How do I preserve Hydrangea blossoms?

Question

I know there's a way to do it. I thought I'd heard that you just put them into a vase of water, and when the water evaporates the flowers will remain in a preserved state. Am I imagining I read this somewhere?

Answer 1

You can get wilting this way.

If you cut them and hang them upside down by their stems, they will dry in an upright position.  Very easy!

Answer 2

Either hanging them upside down or putting into a vase of water and waiting for the evaporation will both work.  The secret to keeping them intact is to generously spray the flowers with hairspray!  It will keep the petals from falling off.

Good luck!

Answer 3

My sister does it all the time. Hers are that lovely, antique-y light brown color - that pretty tea color. You know?

She says she does it a couple of ways. She said make sure the blossoms are dry when you cut them - don't cut after a rain or watering, etc. Make sure the stems are cut with a good, clean cut.

She buys glycerin from Wal-mart, in the first-aid section of the pharmacy. She mixes one part glycerin to three parts water and puts the mixture in a tall vase or jar. She places the hydrangea blooms in the vase, loosely. She says make sure they're not packed in there tightly...and then places the bouquet in a dark place. She puts them in her basement. She says it takes a couple of weeks for the blooms to completely dry.  She didn't say anything about putting anything on them afterwards, but you may be able to purchase a product specifically for this; I don't know. My sister says sometimes she just uses plain water, if she doesn't have glycerin. She says not to use too much water, but to put the blooms in a dark place and they'll dry out in about the same lenght of time as the glycerin treatment.

She has big bouquets of the dried ones in her home. They really are lovely, and I hope you are able to obtain good results with your project.