It's a question I get often: "What's the best way to preserve fresh flowers?"
For the Remembrance Jewelry I create, the better the colors of the flowers, the more unique and colorful your piece of jewelry or accessory will be.
And while there are many ways to preserve flowers, I wanted to share a few of the simpler methods I've used that are just as effective as some of the more complex methods.
The Hanging Method
It's easy, takes minimal prep time and is one of the simpler ways to dry flowers while still preserving their color.
To start, you'll want to first strip each flower stem of leaves before separating your flowers by species. Once you have them separated, use a rubber band, twine or thread to bunch the flowers at the base of the stems.
Hang the flower bunches upside down. It's best if you hang them in a cool and dry location to prevent them from rotting while minimizing the potential for the flowers to fade.
I'll often use an open paper clip and hang the flowers from an 's' hook, board or coat hanger.
Once the flowers are hung, it usually takes about 2 weeks until I'm able to use them for your Remembrance Jewelry.
The Pressing Method
Pressing flowers is a wonderful way to preserve their beauty and the process honestly is quite simple!
Using matte paper (not glossy), arrange your stemless flowers in a single layer. Newspaper, tissue paper or even cardboard all work wonderfully.
Once your flowers are arranged to be pressed, top them with another sheet of matte paper or cardboard. The more absorbent the paper, the better your flowers will turn out.
Next you'll want to place the flowers under a large and evenly dispersed weight. Think phonebooks, dictionaries or encyclopedias. If you don't have large heavy books handy, you can also use a heavy box or a piece of wood.
And just like the other methods, it's time for the waiting game. To speed the process up, after the first week, you can remove the flowers and replace the paper with fresh dry sheets before putting the flowers back under the weights for several more weeks.
You'll know they're ready when they are completely flat and have a papery feel to them.
The Simple Petal Drying Method
If you're more interested in just drying out petals and not necessarily an entire bouquet of flowers, this method is not only super simple but will speed up the drying time significantly.
Take each petal you'd like to dry by placing them on matte paper (again, think tissue paper, newspaper or even cardboard) in a single layer.
Set the flower petals in a cool, dry location and rotate them every 24-48 hours until you noticed they start to curl up dry out.
You can also do this with the leaves of the flowers if you're interested in having them incorporated into your Remembrance Accessory design.
Additional Information & Tips
No matter what the method you use to dry your flowers, it's important that after you dry them that you store them in a cardboard box and not a plastic bag. This prevents any leftover moisture from destroying the flowers.
If you have a bouquet of flowers and prefer not to take it apart, it's okay to hang an entire bouquet upsidedown without separating the flowers into bunches. Separating the flowers by species in smaller bunches can definitely help speed up the drying time and effectiveness, but isn't completely necessary.
I'm happy to dry your flowers for you! If you're interested in having Remembrance Jewelry or Accessories made and want to drop off fresh flowers, I'm happy to dry them for you at no additional cost. It's one less thing you'll have to worry about and I always give back the remaining flowers in a cardboard box ready to store should you want to use them for other projects or future Remembrance Jewelry!
Attended the evening at the Whitewater Crossings Christian Church last night and was led to your place/booth. I purchased a beautiful necklace and earrings for my granddaughter’s 18th Birthday on Monday. I hope she will like it.
I also went to your web site and looked at all the beautiful and charming creations you have made.
The thoughts that touched my heart and spirit were so clear and uplifting that I am so grateful that our lives have touched each other in this crazy and sometimes disconcerting world. Thank you for being who you are and sharing your creativity with us.
I would like to know how much you charge for remembrance bracelets . Also, where are you located? Where do I drop off the flowers? I have the large spray of roses that were on my Mother- in- law’s coffin.
Comments will be approved before showing up.
If you're looking to shop for your FENNO FASHION jewelry in-store, here are the locations where you can shop around the Cincinnati area!
| Item | Price | Qty | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Subtotal |
$0.00 |
|||
| Shipping | ||||
| Total | ||||
Sharon Borntrager
September 28, 2019
Attended the evening at the Whitewater Crossings Christian Church last night and was led to your place/booth. I purchased a beautiful necklace and earrings for my granddaughter’s 18th Birthday on Monday. I hope she will like it.
I also went to your web site and looked at all the beautiful and charming creations you have made.
The thoughts that touched my heart and spirit were so clear and uplifting that I am so grateful that our lives have touched each other in this crazy and sometimes disconcerting world. Thank you for being who you are and sharing your creativity with us.