“This bouquet is so beautiful!” you said. “I’m going to dry all these flowers!” you said!
Awesome!
… Now what?
I had to panic search a billion dried flower crafts when my ten-year-old came up to me last week with a full flower press and an eager face. I am never not multi-tasking, though, so I saved all my most favorite ideas to share with you!
(Note: I want to make ALL of these, so if you make something from this list, feel free to make two and send me one.)
1. bath bombs. I admit that I’m a little dubious about this one, because I can’t imagine how the flowers would drain. Does anybody do this? If so, is your plumbing cool with it?
2. beads. Adding dried flowers to clay beads is a lovely way to embellish them.
3. beeswax lantern. It gives off a beautiful light, especially when embellished with pressed dried flowers.
4. bookmark. Need a pretty (cheap) present for someone? Dried flower bookmarks are beautiful!
5. canvas wall art. Dried flowers are art enough on their own, but you can add your own creative embellishments, of course.
6. coasters. Here’s a way to enjoy your pressed dried flowers daily.
7. crushed petal monograms. Make these from crushed rose petals; I imagine that they’ll still carry a scent.
8. dyed dried hydrangeas. This is weird. But it’s apparently a thing, so here’s how you do it!
9. embellished candle. I don’t know how this burns, but it sure is pretty!
10. fairy dress-up. Using the printables or drawing your own, let the kids make pretty clothes for fairies out of pressed dried flowers.
11. framed flowers. This is the project that my kiddo ended up doing, using the pressed roses from her sister’s Nutcracker bouquet. She pulled a picture frame from my stack of thrifted frames and used cardstock as a backdrop, and it definitely looks like a kid did it, but she’s thrilled with it, of course, and it’s beautiful, of COURSE.
12. garland. Put it somewhere that the kids can’t grab it in their fists and crush all the flowers off of it!
13. gift tags. These are so pretty, and so much more special than store-bought gift tags.
14. greeting card. Decoupage dried flowers onto cardstock that’s cut to size and folded. You’ve made a greeting card!
15. handmade paper. Dried flowers are just some of the pretty things that you can incorporate into handmade paper.
16. herbal pillows. Depending on what you’ve grown, you may have all the right makings for a scented pillow for better dreaming.
17. luminaria. This is a perfectly safe way to add pressed flowers to a candle.
18. ornaments. You even make the clay to back these pressed flower ornaments!
19. papier mache bowl. Embellish with pressed dried flowers.
20. pendant. Your most delicate pressed flowers are perfect for wearing.
21. picture mat. Enhance any photo with a bouquet of a mat.
22. potpourri. Is it possible to write a dried flower round-up without including a tute for potpourri? Also, does potpourri remind everyone of their grandma’s bathroom, or just me?
23. shadow box. This is how you frame dried flowers that are not pressed.
24. stained glass with crayon shavings. This gorgeous kid craft is perfect for a day camp or Girl Scout troop. They turn out so pretty, no matter what the kid does to them!
25. tattoo. Apparently, you can make a faux tattoo using dried flowers, as long as you have something called eyelash glue.
26. tray. The resin keeps the flowers safe and looking bright.
27. wallpaper. Do you have a corner of a room that needs a statement?
Photo credit: lavender drying image via Shutterstock
I’ve never murdered anyone, but I tell my friends that I have! 🙂