Back in the 17th century, America and England witnessed a flourishing craft of working with dried flowers and dried leaves. It all began as a hobby for most people practicing the art but soon became a passion for quite a few and later took the form of business. In the recent past, dried flower arrangement has managed to appeal to the mass where people prefer to keep them as an object of decor in their living rooms, bathrooms, and kitchens. Potpourri is a popular choice of dried flower arrangement that makes one’s living space filled with fragrance that comes from using natural items. As such, the popularity of dried flowers is often compared to fresh bloomers across a list of advantages:
- Dried flowers are independent of seasons and promise to last indefinitely.
- Owing to their flexibility, they can be easily moulded to any shape or size, helping a craft form to prosper.
- They make exceptional decor items for any event that lasts for more than a day.
Some of the most widely collected materials for dry flower arrangement can be marked across three distinct categories:
- Cultivated flowers to the likes of seed pods, grains, and vines.
- Flowers readily available in nature like weeds, ferns, leaves, ferns, and grasses.
- Fruits, cones, berries, and leaves of evergreen trees.
How to Preserve Flowers for Dry Flower Arrangement
There are quite a few methods of preserving flowers for a dry flower arrangement that include the following:
Upside Hanging – There are certain flowers and their kind that are dried the best by hanging them upside down. Notably, it’s one of the most preferred methods of drying flowers as it tends to keep them in shape and refrain from falling apart when they are completely dry. Ensure that no single flower should touch the other one beside it as it generally hangs from a long single thread line.
Using Sandbox – Sandboxes are another way to dry flowers. In order to use the sandbox method; the flowers should be cut off clean from all its foliage and kept buried in a sandbox upside down. In two weeks or so, the same needs to be poured down carefully and the flowers are to be taken out and wipe the remaining sand particles with a soft brush. This should get them ready to be used for arrangement. One can also replace sand with borax, and the box where the flowers are being kept needs to be lined up with silica gel and alum.
Using Glycerin – If you are looking to dry flowers along with foliage, this method is undoubtedly the best find. They need to be placed inside a jar that should contain a mix of glycerin and water. Leave them as it is until it gets fully absorbed. Typically, it takes a total of two weeks to get it dried, and once you preserve the flowers well, it may last up to a total of ten years under living room temperature.
The pressing technique – If you’re looking to dry flowers fast and easy, you might consider the pressing technique. Using multiple layers of newspapers enough to achieve a good thickness level the flowers are kept between them while a heavy object is placed right on top of them. It takes a total of three weeks to fry them completely.
Designing with Dried Flowers
When it comes to designing with dried flowers, the same principle as fresh bloomers gets applied to them as well. While the majority of fresh flowers look classy, that might not be the case while working with dried flowers. However, that is precisely what makes dry flowers a unique object of beauty. Before you zero on in particular design for dried flower arrangement, the focus should be on moderate usage of forms with leaves, seedpods, and buds. The most preferred patterns include Triangles, S –shapes, Ovals, and Pyramids. For instance, while designing a centrepiece, it is utmost vital that you keep the big flowers in the centre, highlighting the keynote of the arrangement. One also needs to choose carefully as to which flowers would make an excellent focal point to allure eyeballs from all around.
Are you looking o get your hands on a wide plethora of dried flowers for your design needs? Global dried flowers are one such reputed wholesaler dried flowers. Based out of Kolkata, there are one of the largest global importers and exporters of dried flowers with a resplendent range of Botanics to choose from.
