How To Dry Petals & Leaves Flat

Here’s another goody that was sent in to Tipnut’s Mailbag, this tip is from Sherri Hanley:

Dried Rose Petals Vase

I’m a certified craft junkie and love to do many different kinds of crafts, but my favorite projects are those working with dried flowers. Here’s a trick I picked up along the way to dry rose petals and leaves flat (otherwise, as you know, they shrivel and curl up):

• Lay fresh petals and leaves on a terry cotton towel placing them in a way that they will stay flat. Lay them in a single layer. For those petals with a bit of a curl to the edges, lay them the curling side down but pull out the curl as best you can and sort of pat them into place.
• Cover the petals with another terry cotton towel and gently pat down (don’t run your hand over the towels to smooth in place but pat instead). You should use thicker towels so they will weight the petals down somewhat.
• Leave them alone for a few days and they will dry mostly flat and without much shrinkage.

I use the dried petals in a variety of projects and one of the most frequent questions I get is “where did you find those flat petals”. Well this is my secret and now everyone on tipnut can know how to do it!

Nice tip, thanks very much Sherri for sharing! Also see How To Dry Flowers: A Collection of Tips and Homemade Potpourri 101. Here’s a vintage charmer for using dried roses: How To Make A Rose Jar.

This is the newest addition to the Tipnut Mailbag section. Share your tips with fellow Tip Nuts by sending in your favorite tip to be featured in the Tipnut Mailbag section.

There will be some editorial control and I am interested in items with good details, fairly original or unique and are helpful for everyday living or are Wow! neat to know–you’ll get full credit for the tip.

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