Do you want to create your own everlasting rose? Would you like to dye it blue or purple? Would you like to keep it longer than a fresh rose?
I’m here to help you.
As a florist, I’ve noticed the everlasting rose trend gaining popularity over the past few years. Many people have asked me if it’s possible to create them on their own, using fresh roses.
In this article, I will share my answer to this question, so that you too can try to create an everlasting rose.
To transform a fresh rose into an everlasting rose, a symbol of love and affection, start with a beautiful, slightly closed flower, preferably white. Cut the stem so that it’s less than 6 inches long. Next, immerse it in water mixed with dye until the flower changes color. After that, replace the mixture with a solution consisting of one part vegetable glycerin to two parts water. Leave the flower in this solution until all the liquid has evaporated, and you’re done!
Want to learn more? Keep reading to find out:
- What is an everlasting rose
- The technique to preserve a flower
- How to choose a quality rose for this process
- The difference between DIY everlasting roses and those available for purchase
What Do Eternal Roses Represent?
These flowers have been quite trendy in recent years and popularized by social media; they are actually real fresh roses preserved in time.
In the following lines, I will share a bit more about these extraordinary roses so you can find out if they are suitable for you.
A Flower Symbolizing Love and Immortality
By their eternal nature, these roses convey a special message. Gifting a natural flower that will never wilt represents a love or friendship that knows no end, and in which a lot of hope is placed. The eternal rose is thus the symbol of infinite feelings.
The vibrant colors of everlasting roses can also be interpreted to convey emotions:
- Red: passion, love
- White: purity, innocence, a tribute to someone who has passed
- Pink: tenderness, maternal affection, sweetness
- Yellow: friendship, joy, encouragement
⚠️ The yellow rose is associated with betrayal in love. Learn more about this topic in our article dedicated to this rose!
An Original Decorating Trend
Whether it’s for decorating an event (wedding, birthday, baptism, etc.) or for a room in your home, preserved roses are especially well-suited. They require no special maintenance, allowing you to introduce greenery into your decor without having to deal with the fleeting nature of fresh flowers. For instance, if you’re planning decoration for a meal, you can set them up the day before, or even a few days in advance, without any worries.
An Ideal Gift for Every Occasion
Because they will impress your loved ones and can be kept for years as a memory of a special event or as a symbol of your feelings, you can give everlasting roses for:
- Show your love 💗 to your partner, just because or for Valentine’s Day,
- A birthday 🎂,
- A holiday (Christmas, Mother’s Day, Grandparents’ Day, … as well as Father's Day),
- Wishing a speedy recovery to someone who is ill,
- A special occasion (birth, moving to a new home, passing an exam, starting a new job…),
- Paying tribute to a loved one who has passed away,
- Showing your affection for no reason at all, just for the joy of giving!
How to Choose a Quality Rose to Make It Last Forever?
Do you want to try creating an everlasting rose? Before you start, it’s essential to choose the freshest and most perfect flower possible to achieve flawless results.
Here’s how to go about it:
✔️ Choose a white rose, even if you want to create a colored eternal rose. You will dye it later: the natural colors of roses fade quickly and tend to turn brown within a few weeks.
✔️ Choose a rose that is still slightly closed and not fully bloomed.
✔️ The petals should neither be stained nor damaged. Any brown spots on the petals indicate that the flower has come into contact with water and is therefore at risk of rotting prematurely.
✔️ The leaves of your rose stem should be a vibrant green. They may appear slightly wilted, which means the rose is thirsty and will effectively absorb the preservative you will provide.
DIY: Create Your Own Eternal Rose!
Now that you know how to choose a quality rose, it’s time to try to make it last forever!
To do this, I will guide you through the step-by-step method in the following lines.
Step 1: Prepare Your Flower
Once you’ve chosen your flower, you’ll need to proceed with the transformation as quickly as possible. If you can, buy it the same day!
To do this, use a clean, sharp knife to cut the rose stem, leaving a maximum length of 4 to 6 inches. If you prefer, you can make it shorter.
To help the flower fully absorb the solution that will preserve it, you can cut the stem at an angle, which means cutting it diagonally. This will maximize the surface area of the cut stem that is in contact with the liquid.
👉 To improve the chances of success, you can even cut the rose stem in half lengthwise for about two centimeters from the bottom.
Step 2: Color Your Rose (Optional)
This step is not mandatory, but if you want colors that last, it’s essential to dye a white rose with food coloring.
Indeed, as mentioned earlier, the natural color of roses tends to fade quickly, unlike the color infused into the sap using dyes, which lasts much longer.
To do this, pour 20 to 30 drops of food coloring into a glass of water. Submerge your rose in this mixture for about six hours, until it takes on the desired color.
This video illustrates the phenomenon well:
👉 This technique will allow you to achieve fairly light shades. To obtain a darker hue, it is necessary to inject the dye directly into the petals, which cannot be done at home.
Step 3: Prepare the solution that will preserve your rose
To make your rose immortal, you need to submerge it in a mixture made up of approximately:
- ⅔ cup of water,
- ⅓ cup of vegetable glycerin.
To help absorb this liquid, fill the vase or glass to the top so that the mixture almost touches the base of the flower.
➡️ Vegetable glycerin is a natural product that is available in organic farming. You can find it at pharmacies, health stores, and even in big box stores. It is commonly used to create moisturizing and soothing cosmetic preparations for the skin, so there are no special precautions needed to use it!
Step 4: Let the magic happen!
Finally, to make your roses last forever, let them soak in this mixture until it is completely evaporated. The flowers will absorb it, and it’s the glycerin in the liquid that helps preserve and stabilize the flower. This process can take a few days, during which you’ll enjoy watching your flower transform!
How to Have an Everlasting Rose that Truly Lasts for Years?
Homemade everlasting roses made using the technique explained in the previous sections are easy to create, budget-friendly, and a lot of fun. However, they typically last only a few weeks and quickly lose their vibrancy.
However, if you want to treat yourself to a flower:
- that maintains the appearance of a fresh flower for years,
- boasting vibrant colors like bright red, fuchsia pink, black, or blue,
- and is less sensitive to humidity and light exposure,
So, I recommend that you consider store-bought roses. These are also made with natural glycerin and dyes, but the technique is different: the flowers are preserved in a lab using a vacuum process that replaces the sap and moisture in the rose with a preservative and dyes.
Would you like to explore these high-quality roses? I invite you to visit our online store, where we offer a wide selection of unique and diverse models of eternal roses under glass domes.
I hope this article has helped you discover lots of fascinating information about everlasting roses and that you, too, will try your hand at transforming these magical flowers! If you want to learn more about them, feel free to check out our dedicated article. You’ll learn about their meaning by color, how they are created, and find personalized decor tips!