Flowers

[WillowFaith]

For those of you who get flowers and have preserved them... which way has worked the best for roses?

Thanks!

[Kristin91]

I haven't done a whole rose, just a couple of the petals but I pressed them in a really thick book and then stacked other heavy books on top and let them sit for 48-72 hours (I forget how long is the minimum time).

[lucybelle]

I did petals too. I put them in a folded piece of white paper and then stacked a ton of books on them for about a week.

[lademoiselle]

For an alternative to the "heavy book method" you could try this. I've never pressed flowers in such a way myself, but this site sounds pretty reputable

[Spriteling]

I am actually currently in the process of drying roses to send to my SO. I've hung them up on a drying rack and they've been sitting for about a week. I'll let you know how it gets on!

[efish1042]

I hang mine upside down to dry for a few weeks and then put them in vases around my room. It's nice because I have allergies, but now they don't bother me and they're still pretty

[BlueCat]

I have some dried roses. I have always hung mine upside-down before they dry, simply because if the petals or leaves start to wilt, they will hang funny, so I hang mine upside down with some string so that everything stays the way it should be. The only trouble with dried roses, is that over time they tend to get very fragile and the petals can fall out at the slightest bump. I have been considering trying some art sealing spray, or perhaps even hair spray to sort of glue the petals in place a bit either before or after drying, but didn't want to try it on my current flowers.

[sewbama]

Hair spray will actually help dried flowers keep their color. I've always let them hang upside down after a good coating of hair spray. They stay looking lovely.