• Dried flowers: a frugal, forgotten fall craft

    Posted on August 31st, 2009 Saver Queen 6 comments

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    I bought these flowers (shown above in my James Sadler vase)  from some mennonites at the St. Jacob’s farmer’s market at the beginning of the month. They were $4 for the bunch, which I thought was quite reasonable.  I only kept them in water for a few days, because my main goal was to dry them and I needed them to be in excellent condition.

    I’ve never dried flowers before, but I think it’s one of those old country crafts that is really sweet.  Here’s how to do it (it’s easy!)

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    Lay the flowers out on newspaper and arrange them in bunches.  Next, take string or twine - I had neither and used ribbons made out of fabric instead - and tie around the end of the stems.  Make sure to tie it tight enough so that the flowers are held together, but loose enough that the flowers are not tightly pressed up against each other.  

    Hang them in a warm, dry place for 30 days. I tied mine to the racks in my pantry and it worked perfectly!

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    After 30 days, remove them from the pantry and take all the ribbons off.  You can rub the stems to make any excess leaves fall off.

    They still look vibrant and beautiful in the vase - and now they will last for a long time! (That is, as long as I can keep Butternut from attacking these crumply, rustly, crunchy items which awaken a hunting instinct in cats!) 

    I also put some of the flowers in a milk glass vase in the living room, a few others in rustic looking tin box in the bedroom, and I saved a few other loose pieces for crafts. I actually have no idea what I would use them for, but I know that I will think of something. 

    Now that fall is fast approaching, beautiful fall wildflowers are out in full force.  I think I might spend some time this weekend picking some for drying.

    Do you dry flowers? Anyone know any crafts that involve dried flowers?

    Crafts / DIY
     

    6 responses to “Dried flowers: a frugal, forgotten fall craft”

    1. s- August 31st, 2009 at 11:25

      Artemesia is my all-time favorite for drying - it smells heavenly (Kind of a eucalyptus scent). Of course Japanese Lanterns are really easy too - and so appropriate for FALL!!

    2. C - The Asian Pear August 31st, 2009 at 23:25

      I don’t usually dry flowers but I’ve dried all the flowers that were given to me by Bear. I usually choose somewhere dry and dark. Keeping it in a dark place usually will keep the colours more vibrant. Also, after they’re done, I spray some hairspray on the flowers. This makes them a bit… Less fragile. Dried flowers tend to be severely brittle and fragile but with ALOT of hairspray this makes them easier to manage.

    3. Saver Queen August 31st, 2009 at 23:44

      Hairspray! Great tip! I”ll try that!

    4. FrugalChick September 1st, 2009 at 08:38

      They turned out beautifully!

    5. Kerstyn April 26th, 2010 at 17:19

      So after the flowers dry, they still have a scent to them? Does it work for any flower?

    6. Saver Queen April 26th, 2010 at 17:44

      Kerstyn, believe it or not, the flowers often will have a scent, though not a strong scent. Some smell stronger than others. My golden rod from the fall still has a nice scent! The dried flowers in this picture don’t really have much of one left. As far as I know you can use just about any flowers, but some will naturally turn out better than others. And some need to be dried differently than others (queen anne’s lace will droop, for example, unless the tops are supported in the drying process.) You can have fun experimenting!

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