DIY Tutorial – 5 tips on How to Press Flowers

Why to press flowers:

Flowers are a beautiful gift of nature which don’t stay same for long . One way to preserve your favorite flowers is by pressing them . It’s a simple process and I am sharing 5 basic tips on how to press flowers . These easy tips will help you avoid the common mistakes and get great results .

Pressed flowers find their use in a number of DIY decor projects . They are very useful as embellishments in various art items. You can use these as framed art , make greeting /invitation cards or add them to decor items like candles ,vase or wall plates .

Items needed:

1. Flower /petals/leaves for pressing
2. Book or Newspaper
3. Heavy object (to place on top of book )
4. Blotting paper (Optional) .

5 tips for pressing flowers:

1. Press Flowers at Earliest 

If possible ,carry a small notebook which can hold the picked flowers for the time being. Flowers wilt and wrinkle easily if you put them in hand or directly inside a bag .

After reaching home, put the flowers between clean sheets of paper or inside a book. Take a heavy book like a dictionary or telephone book . Choose a book that you don’t mind getting damaged as the moisture from flowers can spoil the pages.

You can even put the flowers between pages of an old newspaper . Add a couple of heavy books or any heavy object on top for adding weight.

Choose a dry place as humidity doesnt let the flower dry well and leads to mold. Keep flowers away from direct light as sunlight affects the color of the flowers.

2. Selecting the Flowers  

To avoid mold , pick flower/leaves which are free from any moisture, dirt and soil  . Preferably, pick the flowers in daytime to avoid the morning dew.  

3. Decide the Final Look

Pressed flowers lay flat which gives them a distinct look from fresh flowers . Depending on the petals arrangement of flowers being sparse or dense the end result after pressing varies. You can take just the petals if you don’t like the look of full flowers after pressing .

Press the same flower sideways and face down to see the change in the outcome. Gently adjust the petals  with your hand or tweezers to set in a desired shape.

4. Add Greenery to Flowers

Along with flowers ,most of leaves and grass look very beautiful after pressing . Adding a couple of leaves is a great way to compliment flowers and give a natural look to the arrangement.

5. Pressing Duration

Most flowers take 2-4 weeks to dry fully .Initially you can open the book to check the flowers for signs of moisture. Be patient and don’t disturb the arrangement frequently.

Useful Tips:

1. Flowers are fragile and get brittle after pressing and need to be handled gently . You can also use tweezers while working with pressed flowers .
2. Pressed flowers fade with time with exposure to direct sunlight . You can seal them to preserve them a little longer . The simplest option for protecting your projects is to apply Mod Podge or watered down PVA glue over them.

I hope that you will try to press different kind of flowers and find the tips in the article useful. If you are looking projects that use pressed flowers ,do check my DIY posts.

If you have more questions,feel free to ask them in comments below .