DIY preserve greenery

I looked into this and spoke with my florist about preserving magnolia leaves. I intend to decorate the front staircase of my reception with garland the Thursday before. I wanted stuff that could be put up days ahead.

The florist said that the glycerine turns leaves brown. He suggested I buy Christmas fake greenery garland and wrap it with ribbon and stick dried hydrangeas in it. Instead of the Christmas garland I bought faux boxwood garland from OTC. It looks ok and will be fine when covered with ribbon and tulle and hydrangeas.

All of our decor and bouquets were made out of preserved flowers and greenery. Other then dried roses that made up my bouquet, we bought everything from save-on-crafts.com and I'm pretty sure I remember seeing preserved boxwood.