Flower Drying Handbook: Includes Complete Microwave Drying Instructions

Certain flowers and seedpods in our gardens just beg to be preserved. I like to air-dry strawflowers, giant alliums, lavender, baby's breath, lunaria and poppy seedpods, then arrange them in vases or use them as miniature Christmas tree decorations. Before I read this book, it never occurred to me to dry flowers in a microwave oven. I wish I had known about this technique when my sister asked me to preserve a white rosebud from her wedding bouquet. The result of my untutored experimentation turned mouldy and had to be thrown away. According to this author, roses can be air-dried or microwaved, but "desiccant drying gives the best color and shape retention." Sorry, Sis. The heart of this clearly-written craft book is the flower profile index, which gives straightforward instructions on growing, harvesting, drying, and crafting each individual flower. For instance, "Dahlias dry well by hanging upside down in groups of three. They shrink about 30% and their colors darken some." They can also be "microwaved for five or six minutes on a medium power setting. The dense center areas will still be damp and should be hung upside down to finish air-drying." The author then suggests that dried dahlias can be used in harvest wreaths, and swags. The chapter on "Harvesting and Drying Techniques" gives specific instructions on how to air-dry, dessicate, press, and microwave-dry flowers. The tools needed for each technique are also described. The photographs in this 96-page book are mainly of fresh flowers, whereas I would have preferred to see photographs of the author's dried flower arrangements, or `before' and `after' photographs in the flower profile index. Nevertheless, "Flower Drying Handbook" will save crafters many hours of trial and error in the creation of lovely dried-flower arrangements.