How Do I Dry My Wedding Bouquet?
Here is a simple breakdown of the 4 best ways to dry your wedding bouquet.
Wondering “how do I dry my wedding bouquet?” Flowers can be dried and preserved by various methods including pressing, air-drying, silica gel adsorption, or freeze drying/dehydrating. Pressing is the preserved method traditionally, but you can read more about these methods here:
Air-Drying: Hang the bouquet upside down in a dry, cool place. The simplest method, takes 5 minutes. Let dry for 2 weeks.
Pressing: Use traditional book pressing or a modern microwave press. Takes 2 hours initially. Let dry for 2 weeks.
Silica gel: If you plan to preserve your flowers in their original shape like with resin flower preservation. Takes 10 minutes once you have the silica. Let dry for 2 weeks.
Freeze drying/dehydration: Fast, effective, but expensive. Takes 1-2 hours initially, and has no extended drying time.
That’s it, the simplest breakdown we can make of the four common ways to dry your wedding flowers. These are the methods we’ve tried and used, and we consistently return to our traditional flower pressing methods. If you want to learn more about these methods, read below and explore our blog!
What can I do with dry wedding flowers?
Here’s how to make flower preservation art from your bouquet after you dry your wedding flowers.
Method 1: Air-Drying/Hanging
Unwrap the Bouquet: Remove any tape or ties from your bouquet.
Choose a Dry Location: Find a dark, dry, and cool place to hang the bouquet upside down.
Let It Dry Naturally: Hang the bouquet upside down and leave the it to air-dry for seven to ten days.
Frame or Display: Once the flowers are flat and dry, arrange and frame them as desired. You’ll need a deep frame or case.
Method 2: Flower Pressing
Select Flowers: Trim the flowers you’d like to press.
Press in a Book: Place the wax paper with flowers inside a heavy book.
Weight It Down: Add another piece of wax paper on top and weigh it down with a vase or more books.
Wait for Drying: Let them dry for 2-3 weeks, checking on them every few days to ventilate.
Frame Your Pressed Flowers: Find a “shadow box frame” of the appropriate depth, we prefer a rabbet around 1” on typical flowers. Arrange and frame your pressed flowers for a lasting keepsake.
Method 3: Resin Flower Preservation
Gather PPE: Select the appropriate safety equipment for this dangerous chemical process. You need gloves, eye pro, and respiratory protection at the least.
Select casting mould: Choose the shape and size of resin casting you’d like for your resin flower preservation.
Dry your wedding bouquet: Dry your flowers using silica gel to preserve color or air dry them to allow some aging.
Pour your resin: Follow the instructions with your 2 part resin, we recommend artist or marine grade epoxy. Suspend your flowers during the first partial pour so the resin car dry without being moved. At least two pours are required, and make sure to get the bubbles out!
Method 4: Freeze drying/dehydration
Invest: This option is equipment heavy and requires a specialized device that will have it’s own detailed instructions to follow. We recommend spending some time researching the volume and cycle time of the machine’s you’re considering, and maybe ordering some freeze dried flowers before investing to see if you like their characteristics.
Experiment: Every machine performs a little differently and you will need to experiment a lot before finding the perfect recipe for each flower. Be patient and try lots of different cycle times and pressing/dehydration combos.
Whether you opt for air-drying, resin or pressing, preserving your wedding bouquet is a beautiful way to hold onto those special moments. Choose the method that suits your style and enjoy your floral keepsake!
*Bonus tip: consider professional flower preservation services, because these processes can be difficult to master! If you want more tips on how to preserve flowers and how to preserve color in pressed flowers, you can follow along with our blog or check out our instagram.