I have a bridesmaid bouquet from my sister-in-law's wedding. It's calla lilies. They have this almost velor-type nap to them. The problem is that we had a couple of flies get in the house every once in a while last summer and they loved that bouquet. Now there are little brown spots all over the beautiful white flowers.
I've been reluctant to use water on them because of the material of the flowers and of course, I don't want to throw them away. If water won't hurt them, I'll do it, but I just want to be sure.
Put some fine ground cornmeal in a paper bag. Insert the lilies flowers down in the bag. Tie off the top of the bag to the stems. Gently shake several times. Try with one flower first. Have you considered vaccumming with a nylon over the hose end? Do it as gently as possible with suction bearly working on the flower. You might also try a lint roller. I have one that is not a tape covered one You roll it over the item and the lint just clings to it until you wash it off.
Put some fine ground cornmeal in a paper bag. Insert the lilies flowers down in the bag. Tie off the top of the bag to the stems. Gently shake several times. Try with one flower first. Have you considered vaccumming with a nylon over the hose end? Do it as gently as possible with suction bearly working on the flower. Do you have a close up photo of the flowers before they got dirty? I would get a good copy blown up and hang it and say a fond farewell to the real thing.
Try a tooth pick to see if you can lift the spots off and then a Q-tip to carefully clean the spots. There are cleaners for artificial flowers. But like a previous comment, you can put them in a bag with salt or cornstarch and shake well. Then clean residue off with a clean soft paintbrush. Give it a try to save them. Sentimental items are important in our lives, too.
If you are thinking of taking the first hint of tossing them, at least try to wash them first. Maybe take one flower and try it. I have heard of putting them in a paper bag with salt and shake them to clean artificial flowers.
I think you can enjoy the wonderful memories of the wedding and the quality time that you spent with the faux flowers, and finally allow them a resting place in the trash. Stop by the garden store this next week and purchase a real calla-lily plant to make yourself feel better.
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