How to Color Flowers With Food Coloring
Kids love experimenting with colors and dyes. Coloring flowers with food coloring provides a fun, yet simple way of exploring the color dying process. Not just for kids though, dying flowers with food coloring assists adults with crafts or even accessorizing. For example, a bride sometimes colors bridesmaid bouquets to match the dresses. In addition, flowers dyed with food coloring and then dried can double as supplies for dried flower crafts.
Things You'll Need
- White flowers
- Warm water
- Glass or clear plastic vases
- Food coloring
- Scissors
- Clean jug or bottle
- Flower preservative powder
- Small clean bowl
- Plastic coffee stirrers
Instructions
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How to Color Flowers With Food Coloring
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1
Choose the type of white flower you want for your project. White flowers absorb the color best, and you will see the process as it happens. Possible choices include daisies, carnations or any other white flower. Cut the stems at a slight angle with the scissors. This allows for better color absorption.
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2
Mix the flower preservative powder with warm water in the clean bottle or jug. Look for water and powder amounts on the preservative packaging. Combine the powder and water according to these instructions, per the brand of preservatives purchased. Doing so yields the best result.
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3
Place your vases in a line. Use one vase per each color and per flower desired. For example, if you want one flower each of red, green and blue, you will need three vases. Fill each placed vase with 1 cup of the mixed preservative solution.
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4
Pour about 1/4 of a bottle of desired food coloring in each vase. You can use a little more or a little less depending on the depth of color you want to achieve. Stir the water coloring in gently with a plastic coffee stirrer.
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5
Fill the small bowl with warm water, and set it near your vases. Take one flower and hold the stem a couple of inches below the water. Recut the bottom of the stem, and then place the flower in one of the food coloring filled vases. Repeat the process with the other flowers. Cutting the stems opens them so that the water and food coloring travel up the stem to the flower. Leave the flowers alone for a couple of days giving the colors time to travel up the stems and gradually change the flower's color. If needed during those two days add more preservative mixture replacing any that evaporates.
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Tips & Warnings
Keep the lighting and temperature in the room constant during the color changing process for the best results.
If you do not have white flowers, very light shaded flowers provide a usable substitute.
Purchase flower preservative powder at your local florist or from a reputable online florist.
Use only food coloring to safely change the color of your flowers. Anything else, for example paints, will damage or wilt your flowers.
Dark colored flowers are not recommended for dying because they will not absorb the color over their own natural coloring.
References
Resources
- Photo Credit white flower image by Marek Kosmal from Fotolia.com
