lavender.
How to dry a wedding bouquet
Don’t wait until after the honeymoon: start drying the bouquet within 1–2 days of the wedding.
To keep the whole bouquet’s shape, hang it upside down without taking it apart and check every few days for moisture inside.
For a frame or resin, take the bouquet apart: bulky roses go into silica gel, small flowers and leaves under a press.
Remove ribbons and accessories first and keep them separately so you can put them back on the dried bouquet.
Why dried flowers darken and how to avoid it
Drying in the sun: UV bleaches petals and turns them brown.
High humidity: flowers dry slowly and may go mouldy.
Too late: flowers that have started to wilt look dull when dried.
Red roses usually darken to burgundy when dried, which is normal; pale and pink ones keep their shade better.
How to store dried flowers
Keep dried flowers away from direct sun, radiators and humid rooms like the bathroom or kitchen.
Dust them with a soft brush or a hairdryer on the cool setting from a distance.
Keep pressed flowers in an envelope or under the glass of a frame so they don’t break.
Dried flowers stay decorative from a few months to a year or more.
Flowers worth keeping
Hydrangeas and roses dry beautifully, so a bouquet of them delights twice: first fresh, then dried. To keep flowers fresh in the vase until drying, use the sachet of flower food we add to every bouquet.
Graduated from Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, Institute of Biology and Medicine (2001). BSc in Biology, MSc in Horticulture. Writes about plants, works at a garden centre selecting and repotting plants, and contributes to plant reference guides.
Birthday
Hydrangeas