It happens to many of us that we love bouquets of flowers. They smell good and beautify the environment. What more can we ask for? Unfortunately, flowers tend to wither over time and no longer have the same positive impact on the environment. But there is a very simple solution to keep them forever: stuffing. So that you can do it yourself, we are going to explain in this article how to dry natural flowers.
So if you are thinking of keeping those beautiful plants that you have at home, I recommend that you keep reading. We will explain how the different techniques for drying natural flowers work and how to preserve them later.
How to keep natural flowers forever?
In order to preserve natural flowers for a very long period of time, or even forever, the best option is to dry them. In this way, the flower can remain intact throughout the years. That is to say, It will not wilt or require all the usual care of a natural plant. But how to dry natural flowers? Well, there are many techniques to carry out this work.
If you decide to dry natural flowers yourself at home following the techniques that we will discuss below, you should bear in mind that it may not be as perfect as those flowers dissected by professional florists. These usually use special solutions and products so that the life of the flower is better preserved. Nevertheless, It is a beautiful, simple task and suitable for all ages. Now we will talk a little about the different techniques that we can use.
Pressing
We will start with the pressing method. It is a very effective and easy technique to perform even for the smallest of the house. The pressing is perfect for flowers of small size and whose stem is fine.
The most popular way to do this is through a thick book. We place the flowers inside it and through the pressure exerted by the book, the vegetables will run out of oxygen, accelerating their drying. In this case, the more pressure the plants have, the faster they will dry out. To make it easier to remove them from the book later, it is best to place them between two wax papers. The flowers should stay pressed in the book for two to four weeks. During this period, the blotting paper must be changed periodically. When the time comes to take it off, we must do it using tweezers and very carefully.
There is another option to dry natural flowers by pressing. In this case we will use newspaper to carry out the task. We wrap the flowers in it, then we wrap it in blotting paper and finally we wrap it again in a layer of cardboard. In order for this technique to be more effective, it is best to replace all the layers after one week. To give the flowers time to dry, we must leave them like this for at least ten days.
Outdoor
One of the oldest methods of preserving flowers is by drying them in the open air. In addition, it is one of the simplest. Se is basically about letting the plants dry out on their own, with a little help. We must cut a little the stems of the flowers and lay them upside down in some dark place, like a closet, for example. In the event that we want to dissect several plants at the same time, we can join them in a bouquet with dental floss, pita rope or raffia string so as not to damage the stems. But be careful: we must not tighten them too much. We can also place them in a very sunny and ventilated place.
After a few days, the petals will change color and shrink. Nonetheless, the flowers will retain part of their volume, not like with the pressing technique. After at least two weeks, the plants will be dry. In order to preserve them better, we can spray them with a little lacquer. In a vase they will be splendid to decorate the home.
To the microwave
For the more impatient people who do not want to wait so many days to see the result, they can use the microwave to dry their natural flowers. They simply have to cover them with sand. In the event that there is a cat at home, the litter for these pets is perfect. Once covered, you have to put them in the microwave for two to three minutes. When the sand becomes cold, you have to remove it and that's it, the flowers will already be stuffed and ready to decorate the home. This technique is very practical for flowers with many petals.
How to dry natural flowers with components
Finally it remains to talk about the various components that help to dry natural flowers. The most common are silica gel, wax, and cornmeal. However, we must be very careful when using these products to dry the flowers, since they can get to spoil the plant. By dissecting it, the flower loses all the nutrients, making the petals much more fragile than normal. For this reason, it is necessary to ensure that the plant does not get too dry so that it does not become too brittle.
How to preserve dried flowers?
Now that we know how to dry natural flowers, we must be aware of how to preserve them. First of all, it is important to keep in mind that very open flowers give worse results than those that are more closed, since they can fall during the drying process. Once they are dry, it is advisable to apply hairspray to extend their life and reduce the amount of dust that can accumulate.
Speaking of dust, you have to keep in mind that dried flowers attract it a lot. It is best to remove it with a hair dryer, since the dried plants are very brittle and fragile. Generally, the best dried flowers are peonies, daisies, and roses. You can discover here how to dry roses.
After so much information, we have to put it into practice and decorate our home with beautiful dried natural flowers, and made by ourselves!