Step 1: Pick the Purpose. For decoration and scent in soap, use rose and lavender. For skin-soothing infusions, calendula and chamomile. For herbal tea, hibiscus, chamomile, and rose. For natural colour, hibiscus and blue corn.
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Step 2: Infuse or Add Whole. To draw out benefit, infuse the flowers in a carrier oil or hot water, then strain. To decorate, press whole petals into melt-and-pour soap or sprinkle into bath salts.
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Step 3: Mind Soap Browning. Many flowers brown in the high pH of cold-process soap. For a lasting look, use them in melt-and-pour, on the surface, or choose flowers known to hold, and test first.
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Step 4: Store Dry and Sealed. Keep dried flowers in a sealed container away from light and moisture so they hold their colour and scent. Use food-grade flowers for anything you drink.
About Dried Flowers
Dried flowers do three jobs at once: they add natural colour, a gentle scent, and a handcrafted, botanical look. Some also carry real skin benefit when infused. Calendula and chamomile are the classic soothing flowers, infused into oils and balms for sensitive and irritated skin. Rose and lavender bring scent and a decorative touch to soap, bath salts, and sachets, and lavender doubles as a calming aromatherapy botanical. Hibiscus and blue corn flower are prized for natural colour, and several of these, including hibiscus, chamomile, and rose, make lovely herbal teas.
The main thing to plan for is soap. Many flowers brown in the high pH of cold-process soap, so for a lasting look they are best used in melt-and-pour, pressed on the surface, or chosen for their staying power. Every flower here is dried and packed for quality, with certification available on request. Infuse them into our carrier oils, press them into a soap base, or add them to bath salts.
Good to Know
Tip 1: Infuse for benefit, add whole for looks. To get calendula's or chamomile's soothing benefit, infuse the flowers in oil or water and strain. To decorate, press whole petals into soap or bath products.
Tip 2: Flowers brown in cold-process soap. The high pH can dull or brown many petals. For a lasting look, use them in melt-and-pour or on the surface, and test a small batch first.
Tip 3: Use food-grade for tea. If you are brewing flowers into a drink, use flowers labelled food-grade and prepared for consumption, and store them sealed and dry.
Frequently Asked Questions
Dried flowers are used to add natural colour, scent, and a decorative, handcrafted look to soaps, bath products, and sachets, and some are infused into oils and balms for skin benefit. Calendula and chamomile soothe, rose and lavender add scent and beauty, and hibiscus and blue corn add colour.
You can press whole petals onto the surface of melt-and-pour soap for decoration, or infuse flowers into the oils first for benefit and a subtle colour. Be aware that many flowers brown in cold-process soap because of its high pH, so surface use or melt-and-pour usually keeps them looking their best.
Yes, several of these flowers make herbal teas, including hibiscus for a tart, ruby-red brew, chamomile for a calming cup, and rose for a fragrant one. Use flowers that are food-grade and intended for consumption, steep in hot water, and strain. Always check that a specific product is labelled safe for tea.
Add dried flowers to a carrier oil and let them infuse, either slowly over a couple of weeks in a warm, dark place or gently warmed for a few hours, then strain out the flowers. Calendula-infused oil is a classic soothing base for balms. Make sure the flowers are fully dry first, since moisture can spoil an oil infusion.
Calendula and chamomile are the go-to skin-soothing flowers, widely infused into oils and balms for sensitive, dry, or irritated skin. Rose is gentle and toning, and lavender is calming. For skincare, these are usually infused to draw out their benefit rather than left in the product whole.
Keep dried flowers in an airtight container away from light, heat, and moisture, which preserves their colour, scent, and any benefit. Stored well, they last many months. Moisture is the enemy, since even a little can cause mould, so make sure they stay completely dry.
In bath salts and melt-and-pour soap, dried flowers hold their look better than in cold-process soap, though some colour can leach into water. For a clean look in the bath, many makers use whole petals as a top decoration or pair them with a matching colorant, and choose flowers like lavender and calendula that hold their form well.
