Oh Happy Day! Crocus are blooming in my side garden. How exciting to have something to press with a little bit of color to it.
I press crocus in two ways, open and cup-shaped. To press a crocus in an open position gently press the petals flat to reveal the pollen stems. I pressed these flowers between the pages of acid-free paper in a weighted down book.
MINDING MY P'S WITH Q 
Another way to preserve flowers is to use silica sand(used for swimming pool filters among other things).
Gently bury the flower head in the sand & leave to dry…The silica sand pulls all the moisture out of the flower head, leaving the colors & petals intact.
preserving flowers in this fashion, can make for a pretty center piece on the dinner table for when entertaining guests, of for everyday use.
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Terrific information…thank you Tulani. I have heard of using sand, but did not know the type, nor the source. I’ll have to give it a try when the daffodils bloom. The small ones press well, but the larger ones don’t do well. I will try to dry them with silica.
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NOT sand my dear friend, but Silica Sand…the two are totally different. “sand” is often referred to as “play sand” – that kind of sand is used in sand boxes for the wee ones…or in gardens to loosen the soil, etc. & is (usually) brownish in color.
Silica Sand is a smaller grain, thus it is lighter in weight, and is almost pure white in color. I do not know what regular sand would do to a flower as far as drying it out, but I have used Silica Sand many times in the past(though it has been
several years since) & had excellent results.
MAybe you knew this already, maybe not; but I wanted to make certain that you understood the type of sand I was referring to. Again, the name is Silica Sand, NOT play sand.
one last thing.
Silica Sand is used by the Pharmaceutical Industry to keep medicines dry & safe from any moisture/bacteria/etc. Ever open a bottle of medicine from the pharmacy that your doctor prescribed for you? remember seing that small plastic round thing that says “DO NOT EAT!”
That plastic round thing has Silica Sand inside of it.
I cherish my friends, & will go to great lengths to never lead them astray.
You & this blog, are a blessing to me…always have been from day 1.
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I forgot to mention…
Silica sand can be found at just about any craft store(Hobby Lobby; Michael’s; can also be found in some garden centers; anyplace that sells pool supplies; Home depot may have it, Menard’s; Lowe’s hardware; Sears;….this Silica Sand is not real hard to find normally….though this time of year it might be…
Amazon.com has it in many different sizes(be careful of the shipping costs-they can be a killer); I found this one with free shipping & only $9.99 for 1.5 pound bag.
http://www.amazon.com/Flower-Drying-Crystals-1-5-Pound-Pack/dp/B0025OJ6AY/ref=sr_1_8?s=lawn-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1393333335&sr=1-8&keywords=silica+sand
This would be good for a first time use…low cost & not a lot to the package. So if for whatever reason you do not like to use it, you’re not out a lot of money.
another thing; you can regenerate the Silica Sand by baking it in the oven or microwave…I forget for how long though.
I hope this helps. 🙂
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Thanks Tulani, I will have to find some of the silica sand and give it a try. I appreciate the information. If you get around to trying the silica sand out before I do, please let me know how it turns out. It sounds like a good blog post in the making. 🙂 Kathy
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Anything for a friend. 🙂
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