Don't Throw Them Out!

Works For Me Wednesday
I've already posted for the day but I started on this little project and I had to share it with you! My DH gave me roses for Valentine's Day. What a sweetie! But now, a few days have gone by and they were starting to get pretty sad looking. So, I did two things to savor my Valentines roses a little longer. Firstly, I noticed that these particular roses seemed very hearty and healthy. When I arranged them in water when DH gave them to me, I noticed they had little growth nodules popping out on several of the stems. So, I saved what I trimmed when I arranged them in a little cup of water. Today, when I took them out of their vase, I noticed that the rest of the stems also had lots of growth nodules on them where the leaves had been pulled off when I arranged them. SO, I borrowed some of my mom's handy dandy rooting hormone (this is available at any home improvement store in the garden center). I followed the directions on the package to root my beautiful roses and enjoy them now in my garden. My DH's gift will keep on giving! Also, check out the little cutie that I placed next to my clay pot to remind me of how beautiful my roses will be someday soon... This is an original little oil made by my amazingly talented sister in law. Check out her blog here and her Etsy shop here. She's become quite popular lately - she just sold out of her first original prints!


Secondly, I made two little nosegays to dry. I made two. The first one that I made I used the four best remaining blooms. The ones that I used to make the "how-to" pictures are a little frumpy but don't give up on them! They'll still dry just fine.

SO, here we go:
Step 1 - Cut rose blooms from the length of stem, leaving only about 4 inches of stem. Remove all leaves. Repeat until you have four blooms ready to work with.



Step 2 - Take a piece of floral wire (these pieces are pre-cut and are a heavier gauge than what comes on a roll). and pierce your first rose through the fat area just beneath the bloom. Don't go lower on the stem as it's likely to break. Push the wire through so you've got a length of about 2-3 inches coming out the other side. Loop the wire back so it leaves a little loop for later.


Step 3 - Continue piercing your following three roses, making a little bend in your wire after you pierce each one so you start to form sort of a square and keep your rose blooms close together (please forgive the cereal bowl and milk tab in the background of my pictures... hehehehe).

Step 4 - Take the long end of your wire and put it through the loop you made at the beginning on your first rose. Pull it down tight so your roses are all tightly bound together. Wrap the length of your wire around the stems a few times and at the very end of your wire, make one more little loop to hang your nosegay with.


Step 5 - Finally, just find a nice place in any room to hang your nosegay and allow it to completely dry. This will take 10 days - 2 weeks give or take. It depends on how humid your environment is. This is a fun way to save roses anytime your DH waxes thoughtful and romantic!