Did you ever wonder why the humble rose is the go-to Valentine’s Day gift?
It started with the Ancient Greeks, who believed the rose bushes grew from the tears and blood of the goddess Aphrodite. And, as we all know, Aphrodite was the Greek goddess of love, so the rose became associated with this most romantic of human emotions.
Whether you’re after some roses for your Valentine, a wedding bouquet, or a vase at home, the sad fact is they’ll only last so long before they wilt.
Thankfully, there’s a solution: sola wood roses! Unlike their fresh counterparts, these roses are made from the sola plant. They look natural and can last forever if well cared for.
Read on to learn more about the delicate sola rose and other sola flowers.
What Are Sola Roses Made From?
Most artificial flowers are made from plastic or silk, and these materials are either terrible for the environment or too delicate. Sola roses, on the other hand, are crafted from a fast-growing plant.
Origins
The sola plant grows naturally in swamplands throughout tropical Asia. It's in the legume family, so farmers prize it for its nitrogen-fixing abilities and as green manure.
Traditionally, it was used to craft ornamental and religious objects and the sola topi (or sola topee), a sunhat favored by British colonists in Asia in the early 20th century.
Today, the sola plant has become popular once again as a craft material. Life-like, delicate yet durable sola flowers are showing up across America–in the hands of brides, front door Christmas wreaths, and vases on dining room tables.
How to Prepare Them
Before sola roses can be used in bouquets or other arrangements, they must be colored and manipulated.
There are two treatment methods for sola flowers: pre-treatment with Glycerin or an all-in-one technique using a mix of Wood Flower Dye and Glycerin. If you have a lot of flowers to dye in a single color, use the latter faster method. The pre-treatment method typically results in more vibrant colors.
You can find all the colors we currently have in our pre-dyed flowers and assortments collection. If you’re in any way handy, buy your flowers in bulk and dye them yourself.
Why Sola Roses Beat Real Roses
When it comes to flower options, sola roses have fresh flowers beat. They won’t wilt or rot, they keep their vibrant colors, come in a wide variety of styles, and you can rearrange them endlessly.
Value for Money
Don’t be so quick to throw that wedding bouquet over your shoulder! If it’s made from sola roses, you can keep it as a memento forever. The fact that with proper care, sola flowers last a long time means they’re incredibly budget-friendly.
On average, a fresh flower order for a wedding could set you back well over $800. That’s around 4 percent of the typical total wedding spend. Sola flowers aren’t that expensive in the first place, and when you factor in their years of use, you can see how the savings add up.
Good for the Earth
The sola plant is one of the fastest-growing plants in the world. Stands regenerate quickly after harvest, and as such, it’s considered a highly renewable resource. And, of course, since the flowers are made from wood, they’re biodegradable.
Unfortunately, the floriculture industry (the farmers a florist gets their flowers from) is nowhere near as green. For example, flying fresh roses from South to North America generates over 300,000 metric tons of CO2 in a single year.
By choosing sola roses, you are choosing to meet your floral needs sustainably.
Allergy-Friendly
Over 5 million Americans have allergic rhinitis, more commonly known as hay fever.
If you’re one of these pollen allergy sufferers, you might be dreading holding your wedding bouquet. Likewise, a groom with allergies won’t be keen on wearing a floral boutonnière.
However, if you craft these matrimonial essentials from sola wood flowers, you don’t need to worry about running noses, sneezing, or weepy eyes ruining your big day. You can even choose to scent your sola roses if you still want a fragrance.
Creative Ways to Use Sola Roses
Making a sola bouquet for an event or your home is easy. Stem your flowers, then follow one of the numerous tutorials on YouTube to learn how to arrange them. Really, the sky’s the limit when it comes to color and bloom combinations.
Sola roses also make whimsical home decor. If you’re into DIY crafting, you can make sola flower wall hangings, centerpieces, holiday wreaths, Christmas tree ornaments… Basically anything you’d typically use real flowers for.
Sola roses also make unique diffusers due to their natural ability to soak up essential oils. Look for sola roses with a cotton wick.
Integrate sola roses into your day-to-day or event fashion by making flower crowns. Sola flowers are very lightweight, so a sola flower crown won’t ruin an up-dos or cause headaches.
Crafting even has proven health benefits, so you can think of the time you spend working with handmade flowers as a form of art therapy.
Sola Roses: Perfect for Any Occasion
Sola roses are among the most popular sola flowers available today. And it’s no wonder: they’re available in bud form or full bloom.
Craft an entire bouquet of various-sized rosebuds or mix them in with other flower species to create a one-of-a-kind floral arrangement.
Whether you’re a hobbyist, buying sola flowers for events, or just looking for something to brighten your home, Luv Solar Flowers has you covered. We have many sola roses and other flowers and foliage to select from.
Shop our sola flowers collection today.