My secret to beautiful, dried flowers? Silica gel, after all! I like utilizing these dried flowers for my resin creations, however you can even use them for all types of décor, from shadow bins to potpourri. With some delicate dealing with and the following tips for drying flowers with silica gel, protect the fantastic thing about this season’s blooms.
I’m excited to share yet one more method to dry flowers that many aren’t as accustomed to. Not like hanging flowers to dry or dehydrating the petals, this technique retains the form and color of the flowers extraordinarily properly. Typically they give the impression of being similar to their unique flower!
You realize all these little packets you get in your meals containers and shoeboxes that learn don’t eat? That’s silica gel. In one other kind, this silica is definitely marvelous at drying flowers.
Silica gel is a desiccant, that means it absorbs and holds moisture. For crafting functions, they arrive in arduous small beads which are a white or gentle blue color. You may possible discover silica gel at your native Michaels craft retailer and on Amazon.
Utilizing silica gel for drying flowers is pretty straightforward, however there’s positively a way to it that helps you obtain the best-dried flowers doable. Let me present you my ideas!
What Flowers Can I Protect in Silica Gel?
Most flowers dry very properly in silica when performed correctly. However some are simpler to dry than others! Brilliant and vibrant blooms all the time dry finest, as their color stays pretty constant all through the drying course of.
Contemporary, regionally grown flowers are additionally ultimate. You need your flowers to be hydrated and in tip-top situation, since they are going to dry precisely as they’re.
Listed here are some flowers which are recognized to dry exceptionally properly in silica:
Flowers to Keep away from
Flowers with plenty of delicate petals are very tough to dry in silica, as their petals are more likely to fall off because of the weight of the gel. This contains mums, cosmos, and anemones.
You may additionally wish to curb your expectations relating to white flowers and different gentle colors, as they’re very vulnerable to bruising, particularly when you plan to protect your flowers in resin afterward. They’re additionally very more likely to change color, turning extra into cream and yellow than white.
Carrying gloves when dealing with the flowers always will assist forestall your oils from bruising the petals down the road.
Tropical flowers and something with fleshy petals are additionally more likely to develop some bruising and browning down the road. Most will change their color throughout preservation. This contains orchids, traditional lilies, and canna lilies.
Even when the flowers are listed right here, it doesn’t damage to strive! Experiment, follow, and be delicate along with your blooms, and also you simply may need some success.
Drying Flowers With Silica Gel: Step by Step
Drying flowers in silica is without doubt one of the finest preservation strategies, and it’s pretty straightforward to do. After you have the silica, you’ll be able to use it a number of instances to dry flowers all season lengthy.
Supplies
Making ready Your Supplies and Flowers
Select a container that’s deep sufficient to carry your flowers. You too can layer flowers if the container permits it. 2-4 inches is normally deep sufficient, since silica may be costly, and I keep away from utilizing an excessive amount of. An oblong container is what I want to make use of, since it could actually maintain extra flowers. Your container shouldn’t be used for meals storage after holding silica.
Ensure your flowers aren’t moist and use a paper towel to dab off any remaining moisture. I enable my flowers to completely hydrate in a vase whereas the dew dries from the petals. And I snip the stems and moisture proper off once I’m able to dry them.
When snipping the flowers for drying, go away somewhat little bit of the stem behind. This provides you with one thing to seize and maintain onto in addition to the petals when eradicating the flowers from the silica.
In case you’re involved about bruising, put on gloves when working with the flowers earlier than, throughout, and after drying.
Drying Flowers With Silica Gel
Earlier than working with the silica, ensure that to put on a masks. When pouring the silica, it creates a mud that you simply don’t wish to breathe in. Gloves may also assist forestall your fingers from drying out and getting irritated.
Add a base layer of silica gel to your container. You want sufficient to help the bottom of your flower stem. About ½ to 1 inch is sufficient.
Nestle in your flower’s face up within the silica. The flowers may be shut, however they shouldn’t be overlapping.
Rigorously pour within the silica (a Mason jar or pitcher may help provide you with extra management). Flowers will dry precisely as they’re buried within the silica, so that you wish to keep away from dumping silica proper into them, as they are going to get crushed. The objective is to bury every flower whereas sustaining its actual unique form.
I prefer to pour across the outdoors, shaking the silica into place till the skin is totally supported earlier than including silica to the middle. Shaking helps to get the silica into all of the grooves and crevices.
Ensure to completely cowl your flowers with silica, or you could find yourself with browning (see the cream hydrangea photograph earlier). You may layer as many flowers as your container suits, so long as the flowers aren’t touching. Put heavier blooms on the underside and extra delicate blooms on prime.
Cowl with an hermetic lid, and label what flowers are inside in addition to the date.
Eradicating the Silica Gel
Most directions that include your silica gel will say you solely want a number of days to every week in your flowers to completely dry. This isn’t lengthy sufficient in nearly any case.
I go away my flowers in silica for no less than three weeks, or longer if I’m working with bigger flowers (akin to roses), since they comprise lots of moisture. It’s unimaginable to go away flowers in silica for too lengthy. Longer is healthier than not sufficient.
If there may be any tender texture, your flowers aren’t prepared. They need to really feel like paper and be extraordinarily gentle.
To take away your flowers, gently pour your silica into one other bowl or container slowly. Don’t dump it all of sudden. Gently catch the flowers as they fall out, holding onto the stem reasonably than the petals.
Maintain the flower the wrong way up and gently faucet to assist do away with the remaining silica. Use a tender paint brush or make-up brush to take away any cussed silica items.
Utilizing Your Silica Gel Flowers
I dry flowers in silica to make use of for resin. They have to be totally dry, or they are going to rot within the resin. If I don’t use them instantly after eradicating them from the silica, I’ll place them again within the container with a skinny layer of recent silica on the backside. The flowers don’t should be totally coated in silica as soon as they’re totally dry.
Apart from resin, you can even use them for a lot of different initiatives (they don’t should be saved in silica as soon as dried. That’s just for resin initiatives.)
Listed here are some undertaking concepts for silica gel flowers!
Silica Gel Flowers FAQ
Whereas I wouldn’t say these flowers final perpetually, they do final for a really very long time when performed proper. If they start to vary form shortly after being faraway from the silica, then they weren’t in there lengthy sufficient.
Your flowers ought to final you a minimal of a yr, and might go onwards to final for a decade. Like several dried flower, their color will start to fade. To delay their life, maintain them away from daylight, warmth, and moist areas.
Roses dry extraordinarily properly in silica gel. They do comprise lots of moisture, particularly the middle, so you could go away them within the silica for no less than 3 weeks to make sure they totally dry.
Some folks will take away the middle petals to forestall the flower from browning or rotting. Personally, I skip this step and simply ensure that to rigorously fill all of the nooks and crannies of the rose to make sure the silica absorbs all of the moisture.
Sure! Contemporary silica is the strongest and can be utilized a number of instances earlier than it must be recharged. Whereas every model varies, normally the color will change when it’s now not in a position to soak up any extra moisture.
To recharge your silica, it ought to be positioned on a baking tray and left within the oven at 250°F for no less than 5 hours. Nevertheless, verify the directions of your silica gel to see their suggestions.
Silica ought to be recharged after each use for finest outcomes.
Get inventive along with your flowers, experiment, and have enjoyable! Let me know in case you have any questions on utilizing silica gel for drying flowers within the feedback under.