Step 1: Get some tools. The picture above displays the
tools I use to create dried flower arrangements. These include:
Baskets, vases, etc.
Household scissors
Handheld garden shears
Clear acrylic spray
Twine
Gardening gloves
Rubber bands (not pictured
here)
Step 2: Get some fresh
flowers! I like roses because they are so pretty when they are alive
and they dry so nicely, but you can use other flowers as well. Avoid
flowers that turn brown or whose petals fall off when they die (yes,
this happens to some roses, too, but you'll discard those). I'm not
very good with flower names, so you'll just have to experiment and use
your best judgment. In addition to roses, there are other plant materials
that dry wonderfully, such as baby's breath and other stalk-like flowers,
like the purple ones in the picture on the right. Again, I'm sorry that
I can't offer names... but you'll know you've got some good material
when the color is still good and the plant is mostly firm near the end
of a week.
Step 3: Put them in water. Before
placing your flowers and plant material into water, remove all the leaves
below the water line and use garden shears to clip all the stems at
an angle (not straight across). This allows the flowers to absorb water
the best and they will last the longest... up to a week for roses and
a little longer for stalk-like plant materials.
Step 4: Dry your flowers. It
has been my experience that roses do not wilt all at once. After a few
days, you'll want to pluck out the wilted ones and start drying them.
If the flower has turned brown, the petals have fallen off, or if it looks
rotten in any way, toss it. Take the good flowers and tie them together with a
rubber band. Then, hang them upside down somewhere out of the way. I use
our kitchen baker's rack for this purpose, but you can also use the back
of a door or some other "out-of-the-way" area. Avoid high humidity if
you can because this can cause flowers to turn brown or rot. Also avoid
direct sunlight, as this can cause colors to fade. When you hang the flowers
upside down, gently make sure that all of the rose buds and petals are
facing straight down. If not, they will dry in whatever position they
are in... crooked or crinkled. It takes about 1-2 weeks for the flowers
to become fully dried. Removing them any sooner may cause the damp flower
buds to lean at the stem, and look permanently bent. Firm plant material
(like the baby's breath in the picture), can be dried upwards in a vase
that has no water. If the plant material is wilting in any way (the purple
stalks sometimes do this), then go ahead and hang them upside down like
everything else.
Step 5: Start arranging
your flowers. When your flowers or plant material is fully dried,
it's time to add them to your basket or vase. A small container may
be filled up with a dozen roses, while a larger basket may take 8-10
dozen. It is up to you if you want to remove the leaves before you arrange
the flowers. Sometimes I do, and sometimes I don't. At this point, I
have created three arrangement styles. You may discover others! Here's
what I do:
Upright vase-style arrangement.
This is the easiest arrangement to make. All you have to do is take
your dried flowers and plant material, and place them into a vase
or other upright container. Like I said earlier, make sure your flowers
are completely stiff before you do this, or else you will have an
eternally "wilted" arrangement. When you're done with the arrangement,
take it outside and spray the flowers with a good coating of clear
acrylic spray. This will bring out the colors and extend the life
of the dried flowers. You can use two coats if you'd like. You're
done!
Flat basket arrangement. Each week, add a layer of
flowers to the basket. When the basket is filled, use a piece of twine
to tie the stems together. This will make sure that no flowers fall
out of your finished basket, and it looks nice. If
you have any small pieces of baby's breath or similar plant material,
you can tuck them in between the flowers throughout the arrangement
to make accents. Then, clip the stems so that the arrangement looks
neat and trim from the side. Be careful not to clip the stems too short,
because a top heavy flower may fall out of the basket, and too many
top heavy flowers will cause the whole basket to fall over. Finally,
go outside and spray on 1-2 coats of clear acrylic. You're done!
Ball arrangement. This design is a little
trickier, but the results are beautiful! Instead of laying the flowers
flat (like in the flat basket arrangement), you will need to trim the
stems so that you can spiral the flowers along the outside edge of the
basket. The diagrams on the right
show the top and side views of this approach. Keep adding layers of
flowers around the
basket until a ball of flowers is created.
Ball
arrangement in progress
Fill the top opening densely
because when the basket settles in the coming weeks, the flowers have
a tendency to become drier, smaller and slightly sunken. As with the
other baskets, you can add baby's breath accents or add other plant
material to make it interesting. Take the finished basket outside
and spray it with the clear acrylic. You're done!
CARING FOR DRIED FLORAL
ARRANGEMENTS: Dried flower arrangements do not last forever. Over
time, they become brittle and colors fade; however, if you keep your
arrangement out of direct sunlight and humidity, it can last for years.
You can add new dried flowers and plant material to freshen them up
when colors fade and to fill in the gaps when flowers shrink. You
can also apply another coat of clear acrylic spray to revitalize shine.
Blow away dust with a hair dryer set on low, or with air in a can.
Dried
Floral Arrangements
Step 3: Put them in water. Before
placing your flowers and plant material into water, remove all the leaves
below the water line and use garden shears to clip all the stems at
an angle (not straight across). This allows the flowers to absorb water
the best and they will last the longest... up to a week for roses and
a little longer for stalk-like plant materials.
Take the good flowers and tie them together with a
rubber band. Then, hang them upside down somewhere out of the way. I use
our kitchen baker's rack for this purpose, but you can also use the back
of a door or some other "out-of-the-way" area. Avoid high humidity if
you can because this can cause flowers to turn brown or rot. Also avoid
direct sunlight, as this can cause colors to fade. When you hang the flowers
upside down, gently make sure that all of the rose buds and petals are
facing straight down. If not, they will dry in whatever position they
are in... crooked or crinkled. It takes about 1-2 weeks for the flowers
to become fully dried. Removing them any sooner may cause the damp flower
buds to lean at the stem, and look permanently bent. Firm plant material
(like the baby's breath in the picture), can be dried upwards in a vase
that has no water. If the plant material is wilting in any way (the purple
stalks sometimes do this), then go ahead and hang them upside down like
everything else.
Flat basket arrangement. Each week, add a layer of
flowers to the basket. When the basket is filled, use a piece of twine
to tie the stems together. This will make sure that no flowers fall
out of your finished basket, and it looks nice. 
If
you have any small pieces of baby's breath or similar plant material,
you can tuck them in between the flowers throughout the arrangement
to make accents. Then, clip the stems so that the arrangement looks
neat and trim from the side. Be careful not to clip the stems too short,
because a top heavy flower may fall out of the basket, and too many
top heavy flowers will cause the whole basket to fall over. Finally,
go outside and spray on 1-2 coats of clear acrylic. You're done!
Ball arrangement. This design is a little
trickier, but the results are beautiful! Instead of laying the flowers
flat (like in the flat basket arrangement), you will need to trim the
stems so that you can spiral the flowers along the outside edge of the
basket. The diagrams on the right
show the top and side views of this approach. Keep adding layers of
flowers around the
basket until a ball of flowers is created.
