There are few things more beautiful than a flower. Floral decoration is a mainstay because of this unrivalled natural beauty. Drying and preservation techniques allow one to decorate their home with true flowers instead of sometimes-inferior silk and artificial alternatives. Dried flower wreaths provide a spectacular way to keep nature’s beauty alive for several years.
How Flowers are Dried
Often, wreath makers rely on artificial leaves and flowers for adornments. After all, plant life tends to wither, along with its beauty, when left to its own devices. However, flowers can be carefully dried or otherwise preserved in ways that allow their use in spectacular decorative wreaths.
Some flowers can be dried on the plant. Generally this requires a period of hanging in a relatively dark, dry space. The end result is often delicate (petals can break away easily, for instance), but the beauty of the flower is preserved. Other flowers respond better to being dried in a silica compound. Silica, which is something akin to completely dry sand, can draw out the moisture in a flower while leaving it completely intact and in retention of its natural beauty.
Inserting the stems into a glycerin solution dries other flowers. The flower absorbs the glycerin, resulting in a completely preserved, yet pliable decorative item. Dried flowers are then used to make some of the most stunning wreaths imaginable. By using real flowers, a wreath maker can produce a wreath that not only mimics nature’s beauty. Instead, the final product is actually a lasting example of flowers’ perfect beauty.
The Beauty of Wreaths
Dried flower wreaths will never be as durable as artificial varieties. As such, it is recommended that those hanging dried flower wreaths try to keep them away from significant foot traffic and direct sunlight. However, if well maintained, a natural dried flower wreath can last years and provide beauty throughout its lifespan.