How to dye sola flowers

How to Dye Sola Wood Flowers!

*Remember, you can go from a lighter shade to a darker shade but NOT vice versa. You may add more or less acrylic paint OR water to your mixture as you wish. I would do a test run with your ratios to get your desired color saturation. Below is my suggestion to get a medium to light coverage for your flowers. Depending on your brand of acrylic paint, these suggested amounts will change. Your flowers will dry LIGHTER than the mixture overall.

Rule of Thumb:
More paint, less water = more coverage (more saturation and opacity for rich and bright colors)
Less paint, more water = less coverage (more transparency, good if you want to see the sola markings, or a light tint of color to your raw flowers similar to a watercolor wash or gradient)
**This is the reason why many "sola experts" can't give new crafters an exact ratio for dyeing flowers. We all have our preferences between paint and water ratios. If you are new to working with sola wood flowers and dyeing with acrylic paint, please be patient with yourself and give yourself plenty of time for experimentation with the materials and techniques.

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Materials
10oz (1 and 1/3 cup) of room temperature water (if your flowers need fluffing, then use warm water). You may use LESS water as necessary.
1 small container or small measuring cup
1-1.5 oz (2-3 tablespoons) acrylic paint
2-3 oz (4-6 tablespoons) boiling water
1 32 oz (4 cup) container with lid
Spoon or spatula for mixing
Drying rack with puppy pads, paper towel, or newspaper underneath (Or you can lay it on paper towels or a towel, but remember that the bottom of the flower may stick to the towel or delay drying time)

Directions
1. Mix desired amount of acrylic paint and boiling water in small container.
2. Pour 10oz water in 32 oz container with lid
3. Add acrylic paint mixture to 32 oz container.
4. Mix well until acrylic paint and water are blended well
5. Take sola flower by the center nub and dip gently into water and paint mixture for around 15-30 seconds. Make sure that flower completely submerged.
6. Place sola flower on drying rack carefully with center nub down
7. Sola flowers will dry within 2-3 days, depending on humdity
8. If your flowers are not the shade you want, you can redye them once completely dry with higher concentration of paint.

Tips
A. Turn on a desk fan and aim toward the flowers to speed up drying. Circulating the air around your flowers will help them dry faster
B. If you have a food dehydrator, you can place it in there for about 10-15 minutes (I have NOT tried this yet! Do at your own risk!)
C. You can use puppy pads or newspaper to make sure your working area is easy to clean
D. If you dont have a drying rack, use an old cookie sheet or serving tray
E. You can stem your flowers beforehand and stand them upright on a piece of styrofoam.
F. ALWAYS make sure your flowers are completely dry before stemming or adding your flowers to a project. These flowers WILL smell moldy (or get moldy) if it does not properly dry.
G. You can store your dye in a sealed container for a few days on your countertop or in the fridge.
H. Coverage will depend on the BRAND of paint that you use (ex: Craftsmart, Anita, Blicks, Golden, Apple Barrel, etc.) Make sure you use some type of acrylic paint, but different brands might have different pigments and saturations.
I. ALWAYS test out your paint and water ratios! Drying will change the color of your flower!