Methods of Flower Preservation

There are so many methods of flower preservation. Before we started Wilted Wonders, we spent around 6 months learning different methods and what works best for certain types of flowers. Through this blog I am going to go through the different types of flower preservation we have tried.

 

Silica Gel

Silica gel was the method Sarah used to preserve her own wedding bouquet back in 2020. She looked into floral preservationist in our area and could not find any, so she learned from Google and did it herself. 

Silica gel is not really a gel but a sand-like material that can be purchased at most craft stores. It is one of our go-to methods for preserving flowers as it keeps the shape and colour of the flowers well. It is the best method to go with if you want your preserved flowers to look as close as possible to the fresh bouquet. Whenever we do shadowbox frames or any resin pieces that have depth, we use flowers preserved in silica gel. It takes around one week for flowers to fully dry when submerged in silica sand. Some large, moisture dense flowers may take a bit longer than a week.

There are safety hazards of working with silica gel that we were not aware of for the first year of working with it. It can cause irritation and redness if contact occurs with skin or eyes. It is super important to wear a mask when working with silica gel due to the tiny particles you breath in when in close contact with it. Over time those tiny particles can cause silicosis which is damage to the lunges that is incurable. When I first learned about the potential hazards of working with silica sand, it stressed me out big time as I did not use proper PPE for the first year. Safety first babyyyyyy, make sure to mask up and throw on some gloves!

 

Air Drying

Air drying flowers is the most traditional method, dating all the way back around 2000 years ago to the ancient Egyptians. It is the method that requires the least maintenance and can turn out really beautiful. The process of air-drying flowers is relatively simple. You want to take small bundles of flowers, secure the stems with string or wire, and hang them upside down for 2 to 4 weeks. You want to make sure to hang them in a dry, dark, and well-ventilated area to assist with the drying process. Putting them in direct sun light could cause the flowers to fade. The advantage of air-drying flowers is that it requires the least maintenance during the preservation process and can be done with very little supplies. The con of air-drying flowers is that they require lots of drying space, drying time can take longer than other methods, and some flowers do not air dry well. The flowers often have a beautiful “wilted” look to them

It is becoming a trend to have air dried vases of flowers as décor in your home as they are beautiful but require little to no maintenance opposed to fresh flowers.

We do not air-dry fresh flowers for customers unless specifically asked. This is because preserving the flowers in silica sand preserves the colour of the flowers much better. We do however, accept air dried bouquets to turn into shadowbox preservation or epoxy resin work.

 

Microwave Press

This was the first pressing preservation style that we tried. It works best with small and delicate flowers such as pansies. We purchased the Microfleur Microwave Press which provided great instructions. The microwave press it the quickest method of pressing flowers you will find. The fastness does at times sacrifice the quality of the preserved flowers. The trick is to give enough time between pressing intervals for the flowers to cool off so you aren’t cooking them. The microwave press can make thicker white flower turn more cream/brown than other pressing methods.

Our main issue with the microwave press was that we found that the flowers would sometimes overheat which would make them more fragile. We rarely use the microwave press unless it is for small stock flowers and we want them done quickly to complete a project.

One pro tip: Do NOT attempt to microwave press carnations. They will start a microwave fire as the stems have almost no moisture and will burn the pads in the press.

 

Traditional Press

Using a traditional press is a very popular preservation method. Maybe when you were a kid you attempted traditional pressing in a book and tried to weigh in down by heavy books and then likely forgot about it (me too, oooops). There are many different ways to press flowers, and it is definitely a learning process. The flowers that preserve best are thin flowers without much moisture. Any thick flowers such as roses, press best when you disassemble them and press each petal individually. Most traditional flower presses are composed of similar materials; two wood boards, nuts, bolts, and screws. You will also need cardboard and paper to absorb the moisture between the layers of flowers. It is important to change the paper in presses every few days to ensure the blooms stay dry to prevent molding. 

We use traditionally pressed flowers in a lot of our work. From any thin resin pieces to pressed frames.

 

With all of these preservation methods, your flowers will change in appearance. You are taking the moisture out of a living thing, so you can expect the colour and/or shape of the flowers to change. Each method of preservation has it's own unique beauty. Reach out to us to see what type of preservation best suits your flowers!