Dry your own flowers and have nearly free materials for crafting!

I love flowers! So when I am lucky enough to get them I want to keep them forever!

Sometimes I collect them from special occasions like wedding, funerals and so forth.

Depending on what I want to do with them later, I have several different ways to preserve them.

How to press them:

The easiest way, but it does take the longest, is to press them between the pages of heavy books. In between the pages fold a piece of wax paper in half, in between that put a paper towel folded in half, then in between that lay your flowers out. Close the book and put something very heavy on top. Some flowers work better than others when it comes to pressing. This process may take weeks or even months but it’s free!

Microfleur is a tool that you can use to press flowers while drying them in the microwave. I love this tool. One tip is to take your time. Microwave in short bursts so you don’t burn them. Here are some tips from their website:

–The Microfleur flower press uses your microwave to remove water from flowers, leaves, and botanical specimens so they can be added to your project the same day.

–It will take only a few short microwave bursts to dry flowers and plants from your garden, providing you with nearly free materials for greeting cards, scrapbooks, decorating and botany projects.  ·

–Presses are available in 5″ and 9″ sizes as well as replacement parts and a 30 page project book, packed with ideas and full color pictures. ·

–This press is used by oshibana and other artists, card makers, crafters, and botanists.

For information on finding a press visit Microfleur.

How to preserve them as a whole:

I used silica gel. You can find silica gel at most craft stores. Follow the instructions on the box. What I like about silica gel is that you can use it over and over again. The only thing to be aware of is that some flowers will discolor or even change color. But that will happen regardless of pressing or drying. Just be careful when preserving that you add the gel gently as to not crush your flowers. Again some work better than others. I found roses work the very best! For more information you can visit Activa Products.  

You can FOLLOW ALONG WITH ME and see how easy it is to preserve your flowers in this video from Sonoran Living.