A New Way to Extend the Life of Cut Flowers

Having fresh flowers around is such a luxury and a treat! Learn how to extend the life of cut flowers with this new idea.

Floral arrangement in a hexagonal dish

The more I’ve worked with floral projects over the years, the better I’ve gotten at making my cut flowers last.

Yes, there’s definitely a shelf life but there are also lots of little tricks you can use to extend the life of cut flowers.

It just kills me after making a project like this one to toss the flowers when it’s done. I can’t bear it!

So I’m sharing all of my best tips and a brand new idea for making your cut flowers stay fresher longer.

Psst — before you get the tips, be sure to enter your info below to join my VIP group! I send these folks my very best DIYs and ideas.

Floral arrangement in a hexagonal dish

Projects Using Fresh Flowers

I’ve used these hacks on so many of our fresh flower projects.

They’re perfect for implementing if you’re making your own bouquets from grocery store florals.

Or if you’re creating a project like our floral wall where you’ll have lots of cut flowers left over, this new idea is a game changer.

You can also use this idea to make the flowers from an event last a little longer! Perfect for bridesmaid bouquets, shower floral arrangements and more.

And if you need a little more floral inspiration, here are some of our most popular flower projects from the archives.

Supplies You’ll Need

Florals. Whether they’re completely fresh or starting to lose their vibrance, these ideas will work for your flowers.

A shallow bowl or dish. I love this one but I’ve used just a plain serving dish with a high lip as well and it works perfectly!

Scissors. Any scissors will do but if you work frequently with flowers a pair of floral shears will make the cleanest cuts and yield great results while you try to keep your flowers fresh.

Fresh water. The fresher, the better!

Keeping Cut Flowers Fresh

There are lots of factors that go into keeping cut flowers fresh and extending their life!

For starters, and if you have the option, placing cut flowers in a refrigerator overnight works wonders for preserving their freshness.

In the winter months, I’ll sometimes leave cut flower arrangements in our garage where it’s substantially cooler than the house.

Next, cut flowers love a little attention. For best water absorption, trim the stems of your cut flowers at a 45 degree angle; you can even do this every couple of days to create fresh cuts.

A fresh cut should be followed by a change of water in the vase or vessel that’s holding your flowers.

Floral arrangement in a hexagonal dish

Try This New Arrangement to Extend the Life of Cut Flowers

Once your flowers are a few days old, you may start to see some drooping or loss of vibrance.

When that begins to happen, I love to repurpose them and extend their life with a new floral arrangement.

This helps avoid throwing them out and gives you a few extra days for florals on your countertop or for your event!

  1. Trim the stems down to about 1-2 inches each, getting rid of any broken or soggy greenery. When you trim, be sure to cut the stem on an angle to allow the flower to soak up maximum water.
  2. Next, we fils a low dish or shallow bowl with about a half-inch of water.
  3. Finally, start filling the dish or bowl until it’s full of blooms. You want to be sure to keep petals out of the water as much as possible, as this can speed up decay.
  4. Change the water daily and remove any flowers that start to go bad.

When I create arrangements like this one they often last an extra five or six days!

Just ensure that you continue to change the water and pull off any leaves or petals that become droopy.

What to Do with Cut Flowers That Are Past Their Prime

Floral arrangement in a hexagonal dish

If you have some flowers that are too far gone to save, consider pressing them instead of tossing them out!

This easy DIY flower press is such a cool tool to keep around the house in your craft arsenal.

It’s simple to make and you can press the prettiest flowers to use for projects.

I pressed flowers with the kids for these DIY bookmarks and they’re still so lovely!

Hope you try some of these new, fun ways to extend the life of your cut flowers. Enjoy! xoxo

Floral arrangement in a hexagonal dish

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