Silica gel to preserve flowers - paging Kentucky wine bride & centerpiece flowers!

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Ok, updated! I hope they see it. It was recommended as a pin on Pinterest. Good thing there's Pinterest to remind me of the things I'd forget to do, haha.

Bump! Hoping Kentucky wine bride and centerpiece flowers will see!!

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I watched a video on YouTube about this method. Looks easy enough. But I think you have to have ALOT of silica gel. Best wishes!

I've never heard of this but I just found this video on youtube

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Smd44LVahh0

Yes, I saw the video too. I'm just worried about keeping the bouquet in my fridge for two days :/.

I actually also emailed my florist. I'll be sure to keep everyone following updated!

Yes it was me! sorry I didn't log on last night.

Here's both of my posts about it

https://www.weddingwire.com/wedding-forums/wedding-shadow-box-so-excited/ac762ddbd050b966.html

https://www.weddingwire.com/wedding-forums/update-successfully-preserved-my-wedding-flowers/955db63c6f334670.html

I bought this silica gel kit from Michaels

http://www.michaels.com/activa-flower-drying-art-silica-gel/10300251.html#q=silica gel&start=1

There are some really good coupons on their website today. I would recommend buying at least 3 boxes. It's also available on Amazon (if you need it fast may want to buy from here). My garden roses preserved the best. I tried to preserve some of my ornamental cabbages and that was a disaster because of how much water they hold - so stinky when I opened the container. I definitely wouldn't recommend preserving succulents for the same reason.

Side note: I bought some beaded silica gel from Hobby Lobby. I thought it was cool because the beads would change color from blue to pink when done drying. But the sand silica gel from Michaels and Amazon worked so much better! I would not recommend the kind from Hobby Lobby.

All you need is the silica gel kit and tons of plastic containers with lids. The longer you leave the flowers in the containers the better. I did 2 weeks. Try to keep the flowers spaced out and as you're pouring the silica gel shake/shimmy the flower to get in between the petals.

Hope this helps! My shadow box still looks amazing - not one single pedal has fallen!

The pink rose picture - left is before and right is after.

ETA: I forgot to mention we left for our honeymoon the next morning so I filled up vases full of water and crammed all the bouquets and centerpieces into my fridge. We were gone for a week and the pictures below are what they looked like when I got back. I put ice in the vases before I left because I've always heard the colder the water the fresher the flowers.

My shadow box. I'm so happy with how it turned out.

Tagging so I can keep this how to... that is such an awesome final product @KentuckyWineBride!

I did the silica gel preservation and I must be really awful at crafty stuff because it turned out horrible. I left it in for 3 weeks instead of 2 so that could have been a factor. But the flowers turned black and fell apart anyway.

@KentuckyWineBride - thank you so much! I can't wait to do mine

No problem! Please post how they turn out.

@Sasswood what a bummer! I would have been pissed! Did you use the activa brand or something else?

Following! This is amazing!