Spring has me all kinds of giddy. The longer days, the light sweater weather, the Bluebonnets everywhere, eating on the patio, rocking on the porch – life is beautiful. Today on our bimonthly Lifestyle of Love Hop, we are sharing ideas for dried flowers. My contribution is so easy it’s almost embarrassing. It’s how to use vintage pieces for an easy way to dry wildflowers. See what I mean?
If you’ve hopped over from Common Ground, welcome! Wasn’t her botanical window so sweet? I loved it!
Use Vintage Pieces For An Easy Way To Dry Wildflowers
There are wildflowers everywhere around the farmhouse.
If this is your first time here, this hop is a few friends getting together to share how we use and love all things vintage, antique and even junky. The things we find are repurposed, reused and re-loved. I hope you can sit a spell because the inspiration from each post is worth the time.
Let’s get right to the 4 super easy steps to drying wildflowers.
Keep your flowers in water until you can clip and wrap the stems.
Step One: Have a fun time picking your flowers. Take clippers and a basket to hold what you pick.
I know this is common sense but I feel it important to say – stay safe. Most of the wildflowers around us are located on busy roads. I see a lot of people putting their kids in the middle of bluebonnets for a photo and I cringe. It’s so dangerous. Also, make sure the flowers aren’t on private property unless you have permission to snip.
Step Two: Pull off a good bit of extra leaves from the stems then clip them at least 10 inches long. Just eyeball it. If you want them longer, that is fine. I like to keep the types of flowers separate.
Using a vintage birdcage is an easy way to hang flowers to dry naturally.
Step Three: Cut a piece of twine about 2 feet long. Then start wrapping the twine around the bunched stems. I put one end of the twine at the end of the stems then pull the rest to the middle and start wrapping. Leaving the end of the twine for tying a know with the loose end to secure them and have enough for hanging.
Step Four: Hang them from anything you want to really. I chose a vintage birdcage and the stand it came with. You can tie the bunches to a stick or limb, to doorknobs, to a hanger, etc. Some people keep them in a dark cool place.
I keep them inside somewhere but usually where I can see and enjoy them. The ladder looking thing below usually holds quilts but it works well for drying flowers too. When I found it in a junk store and the only thing any of us knew was that it was $10. I’ve gotten my money out of it for sure.
Use a vintage baby bed rail (I think that’s what it is) to dry wildflowers.
Depending on your location, it takes about 2-3 weeks to completely dry. You’ll know they are ready for a bouquet when they are crispy. They are fragile! Handle them with care. Sometimes I’ll spray them with a clear lacquer but other times I just leave them alone. I’ve heard some people add a couple of drops of essential oils for a nice smell. Maybe I’ll try that this time.
Our donkey, Scout, thinks she looks pretty in wildflowers.
Well that’s how you use vintage pieces for an easy way to dry wildflowers. If you’d like to see the last Lifestyle of Love hop post, click here. It’s all about quilts!
Next up is CoCo from The Crowned Goat. You will seriously love her dried floral cards. Don’t forget to see all the posts below. They are full of great ideas!
Cindy
These are all such great ideas for creative flower drying. Thank you for organizing this talented group.
Author
Thank you Rachel. It’s so easy! Have a great week.
What wonderful ideas. We have gorgeous lavender in our yard and I never knew how easy it would be to dry it.
Author
Oh my goodness Alison! That sounds so fun and I bet it’s beautiful!!! Hope you dry some this year. Thanks for the visit.
THIS is why we need to live closer so we can pick wildflowers and go shopping together, Cindy. I would have never thought to use these vintage pieces to dry flowers. I have a birdcage holder like this in the garage that I was so close to getting rid of because it was super rusty and I didn’t know what to do with it. I realize now I can use it to dry flowers. Gah so excited! Thanks lady, CoCo
Author
LOL, I totally agree with the living closer together. I can think of a few other things to do with a birdcage holder for you. Never get rid of it! Enjoy drying those flowers. 🙂 Thank you CoCo!
Love love the birdcage and stand to dry the flowers, perfect vintage!!! And yes, Scout looks bee-u-t-ful grazing among the wildflowers. Thanks for putting the Hop together Cindy. Happy Spring week!
Author
I love these hops too. Glad you join in. And as you know, repurposing old stuff is my jam. I feel as if I’m contributing to the betterment of the world. 😉 Thanks Debra.
I love this use of vintage items, makes them so much more. Wildflowers are so fun to pick along the country roads and the drive is so pretty.
Author
I totally agree. The wildflowers make the drives so much better. Especially on the long drive down to the farmhouse. Thankfully, we don’t have to go but out to a pasture to pick them. That’s a bonus! Thank you Marlene for the visit.
I love your ideas, Cindy, they are super cute and so stylish. I’m going to try one of these once our snow is gone:) Thanks for having me!
Author
Glad you found some inspiration Ann. Thank you.
So many absolutely lovely ideas!
Author
Aww, thank you Joanna. You made my day. Happy Spring!
I need to be better about drying flowers; they have such a sweet farmhouse vibe. Never would have thought to hang them inside a birdcage, though; brilliant! I definitely need to do that this summer. Jealous of your Spring weather. We had it for a bit, now getting a foot of snow starting Sunday:( But it will be pretty and will melt fast; we need the moisture. Thanks for another great subject matter for the hop!
Author
Whaaaat? – I did something you’ve not done?! No way! 😉 Thank you. You have some great birdcages for flowers and I’m already looking forward to seeing what you do this summer. Love your creativity. Spring is coming for you and your flowers are going to be amazing! Happy Sunday friend.