As anyone who has read my blog before knows, I love dried flowers. Now don't get me wrong, I totally enjoy bouquets of fresh flowers, but in certain situations where I want the effect to last, nothing in my opinion beats the flexibility and longevity you can get using dried material.
Thus when I wanted an arrangement to last for the next few weeks on the mantle in the living room it was the natural thing for me to use some of the dried flowers from the cache of last years harvest - I am just beginning to cut flowers to process for this year.
In this arrangement I used eucalyptus, olive and pepper branches,Heavenly Bamboo seed clusters and white Oakleaf hydrangeas - soft and simple which is what I wanted. I have never used the heavenly bamboo seed clusters before, they turned a really lovely, rich golden color when dried. It's fun to try new flowers and foliage to see how they will dry, I have had some surprises and some disappointments. I only dry by hanging so it is a very easy procedure.
I grow different types of flowers for drying: yarrow, statice, Queen Annes Lace, and of course roses. This year for the first time I am growing actual Strawflowers which I seeded a few months ago and just recently planted out in the garden, I have high hopes that these will provide me with colorful accents in future dried bouquets.
The wonderful Erin of Floret Flower Farm offers lots of different Strawflower seeds and other flower seeds to grow for drying plus an extensive variety of other annual seeds and bulbs all shown to you along with tutorials on her beautiful website.
Meanwhile, today when I walked into Trader Joe's I saw the seasonal peonies had arrived, how could I resist. Fresh is best but dried flowers have a place in my heart and home too.
Thank you for visiting
Have a lovely day.
Adrienne
