You probably already know how much I adore bouquets of fresh flowers
My favorite bouquets are simple and usually a bunch of one flower or color.
The ranunculus I found this Spring were favorites and right up there with peonies
on my list of must have flowers.
I love a bouquet on the table in the dining room
and tend to gravitate toward pretty pink blooms in here.
A bouquet of flowers is a perfect finishing touch to a room
They don’t have to be huge or expensive-bouquets-
just an inexpensive bunch of roses or stock is perfect.
But what do you do with those pretty blooms after they are done blooming?
Do you toss them or save them? I know that not all flowers are good for drying but I do love it when they can be dried and used again and again.
Last Summer was hot and dry all Summer long and those bunches of fresh flowers
that I had in the house from June to September dried perfectly,
So, yes, Autumn was big with dried flowers over here 😉
and I have to say- they were some of my favorite displays of them so far.
My Simple Autumn Mantel from last year was decorated with dried roses
and the Autumn mantel in the guest cottage was covered in
dried hydrangeas, roses and various wildflowers as well.
I love tying simple small bunches of them on the orchard ladder
and also on the exposed beams in the kitchen in the cottage
There is just something about the row of those flowers that makes me happy when I see it.
I also love to just simply place them in a basket to set on a chair
for charm and a touch of fragrance
These red roses were clipped recently from a climbing rose in our yard and are drying in this basket
They are small blooms and very open- without a lot of petals.
These do tend to drop a lot of petals as they dry and so they do best in the basket
I do love dried rose petals and their fragrance too.
Even as flowers are dried and their petals turn a pale brown-
they are beautiful and make lovely display where ever you use.
I have never dried flowers any other way than naturally
though I know there are several ways to do it.
Most often I simply tie them upside down and enjoy their
beauty and charm even as they dry.
Has anyone ever dried peonies and had good luck with it?
They are one of the flowers that I have had a harder time drying and keeping.
I would love to know the best way to do that if anyone knows.
These peonies dried perfectly for some reason
but I have no idea what I did that worked.
I am also excited to share something fun kicking off this week~
I am joining a group of bloggers in celebrating Summer!
Starting off over at My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia today
and continuing to June 27th and to a fun link party and giveaway!!
Hope your week is off to a great start
Happy Monday!
Beautiful Courtney! I too love keeping and drying my flowers.Mostly hydrangeas and roses.I did have a peony bush at our last home.Love those!And when I dried them I just hung them upside down in a closet.I don't know if it was the dark closet that kept the color from fading and turning.But they always dried perfect that way for me!
xx
Anne
Your flowers always look so pretty, Courtney ~ fresh or dried! I was inspired by you to dry the little rose bud flowers in my Mother's Day bouquet. I tied them together and hung them upside down in my craft/sewing room. The stems are now wrapped in pink satin ribbon and they are sitting on my dresser in our master bedroom. Such a simple and romantic touch.
Your home and your style is exquisite!!!
You should talk to June at "Talking With Angels"
http://laughingwithangels.blogspot.com/
she dries flowers all the time, and i think she has dried peonies before, plus she is completely wonderful! Your dried flowers are just gorgeous, and i see why seeing around the house makes you smile…
Cindy
This is a beautifully done post. Your flower photos are gorgeous.
Courtney, your dried flowers are beautiful! I've never tried drying peonies, but I wonder if their being so big and full of petals has something to do with the difficulty drying them out. I do love them and they are one of my favorite blooms!
The epitome of femininity and beauty-gorgeous!
Jemma
the flowers really make the room glow. love seeing your beautiful style.
