Flower Delivery

Saving Memories: Techniques for Preserving Special Flowers

When you receive a florist bouquet or corsage from a special guy, you’re sure to want to preserve at least one of the blooms as a keepsake.  And that goes double for the first little wild daisy your toddler brings you.

How can you keep those floral memories alive?  By pressing or drying them.  A pressed flower can be kept in a scrapbook, while roses from the florist can be dried for use in dried bouquets or wreaths.

If you simply leave one or more long stemmed florist roses in the vase, and neglect them, they can actually dry quite nicely. The rose will droop its head, but go on to dry nicely and will not usually lose all its petals. But the flower will dry in a wilted position, and lose a lot of color.

To keep the bloom from “hanging its head,” you can bundle them into small bunches and hang them upside down.  Sometimes a florist will cover drying blooms in a paper bag so that they don’t become dusty.

The best place to hang a bunch of florist blossoms for drying is an airy, warm spot.  If it is too warm, such as right above a heat source, the flower is likely to fade and lose its vibrant color.  Attics are well-known for being airy and dry.  Kitchens are warm, but tend to be humid because of boiling water and washing dishes.  Near the ceiling is a good place in any other room.

You can string up a clothesline just for hanging each flower you wish to dry.  Some flowers from the florist can have the lower stem bent over to make a little hook to hang over the line.  Others can be bundled in small bunches, held with a rubber band, and hung by a paper clip that has been folded out to make a hook.

Pressing a flower is a little more involved than merely smashing it between the pages of a book, which ruins both flower and book. A special flower can be pressed by placing it between layers of absorbent paper and placing a stack of heavy books on top of it. These pressed blooms can also be bought from a florist or keepsake store.

There are florist kits you can get for pressing your own special floral arrangement. Choose flat florals, such as daisies, for pressing.  Thin blossoms, such as those that grow on spikes, can dry nicely when pressed, too.  Press a few leaves, as well, if you plan to use the pressed flower in a work of art.

Some people dry that special bloom from the florist in the microwave oven.  You might want to experiment with low power, placing a flower in a paper bag, before microwaving. Try it with less special flowers first, or you might burn up your favorite bloom.

Dried flowers can be used to decorate wreaths, making them as lovely as anything from the florist. Dried arrangements remind us of our fondest memories and can be shared with generations to come with only a little time and effort. Perhaps later you can teach others to preserve their treasured moments from the florist too.