The joy people find in flowers is like the joy in a mother’s eyes upon seeing her child for the first time—where everything is nonexistent except for that very being. As the brave Sophie Scholl once said, “Who would have thought it possible that a tiny little flower could preoccupy a person so completely that there simply wasn’t room for any other thought?” No matter if it’s a single bud or a lush bouquet, flowers have remained to captivate every soul by its beauty. They’re always the sweetest thing next to love and the daintiest creation next to an infant.

When people send flowers in bouquets in all of its beauty’s grandeur, receivers of such gift always resort to the idea of preserving such exquisiteness. It’s as if the time being and the later days of its remaining life aren’t’ enough to satisfy the yearning eyes. And so, the art of drying flowers emerges to be the grandest solution to preserve the beautiful memory.

The popularity of dried or preserved flowers has soared in the recent years and the availability of dried plant materials also has increased a hundred-fold. Although flower shops continue to include dried flowers in their goods, this shouldn’t pressure you to buy such dried materials, rather buy flowers whenever you feel like it because these are enough to get you equipped with the stuffs you need for a dried flower design. The same is true whenever you receive a flower bouquet or vase arrangement.

Embarking on the task of drying or preserving flowers may actually lead you to many options. That means you have to know first which method you’re going to use. There are actually four common ways to dry and preserve flowers: air drying, sand drying, drying by desiccant, and drying by glycerine. You may do research on the steps regarding these methods as they are everywhere in floristry books and internet, but if you want the easiest way you can always resolve to air drying. However, experts suggest that there are certain methods which are suitable for certain flowers; like lavenders and roses are best with air drying while lilies and tulips are great with desiccants.

To give you ideas on dried flower designs here are some of the best and easiest hand-made creations you can do to put up in your home or office:

1. Lavender Sheaf (Lavender, string or twine, raffia or ribbon fabric)

Gather lots of lavenders in one hand to make a great sheaf with generous effect.  Keep all the heads of the flowers at the same level while wrapping the stems with a piece of twine or string, and secure it with a knot. Trim all the ends of the stems and finish the sheaf with a ribbon fabric or raffia in a simple bow.

2.Tansy in Terracotta ( tansy, wheat, yarrow, blue Larkspur, lavender sea holly, terracotta pot)

Gather plenty of tansies to form a dense outline inside an old terracotta pot. Add the taller yarrows and larkspurs plus the long stems of wheat at the back of display while filling in the gaps with clusters of sea holly.

3.Floral Gift Box (pink peonies, strawflowers, snow gum leaves, round gift box, all-purpose glue, stub wire, lace ribbon)

Form an intricate ribbon bow by giving generous loops of lace ribbon. Secure with some wire or glue on top of the box cover. Now, add peonies to the center while tucking in few leaves and strawflowers around. Work out toward the edge with more strawflowers and leaves. This serves as a pretty gift box which is a present in its own right.

4.Moth Repellent Nosegay (dried lavender, lavender bottles, roses, southernwood, wire, velvet ribbon)

Simply bind all the flowers into a bunch with wire. Tie a velvet ribbon around the stems and provide a loop to hang the nosegay.

5. Rustic Basket (Peonies, globe artichoke heads, strawflowers, poppy seedhead, helipterum, pink larkspur, oats, quaking grass, fern leaves, silver brunia, basket, florists’ dry foam, florists’ tape)

Place the foam in the center of the basket while fixing three inches long fern leaves around its outside edge to form a collar. Put a peony in the middle of the foam just under the handle.  Add bunches of small flowers and foliage around the foam and finally build up the center with poppy seedheads, artichokes, and other individual flowers.