Drying Your Own Flowers

Nature's Adornments is happy to professionally dry any flowers needed for your order. However if you prefer to dry them yourself, follow the below guidelines, then send in what is needed for your order.

Air Drying

What you will need: Cookie Sheet or Shallow Carboard Box, Paper Towels, Dark Dry Area.

Line surface with several layers of paper towels to absorb moisture.
Take thickly layered flowers such as Roses and Carnations apart so they do not rot/mold inside.
Types of flowers which can get air to all of their petals such as Hydrangeas, Delphinium, Small Filler Flowers and Greenery can be left intact as they dry.
Succulents can not be dried or used in your keepsake.
Lay Flowers, Petals and Greenery in a single layer on surface.
Leave uncovered in a dark, dry place out of the way until everything feels dry. Different Flowers and Filler take different amounts of time to dry. It also depends on the humidity and air temperature. Your Flowers will loose color in different amounts depending on the type of flowers and how quickly they were able to dry out.
Do not store or ship in plastic bags or plastic lined envelopes. Your flowers may feel dry but they can condensate or sweat inside the plastic and degrade further.
Do store or ship your dry flowers in a cardboard box loosely wrapped in dry paper towels.

Silica Drying (retains your flower's fresh, natural colors)

What you will need: Plastic Tub(s), Flower Drying Silica (can be purchased online or at craft stores), Cup, Scissors or Trimmers.

Using your cup, Pour a ½”-1” deep layer of silica gel in the bottom of your tub.
Place a single layer of flowers/petals onto your bottom layer of silica, covering them with another layer of silica. Continue layering your botanicals...Silica, botanicals, silica, botanicals....and so on, finishing up with a top layer of silica.
- Thickly layered flowers such as Roses and Carnations can be taken apart or left intact however they will take longer to dry if left intact.
- Flowers with large centers such as Daisies and Sunflowers hold a lot of moisture in the centers. If you will be using them in a keepsake using just the petals, go ahead and remove the petals so they will dry quicker. If they will be going into the keepsake intact, leave them intact, but add more silica around them and leave them in the silica longer. Succulents can not be dried or used in your keepsake.
- Cut off stems of intact flowers and place flower upright in the silica. Carefully sprinkle silica inside of the intact flowers and around the outside, holding up the petals so they do not spread.
- Smaller flowers/petals, greenery and filler items can be laid in silica as is, in a single layer.
Cover with lid and place in a dry area in your house.
Some loose petals such as rose petals can dry in about 7 days. Other petals such as Lilies can take up to 2 weeks. Intact flowers can take 3 weeks or more.
When your flowers are ready to be taken out of the silica, gently pour top layer of silica out of the container until you can safely take flowers out without damaging them. Gently tap and shake silica from petals. You can also use a sifter to separate your petals from the silica.
Silica can be dried and reused for future projects. Dry in shallow baking pans in the oven at 200 degrees for about an hour. I prop the door open slightly so the moisture can escape.
Do not store or ship your flowers in plastic bags or plastic lined envelopes. Your flowers may feel dry but they can condensate or sweat inside the plastic and degrade further.
Store or ship your dry flowers in a cardboard box loosely wrapped in dry paper towels.

Pressing

If you have a Flower Press, you may press your own flowers but it is best if Nature's Adornments presses them for you because certain flowers should be pressed a certain way for specific designs.

Do not use paper towels as blotter paper. Paper towels will emboss the pattern of the paper towels into your petals.

Nature's Adornments

Since 2006

Drying Your Own Flowers

Air Drying

What you will need: Cookie Sheet or Shallow Carboard Box, Paper Towels, Dark Dry Area.

Line surface with several layers of paper towels to absorb moisture.

Take thickly layered flowers such as Roses and Carnations apart so they do not rot/mold inside.

Types of flowers which can get air to all of their petals such as Hydrangeas, Delphinium, Small Filler Flowers and Greenery can be left intact as they dry.

Succulents can not be dried or used in your keepsake.

Lay Flowers, Petals and Greenery in a single layer on surface.

Do not store or ship in plastic bags or plastic lined envelopes. Your flowers may feel dry but they can condensate or sweat inside the plastic and degrade further.

Do store or ship your dry flowers in a cardboard box loosely wrapped in dry paper towels.

Silica Drying (retains your flower's fresh, natural colors)

What you will need: Plastic Tub(s), Flower Drying Silica (can be purchased online or at craft stores), Cup, Scissors or Trimmers.

​

Using your cup, Pour a ½”-1” deep layer of silica gel in the bottom of your tub.

Place a single layer of flowers/petals onto your bottom layer of silica, covering them with another layer of silica. Continue layering your botanicals...Silica, botanicals, silica, botanicals....and so on, finishing up with a top layer of silica.

Thickly layered flowers such as Roses and Carnations can be taken apart or left intact however they will take longer to dry if left intact.

Cut off stems of intact flowers and place flower upright in the silica. Carefully sprinkle silica inside of the intact flowers and around the outside, holding up the petals so they do not spread.

Smaller flowers/petals, greenery and filler items can be laid in silica as is, in a single layer.

Cover with lid and place in a dry area in your house.

Some loose petals such as rose petals can dry in about 7 days. Other petals such as Lilies can take up to 2 weeks. Intact flowers can take 3 weeks or more.

When your flowers are ready to be taken out of the silica, gently pour top layer of silica out of the container until you can safely take flowers out without damaging them. Gently tap and shake silica from petals. You can also use a sifter to separate your petals from the silica.

Silica can be dried and reused for future projects. Dry in shallow baking pans in the oven at 200 degrees for about an hour. I prop the door open slightly so the moisture can escape.

Do not store or ship your flowers in plastic bags or plastic lined envelopes. Your flowers may feel dry but they can condensate or sweat inside the plastic and degrade further.

Store or ship your dry flowers in a cardboard box loosely wrapped in dry paper towels.

Pressing

​

If you have a Flower Press, you may press your own flowers but it is best if Nature's Adornments presses them for you because certain flowers should be pressed a certain way for specific designs.

​

Do not use paper towels as blotter paper. Paper towels will emboss the pattern of the paper towels into your petals.