BLOG COLUMNS 
What to do with Flowers Left Over from Mother's Day
Posted by ArtFireContent on 05/13/2011 at 14:13:41
Mother's Day was almost a week ago, so you may have some flowers sitting around the house that are on their last leg. Natural flowers are fragrant and brighten things up, but once they begin to sag and wilt, they often just get thrown away. Below we will look at lots of options for what to do with flowers while they are fresh, once they are starting to turn, and how to preserve them. Even if you don't have flowers on hand from Mother's Day, April and May are great months to buy fresh flowers since there are so many different varieties in season.
There are many different ways to preserve flowers, but drying flowers is one of the easiest. Just gather a small bunch of them, tie them together and hang them upside down in a warm, dry space. If you are drying wide-headed flowers a box with a piece of chicken wire on top can spread the flower heads to keep them open as they dry.
You can also use the microwave to speed up the flower-drying process, but be advised that it does not work with very thick plants/flowers that hold a lot of water. Borax flower drying is another option; just make a mixture of one part borax and one part cornmeal, then cover the bottom of a box with a thin layer and place the flower face up. Sift more of the mixture over the flowers and keep the box in a dry dark place until blooms are dried.
Pressing flowers is another great way to preserve them. The simplest way is to place individual flowers in-between two heavy books, but you can also make your own flower-press. This tutorial from Design*Sponge is certainly more involved than getting a couple large books, but the results are beautiful.
There are endless crafts and projects to do with your pressed flowers, like this pressed flower stationary, or you could pretty much Mod Podge them on to everything (that would be my first choice)! From decorative soap to flower pots, your pressed flowers can go where-ever you want!
Drying and pressing are just the start; check out these other ways you can use natural flowers:
Do you have something you do with the fresh flowers you receive? Share in the comments below!
