Care and Cleaning of your silk flowers
Silk flower arrangements, like any other part of your décor, need some maintenance from time to time.
Although silk flowers are virtually care free, they still require some occasional attention to keep them looking their best. The biggest problem most people encounter when trying to clean their silk arrangements is how to clean them effectively without damaging their oftentimes fragile or delicate components. Many arrangements despite being of the best quality, just will not tolerate a lot of vigorous handling and this leads to difficulties in cleaning and getting into hard to reach areas. I’m going to outline some of the most effective ways to remove the dust and dirt that eventually settles onto an arrangement and dulls it’s appearance, and hopefully simplify the process a bit with a couple of helpful hints.
The first and best tip anyone can give you, is to be sure you lightly dust off your arrangements at least every 3 weeks. Keeping dust from accumulating on the leaves and petals, and from settling into hard to reach areas, is the single best way to avoid difficulty in keeping your silks appearing fresh and vibrant. Like anything else, preventative maintenance is key.
First and foremost, I would recommend that any time you clean your silk flowers beyond a light dusting that you take them outside. Depending upon how much dust they’ve managed to accumulate, you don’t want to spread it around the house or have it ending up on the floor creating more of a mess that you’ll have to clean up later. If you do clean them inside, be aware that some cleaning procedures are going to loosen dust and others will drip cleaning solution off of the flowers, so preparing a small area is a good idea before starting. Just lay down some newspapers and perhaps use a room you can close off easily from the rest of the house in order to limit the spread of dust.
The most common practice for general silk flower cleaning is to use a dedicated silk flower cleaner. This usually comes in a pressurized can or spray bottle and is a formulation of mild cleansers designed to loosen and lift away dust while evaporating quickly. These formulations usually are quick drying, and good results can be had from them when used correctly. There are a couple of things to be careful of though when using them that the uninitiated may run into their first time around in applying them.
Although they are very easy to use, just point and spray, the spray cleaners are not magic. Care and consideration must be used. When using one of these silk flower cleansers it’s a good idea to turn the arrangement upside down if possible. When spraying away the dust and dirt you want it to fall off the arrangement and onto the newspapers, not down into the arrangement. Another good idea is to lightly dust off the arrangement before applying the cleaner. This will help to minimize the amount of dirty runoff. Apply the cleaner according to the instructions on the label and follow these tips and you should get good results with a minimum of trouble.
Another method commonly suggested is a sort of dry cleaning using a light and coarse medium to actually massage away the dirt and dust. This can be effective if you are able to disassemble an arrangement or have single stems to clean. A note of caution first. Many arrangements are not intended to be taken apart and will have stems and other parts firmly attached. In addition, it can be very difficult to return the stems to their original positions as the holding medium may not accept reinsertion. If you are not sure, or the stems are difficult to remove, abandon the effort and instead use one of the methods that do not require disassembly.
Using a medium to clean your silk arrangement is pretty straightforward. Choose a medium such as uncooked white rice, salt, or corn meal, and place a cup or two into a large bag. You then place a few stems into the bag, and lightly shake, making sure to turn the bag upside down a few times as you do so. This literally brushes off dust and dirt and can get at a lot of those hard to reach areas you normally would not be able to reach. Once done you will probably still need to lightly dust off the arranegement, or blow off the arrangement with some compressed air, or maybe the outlet side of a vacuum cleaner if yours is so equipped.
You can do this with an assembled arrangement also, but come caution must be used. Ensure that the arrangement is well assembled and that the stems and blooms can withstand a little bit of jostling. Be careful of the base as well. Mediums such as salt can scratch some of the materials or finishes used in arrangement bases, so wrapping the base in some plastic may be something you want to consider doing before trying this method. Be sure to grasp the arrangement by its base when you shake it around within the bag, taking care to avoid getting any of the medium between the base and the bag which could cause scuffing.
One other method is probably the least effective but can work in a pinch and save some time if you’re in a hurry. Basically you just vacuum away the dust and dirt. Do not just fire up the vacuum cleaner and have at it or disaster will result. Either use an attachment with the long fibers on the end and lightly go over the arrangement, paying attention to the hard to reach areas as best you can, or slip a piece of stocking over the end of the hose, and carefully work over the arrangement, paying attention to avoiding pulling off any blossom petals or loosely connected stems. This method is the least desirable in my opinion and will leave a lot of dust in hard to reach areas that will accumulate over time if not gotten to eventually.
One other often overlooked but very important aspect of keeping your arrangements clean is placement. Where you place silk flowers has a direct affect on their appearance, and not just in how well they interact with your décor. Placing an arrangement in the kitchen is a common practice, but some thought must be given to its placement in relation to your appliances. Never place them near or on the stove surfaces. Besides the obvious fire hazard, steam and oils from your stove will destroy the arrangement beyond the ability of cleaning to restore it.
Placement near refrigerators or microwaves should also be avoided. Refrigerators are dust magnets as they use fans which draw air towards them, bringing the dust with it. If you’ve ever undertaken the less than enjoyable job of cleaning out your refrigerators coils, you already understand what I’m talking about. Microwaves also draw in air, and blow out air that contains steam and oils from foods that can settle on a silk arrangement and cause discoloration and stains. Avoid placing silk flowers in direct sunlight for prolonged periods. Although sunlight is great for bringing out an arrangements colors, it’s also great for fading those colors over time and warping fragile blooms and stems.
This about wraps up my cleaning and care tips and I hope you find them helpful. They really don’t require a lot of effort, and they can help you keep your prized arrangements beautiful for years to come if followed. Happy decorating, and I hope you’ve enjoyed your visit to my store.
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