Why Preserving Your Bouquet Is Worth The Effort

Your bouquet travels with you down the aisle, sits beside you at the top table and is hugged by what feels like every guest in the room. By the end of the evening it is looking a little weary, and by the following morning it is usually decidedly droopy. Rather than watching it fade in a vase on the windowsill, you can turn those flowers into a keepsake you will still be admiring a decade from now.

The good news is that preservation does not require specialist equipment or a huge budget. With a little patience and a dry, dark corner of your home, most bouquets can be dried, pressed or set in resin. The trick is choosing the right method for the flowers you actually carried, and starting the process within a day or two of the wedding while the blooms are still at their best.

Air Drying: The Traditional Approach

Air drying is the simplest method and the one most UK florists recommend for sturdy, long-stemmed flowers such as roses, gypsophila, lavender, hydrangea and eucalyptus. It works best on a warm, dry day in late spring or summer, but it can be done at any time of year indoors.

• Prepare the stems: Strip off any foliage below the point where you plan to hang the bunch, as leaves hold moisture and can turn mouldy.
• Tie in small bunches: Groups of five to eight stems dry far better than one enormous bundle. Secure with twine or an elastic band, which will tighten as the stems shrink.
• Hang upside down: Suspend from a hook, airing cupboard rail or clothes horse in a dark, dry, well-ventilated room. A spare bedroom or loft is ideal. Avoid kitchens and bathrooms, where steam will undo your work.
• Be patient: Most flowers take two to three weeks. They are ready when the stems snap rather than bend.

Once dried, mist lightly with unscented hairspray from about 30 centimetres away to reduce shattering, then display away from direct sunlight. Dried flowers fade over time, but a soft, vintage patina suits many couples beautifully.

Pressing Flowers Into Frames And Keepsakes

Pressing is perfect if you would rather not keep the whole bouquet but want to capture a handful of meaningful blooms — perhaps the roses from your grandmother's garden or the peony that matched your bridesmaids' dresses. It is also the best option for delicate flowers such as pansies, delphiniums, sweet peas and small daisies, which do not dry well hanging.

Use blotting paper or parchment rather than standard kitchen roll, which can leave a textured imprint on petals. Place your flowers face down between two sheets, sandwich them inside a heavy book and add further weight on top. Leave for three to four weeks without peeking — lifting the paper early is the most common reason pressed flowers curl or turn brown.

Once flat and papery, arrange them in a glass frame, mount them on card for a wedding album, or set them beneath the glass of a small trinket dish. Arrange and glue with tweezers and a tiny dot of acid-free adhesive, working slowly so delicate petals do not tear.

Resin Preservation For A Modern Finish

Resin block and sphere keepsakes have become enormously popular, and for good reason: they show off the shape and colour of your flowers without the dust that dried arrangements attract. The catch is that the flowers must be completely dry first — any remaining moisture will cloud the resin or cause it to weep.

Small flowers, petals and seed heads work best. Large, fleshy blooms such as lilies or big-headed roses should be separated into individual petals, or dried thoroughly using silica gel, which preserves shape and colour far better than air drying. You can buy silica gel in most craft shops and online.

Resin work is best done in a dust-free room at a steady room temperature, and layered in stages so bubbles can rise. If the idea of mixing resin yourself feels daunting, many UK crafters offer a send-away service where you post your dried bouquet and receive a finished paperweight, coaster or ring holder a few weeks later.

Match The Method To Your Flowers

• Roses, gypsophila, lavender, statice, eucalyptus: air dry or press.
• Peonies, ranunculus and dahlias: press individual petals, or dry in silica gel for resin work.
• Succulents and orchids: press or use silica gel; they rarely dry well hanging.
• Tulips and narcissi: press only — they tend to collapse when hung.
• Anything already wilting: press it immediately, as pressing is the most forgiving method.

Looking After Your Keepsake

Whichever route you choose, position your finished piece away from direct sunlight and radiators, both of which will fade colour faster than anything else. Dried arrangements can be gently dusted with a soft make-up brush every few months; resin can simply be wiped with a damp cloth.

If you would like a professional finish, many florists and crafters will take on the whole process for you, but do ask them what happens if a bloom does not survive — good preservationists will tell you honestly what is achievable. Whether you hang a dried bunch in the hallway or set a single pressed rose in a frame beside your bed, you are keeping a small piece of the day itself. That is a lovely thing to live with.