Preserving flowers?

[CherryBombRock]

I don’t know if any of you ladies could help me – I’ve heard of preserving flowers by using glycerine, however the research I’ve done on the internet seems to say that this can turn the flowers and leaves brown (some suggest adding food colouring to combat this).
Is there another way? I want to try and make some hair pieces/corsages that would be fairly flexible but I’m not too concerned about the fragility as they probably be one offs for a particular outfit (unpreserved flowers tend to wilt very quickly!). Not a very vintage question I know but it seemed the right place to ask!
xXx

 

[Viviene]

I've used silica gel crystals that I bought at a craft store. I used this to dry the flowers to put it in my own homemade poupouri. The colors still stayed vibrant.

 

[CA Rosie]

flower preservation

Hello Cherry,
I do flowers for wedding and this is all my personal knowledge on drying flowers. There is a powder that you can get from any craft store.(cant think of the name) I believe it has other things besides glycerine in it. If you dont want to use glycerine, you can always place the flower in a dark, dry place and allow it to dry there. Roses do best hung upside down as do most flowers. Flowers like daisy's or daffodils that have open pedles tend to curl into themselves. I have never tried to dry a Gardenia. The color fades a bit as it does with any drying technique.
Personally I would rather use a silk flower vs a real flower for any type of decoration. (unless your at a wedding) Corsages get smashed everytime you hug someone. If your dancing, guys tend to forget that the flowers are attached to your head and like to "re arrange" them while your out on the floor. Dust loves dried flowers. You can attempt to blow the dust off, but you will remain with a residue. Silk you can wash them and let them air dry back to shape.
Good luck with your drying.

 

[VargasGirl]

I used to use the silica gel pellets too, only I used the ones you find in purses when you buy them at the store. I used to work at a Sears and would swipe them when I was putting new purses out on the floor.