Pressing flowers

“As I began the cleanup process from our party, I noticed how truly beautiful the flowers were and how much they added to the party. I decided what better time than now to try out my flower press and truly try to preserve something from such a joyous event. I knew the first step in preserving flowers was ensuring that as much moisture is removed from the flower to prevent wilting and browning. I clipped the flowers at the stem and put them in my press. I made sure the flowers were arranged on cardstock paper and placed another piece of cardstock on top, followed by a piece of cardboard. Once the paper was placed into the press, I tightened the bolts on the four corners and left it alone for approximately two weeks, monitoring the process every few days.”

“I have pressed flowers since I was big enough to pick them. I’ve got old diaries from my teenage years filled with scrappy buttercups and unidentifiable brownish foliage which meant something at some point and adds a decorative edge to the inky scrawl. I’ve kept on pressing, and last year my sons bought me a press as an alternative to filling every book in the house with squished flowers. But things can go wrong; rot seeps in, once beautiful bloom flatten to a brown mass and vibrant colour is frequently lost. So I signed up to a Jam Jar workshop to learn stuff.”