If you need dry leaves for later use in craft or cooking projects, there are several ways to do it. And they are all very simple to do, since you can also get it with things that are either easy to obtain, or do you already have them at home? .
So if you want to know how to dry leaves quickly, then we will explain how you can achieve your goal.
How to dry sheets for craft projects
If you are going to do a craft, you can dry them in different ways:
- Tie the leaves in bunches and place them outside in full sun for a few days.
- Place one large sheet or several small sheets between two paper towels, and place them between the sheets of an encyclopedia. To make them flatter, put other books or heavy objects on top. Check them once a week to see if they are dry.
- Microwave a thick sheet between double layers of absorbent paper on a plate and a small cup of water for 30 seconds.
To maintain their texture, you can soak them in glycerin and water for 4 days. And if you want them to maintain their color, there is nothing like ironing the fresh leaves by placing them between two sheets of wax paper and putting a towel on top. Press for 2-5 minutes until that side has dried, and we will turn it over placing the towel on top to repeat the process.
How to dry herbs
If you need leaves to give them a culinary use, follow this step by step:
- The first thing you have to do is clean them well, removing dirt.
- Now, put them on absorbent paper and leave them there until they no longer have moisture. In the case of thick leaves, such as rosemary or thyme, you can dry them by tying them in bunches and hanging them upside down in a dark place.
- Finally, you just have to store them in an airtight container protected from direct sunlight.
Make leaf skeletons
Another thing we can do to cut leaves quickly is to make leaf droppings. To do this, we must choose leaves that have patterns with thick veins. This sheet must be strong so that it cannot break during the process. Some of the leaves that fall in autumn and the oak leaves in question are quite good for this. Another very useful type of leaves are those such as ivy or magnolia.
Next, we will fill a pot with a liter of water. You can use a smaller pot if you have fewer leaves, but you also have to reduce the amount of water. It is advisable to put on gloves since the mixture that we are going to prepare can damage our skin. Ideally, put on latex or rubber gloves before handling the rest of the ingredients. Once we have finished, we must wash all the utensils used in running water. For this, we will also do it using gloves.
To make this skeleton of leaves we will need to add baking soda or sodium carbonate. We only need two tablespoons. Thanks to the application of baking soda, it turns the leaf into a pulp and does not affect the stem or the veins. This is the reason why we have chosen leaves that have very pronounced veins. We add the leaves to the pot and we will put as many as we can, as long as we can easily remove the contents of the pot.
We bring to the boiling point. A good indicator is that the whole mixture should be bubbling a bit. The leaves should boil until completely disintegrated. We only have to stir occasionally. Depending on the men used to be the leaves that we have taken, it will take a little longer. Sometimes it can take a whole day, but it will probably only be a couple of hours. Water must be added as it degrades or the liquid must be replaced with a mixture of fresh water and baking soda every few hours to speed up the process.
Once we have the paste of leaves, we are going to transfer all those that are disintegrating to a pot in cold water. We will use a glass plate to bake. We remove each sheet using a spatula and leave it in the baking dish taking care that they are not on top of each other. In this way, we ensure that they do not stick. We use a small and hard rosette to be able to remove the pulp. By now, all the leaves should be very thin and have a layer of doughy pulp on them. We will gently and patiently remove this pulp and leave only a network of veins.
Once we’re done, we let the leaves air dry on paper towels or by gently patting them and pressing them between book pages or in a flower press.
Tips to dry leaves quickly
When you are pressing the sheets, you have used a material such as a barrier between the surface of the plate and the top layer of the wax paper. You can use a kitchen towel as it is a very good option. This is because it does not inhibit heat transfer but at the same time as follows which paper makes a strong seal and can press the sheets so that they are completely flat.
Aside from baking soda and baking soda, you can also buy glycerin. All these ingredients can be found in the vast majority of pharmacies. The leaves must be observed very carefully while they are drying. If we use a microwave for it we must see if they begin to smoke or turn black. This is when we must stop the process. To finish the drying of the leaf you can use other methods such as pressing to avoid damaging the leaf and make it burn in the microwave.
As you can see, there are some tips to be able to dry the leaves quickly and with very good results. I hope that with this information you can learn more about how to dry the leaves quickly.
