Pansies are very easy to dry and so are roses and hollyhocks
Dry them in ordinary builders sand
For more detailed information see an earlier post
Fill container with about 1 inch of sand
Cut off stems and lay Pansies on top of sand
Keep pouring sand on top of flowers until they disappear
Add another layer of flowers and cover completely
Cover with thin cotton cloth and let stand in warm place for 3 to 4 days
Slowly pour off sand and apply pansies to wreath form
Or press pansies in a book and apply to candles, lampshades, wreaths, stationary.
But nothing beats Pansies straight from the garden
Gina
Cut off stems and lay Pansies on top of sand
Gina
Though very crippled with RA, my mother spent hours and hours drying pansies (and other flowers) between the pages of telephone books and then pasting them onto velvet backgrounds into frameable art.
ReplyDeleteSome flowers she deconstructed to dry and then reconstructed them painstakingly using tweezers to grasp them.
Hi, Gina - I never realized that drying pansies or roses could be so easy! But I do realize that if you were marooned in a desert with only a tent, you'd somehow soon make it sumptuous!
ReplyDeleteHi Mark, Well, you didn't hear me but your comment gave me a very healthy chuckle.
ReplyDeleteHi Keetha, Lovely comment about your mother. I have been guilty of reconstructing dried flowers and coming up with "new varieties".
ReplyDeleteThank you so much, Gina!
ReplyDeleteThis is brilliant! And so simple and easy!
As a child I use to dry flowers and leaves with silk paper in books, or something like that....don't really remember....
Now, I've learned something new. So kind of you to tell us!
And your photos are very beautiful - as usual!
Einen herzlichen und blumigen Gruss aus dem Périgord, karin
I want to try this, but will have to wait till fall - pansies in Texas barely make it to March. But thank you for sharing the information; I realize you could do this with other flowers, and I would really love to try it. You know so many ways to make "lovely" things!
ReplyDeleteHi Karin, I sent you an e-mail with instructions for drying roses. Possibly, even Peonies could be tried. Just purchase the finest grit building sand (35 grit) you can find in your area...no need to buy the expensive white silica sand.
ReplyDeleteHi Jacki, You can try all kinds of lfowers. I used to dry one hundred roses a week. Roses are the easiest to dry. The sand comes in 50 lb sacks. I will give you some to take home when you come for my workshop in July. Wonder if sand is a no no to take on a plane.
ReplyDeleteYou bring back such memories! Early marriage years, I grew huge beds of pansies and dried them all in silica. I made bookmarks, lampshades and cards. I just love pansies!
ReplyDeleteGood timing- I just began to dry some tree peonies, but air drying. The blooms were past their prime, with petals falling. I hated to see the lovely colors get thrown away, so I have 4 cookie sheets drying. Potpourri maybe?
ReplyDeleteYou definitely think in vivid, living color! Love it!
Dear Theresa, Did you keep some of your pansy art? I would love to see it. It's interesting how drying pansies in sand, rather than pressing them in a book, gives them that 3-dimensional profile.
ReplyDeleteDear Ann, Have you seen the book "The scented Room" by Milo Ohrbach. She loves to feature dried flower petals as potpourri in beautiful antique Chines bowls.
ReplyDeleteOh, that is very smart. I had no idea you could do that with builder's sand. Thanks for linking it up at HSH!
ReplyDeleteSherry
Hi Sherry, Took the pansies out of the builders sand and they look as good or better than from the more expensive white silica sand. Also give it a try with different flower.s
ReplyDelete