How to Tint Flowers

Step-by-Step Guide

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   Step 1: Obtain flowers.

   Some species work better than others, but a general rule of thumb is to choose white (or very light) colored flowers with very porous stems.
   
   Daisies, Allium (onion family) and Carnations work best, but you can get some decent results from chrysanthemums as well.
   
   Flowers on woody stems "can" work, but they take much longer for the coloring to percolate up the stem and into the flower.
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   Step 2: Color some water with liquid food coloring.

   Avoid the creamy/thick coloring used for cake icing.
   
   You want the drops that will diffuse quickly in water. , Avoid "bruising" or "crushing" the stem as you cut.
   
   Shorter stems will allow for quicker coloring. , You should see some color changes by morning. ,, (4-5 inches) and placing half of the stem in a glass of one color and the remaining half in a glass filled with another color for some interesting and fun effects. , (harder to do, but fun to experiment with) ,
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   Step 3: Trim the stems of your flowers with a sharp knife.

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   Step 4: Place the stems into the food coloring/water mixture and let them stand overnight.

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   Step 5: Experiment with concentrations of food coloring

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   Step 6: flower species

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   Step 7: and stem lengths to get your desired shade.

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   Step 8: Try splitting a stem lengthwise from the base.

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   Step 9: Try Placing the stem in one color for a day and then in another color later on... to get tips of petals in one color and bases of those petals in another color.

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    Step 10: Notice that the stems and leaves will also turn colors over time

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    Step 11: but that the flowers are usually the first to show the streaks

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    Step 12: as they are in the fastest growing area.

Detailed Guide

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