"I would love to try my hand at drying flowers!" you exclaim. Then just DO IT!  It's  easy! And requires very few materials, but lots and lots of time and tender loving care!  Don't you just love the idea that many seasonal flowers may be kept for years!

My reason for creating this page is not  to dig into the "HOW TO" of the art, but simply sail through a few  of my experiences.   Detailed instruction books are readily available at the library or book store.

As usual, I became curious - and smitten! - after reading a book  on the subject. There are several ways to dry flowers, but I  tried the easiest method first, Air-Drying. Simple as cutting and hanging!  I cut the mature blossoms from my already established hydrangea plants, placed them in a large vase containing two or three inches of water. Look at that! A  fragrant centerpiece as they dried! (But they can be tied in bunches and hung to dry also.)

After the hydrangeas were completely dried they filled a huge basket (above). Future dried flowers found a resting place in the basket until they were needed in other arrangements.

One of my first projects for Christmas was this 36" grapevine tree.  I formed the tree over a metal tomato cage. Before embellishing, I secured  a strand of mini white lights on the inside. Ten years later, it remains the focal point of the  dining room, year round.  Occasionally, I add newly dried flowers, and during the Holidays, an angel graces its peek!

"Oh, Mom, I love this look! Do you think we could use the dried roses theme for my wedding?"

I quickly agreed this would be  unique for an autumn outdoor formal garden setting!

The date was already on the calendar for next year. So  I got busy planting a dozen rose bushes, babied them into bloom, fought the Japanese beetles vehemently!  In the early hours, I collected stemmed roses and took them indoors for a long drink, then lovingly preserved them in the silica gel.  That began the first of eight years working with roses, and loving every tireless minute of the craft!

This adventure began with a five-pound container of silica gel. That's enough to dry half-dozen roses in a shoebox. Before the first year was over, I was needing twenty times that amount but balked at investing so much. 

"You will always want to dry flowers! And you can use the product over and over and over!" Ken encouraged.

Well, I assure you, doing all of Laura's wedding bouquets and reception decorations was well worth the investment! And the  attendants were delighted they could save their nosegays and boutonnieres for a few years instead of a few days!

At the reception, an artist friend and florist asked, "Mary, how about working for me?"

"Uh, let me think: NO!!  I've  had my fill of the craft!"

"Then, I'll refer my customers to you!"

So I sailed through six more years of the flower drying art! When Ken became ill I gave most of the silica gel to interested family members. The desiccant had served me well!

This little page barely scratches the surface of this fulfilling art! You will find yourself creating fragrant potpourri, preserving vines and leaves with glycerin,  making sachets and soaps and adorable little sleep pillows with lavender and lace for your bed and bath! And wreaths and swags and topiaries and candles and... And you will always have a thoughtful little gift on hand when you need it!  Plus a fragrant but mighty messy room!

Go ahead, try it! You'll like it!