I bought some nice dried flowers to decorate the living room, but after two weeks they're already losing color and turning kind of gray. I put them in a corner where the sun doesn't hit directly, but it doesn't seem to help. Is there any way to preserve them better or is this just normal?
Two weeks is pretty quick, so maybe there's something you can adjust. Dried flowers do fade over time, that's true, but strong light is the biggest enemy - if it's in a spot without direct sun and it's still turning gray, humidity might be ruining everything, because really humid air makes the colors fade faster. Try moving it to a drier spot in your house, away from windows and sources of moisture like the kitchen or bathroom, and see if it gets better over the next little while.
The main thing is really air humidity. Dried flowers absorb moisture from the environment and that makes the faded color show up even faster - it's like when wet fabric ends up with duller color. If your room is humid (near the kitchen, bathroom, or on rainier days), the bouquet will lose color pretty quickly. Try putting it somewhere drier in your house, away from moisture sources, and if you want it to last longer with color, keep it in a sealed glass container or a bag with silica gel.
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