Which method is your favorite?
Drying flowers allows you to preserve their beauty and enjoy their vibrant colors long after their natural lifespan. At Bell's Flowers, we often incorporate dried flowers into a variety of creations, from wreaths and arrangements to flower crowns and wedding decor, enabling our customers to savor the fleeting freshness of these natural wonders.
How to Dry
For drying flowers, we've found air drying and using silica gel to be the most effective methods. Air drying helps preserve the stem length, making it ideal if you plan to display the dried flowers in a vase or other container. Silica gel, on the other hand, works best for drying just the flower heads, which can then be used in frames or molds.
Air Drying
To prepare flowers for drying, we first remove all leaves and damaged petals, then bundle the stems together with a rubber band. Hanging the flowers upside down from a ladder or hook yields the best drying results. We also place the flowers in a dark area away from direct sunlight, which helps preserve the petals vibrant colors. Depending on the flower type, this drying process typically takes about a week. The flowers are sufficiently dry when the blooms have a paper-like texture and the stems are no longer limp.
Silica Gel
For our flower drying process, we use classic, deep Tupperware containers. We fill the containers approximately 1 inch deep with silica gel, which can be purchased from retailers like Amazon or Hobby Lobby. We carefully arrange the flowers in the gel, spacing them out to preserve their shape. Then, we gently pour additional silica gel over the flowers, ensuring each petal is fully covered. This is crucial for proper drying. Finally, we seal the container and allow the flowers to dry for about one week.
Our Favorites to Dry
Babies Breath
Strawflower
Lavender
Thistle
Statice
Dahlias
Asters
How to Care for Dried Flowers
Caring for dried flowers is relatively simple. However, they are delicate, so handle them with care when moving or working with them. Lightly dust them as needed, and be sure to store them in a dry environment!