Everything you do Courtney is soooo BEAUTIFUL! I LOVE peonies and can never get enough of them, the fragrance is just so wonderful. If you would like them to look like they are still fresh and not dried …. head over to the craft store and buy a couple big containers of silica sand. You will also need a large plastic tote with a tight lid, make sure it is big enough to hold all you want to dry especially if you are keeping the stems on. (You can also do layers) Pour some sand on the bottom, lay out the flowers (roses peonies, whatever you want to dry … they should be fresh and opened just perfect, not wilted or old). Just doing the heads is the easiest as you can cut them off and stand them face up in the sand and sprinkle very carefully into the petals more sand until they are covered. Leave them in the sand for a few weeks then carefully remove them, then you will be able to put them on wires (make a hook on the end of a thick florist wire and insert down through the middle of the flower so the hook is inside the flower, then cover with green florist tape, stretching and twisting as you go down the wire).They are now all set to use them for arrangements! If you are wanting to use a clear vase, fill it full of your dried petals to hide the wires. Hope it works out well for you! <3 Pat
Everything you do Courtney is soooo BEAUTIFUL! I LOVE peonies and can never get enough of them, the fragrance is just so wonderful. If you would like them to look like they are still fresh and not dried …. head over to the craft store and buy a couple big containers of silica sand. You will also need a large plastic tote with a tight lid, make sure it is big enough to hold all you want to dry especially if you are keeping the stems on. (You can also do layers) Pour some sand on the bottom, lay out the flowers (roses peonies, whatever you want to dry … they should be fresh and opened just perfect, not wilted or old). Just doing the heads is the easiest as you can cut them off and stand them face up in the sand and sprinkle very carefully into the petals more sand until they are covered. Leave them in the sand for a few weeks then carefully remove them, then you will be able to put them on wires (make a hook on the end of a thick florist wire and insert down through the middle of the flower so the hook is inside the flower, then cover with green florist tape, stretching and twisting as you go down the wire).They are now all set to use them for arrangements! If you are wanting to use a clear vase, fill it full of your dried petals to hide the wires. Hope it works out well for you! <3 Pat
I love your home and your beautiful flowers. I like to dry roses and hydrangeas. I leave mine in the vase until the water evaporates. They dry beautiful that way!!
I love peonies but never attempted to dry them.
Beautiful post Courtney!! I love the way you display your flowers and the dried ones gorgeous as well!
Cynthia
sooooooo pretty!
Hi there, I had great success in drying peonies in Cilicia jell. I love your blog and read most of them, thanks for the inspiration.
Bernice
Beautiful blog post, just lovely flowers and photos.
Those all look so lovely Courtney! I have TONS of roses right now so you are inspiring me to cluster them in a basket and let them hang out for awhile. 🙂
Vanessa
I love drying flowers. Your Autumn mantel is just beautiful and such a good idea. Susan
Your pictures are so fresh and inviting!
Never knew I could dry these, as I have only done hydrangeas before.
Thanks for a great idea.
– Sylvi
so beautiful ..as always you don't disappoint.. LOVE it all
Fresh or dried, your flowers are always gorgeous! Thanks for sharing all of the pictures! Hugs, Leena
I read your post yesterday lamenting the fact that in Texas we can't grow Peonies. (Except for Bill's little aunt. I don't know how she did it.)
Low and behold they had some in the grocery store. I was thrilled.
Thanks for your images of these beautiful flowers.
You have the perfect touch with flowers, whether fresh or dry you always arranged them so beautifully!
Gorgeous flowers Courtney…I just got to this post and it answered all my questions with regard to drying flowers that I had asked today…that's what happens when I miss a post!…Thanks for all the tips Courtney and the party sounds like great fun!!
I just love the look of French country cottages. They are so romantic, surreal and easy on the eyes. Their subtle pastels are simply marvelous. Moreover, the floral arrangements can really dish up the look of any French country cottage. Actually, the floral arrangements that you have shown are some of the loveliest I have ever seen.
You idea of decoration with dried flowers is so beautiful. Yor idea is fantastic for dried beautiful flowers, I really inspire about your work.
Hi Courtney. I wanted to ask where you found your gorgeous kitchen curtains. ( hanging above your kitchen sink).
Your home is so beautiful
Incredible post.