How to Care for Dried Flowers to Make them Last for Years
Dried flowers can be a wonderful addition to your home. Low maintenance, long lasting and beautiful, they are the perfect way to add greenery and colour to your space. Whether you prefer simple stems in natural green shades, or colourful dried bouquets, there are a few ways to care for dried flowers to make them last for years…
Avoid Direct Sunlight
While dried flowers can be placed on windowsills or sunny spots, they won’t last as long as they should when exposed to direct sunlight. Too much sun will make colours fade quickly, causing stems to dry out further and slowly turn brown. Placing a dried flower bouquet on a windowsill is fine, but if you want them to last a long time, avoid sunny areas in your home.
2. Find Your Bouquet a Permanent Home
The less you can move your dried bouquet the better. Dried flowers are on the fragile side, and so moving them around frequently could cause flower loss. In order to keep your dried flowers looking as full as possible, try to choose somewhere to put them where they can stay put and really settle in.
3. Avoid High Humidity
It might seem obvious, but it’s worth mentioning that dried flowers don’t like water. Keep them out of water completely (the same goes for preserved stems too). Bathrooms and kitchens aren’t always the best option for dried flowers. While of course you can style a dried bouquet in these rooms, they won’t last as long as if they were in a low humidity room.
When exposed to moisture, dry flowers may go limp and even start to decay over time. It’s particularly important to keep preserved stems out of high humidity rooms, as they are dyed as part of the preserving process. When exposed to sudden changes in temperature or humidity, the preserve and dye can leak from the stems and cause staining. If this does happen, simply wipe the stems dry and move to somewhere a little drier.
4. Dust Carefully
To keep your dried flowers looking fresh, they might need a light dusting from time to time. Avoid using a damp cloth, instead just wipe carefully with a dry and soft cloth, supporting any flower heads or stems from underneath.
5. How to Store Dried Flowers
If for any reason you need to store your dried flowers away, it’s worth taking a few steps to ensure they come back out of storage looking just as good as when they went in. Storing in a cardboard box is best, with just a little airflow. Wrap your dried flowers in tissue paper and place them inside the box, sealing it at the top. Make sure wherever you keep the box isn’t near a heat source, or in a room that gets very hot. Also avoid rooms with high moisture levels and keep the box out of direct sunlight.
While dried flowers and preserved stems don’t take on-going maintenance like plants might, being conscious of where you display them and how you store them will make them last longer. Just a little care means you will get years of enjoyment out of your dried flowers.