How to press flowers at home

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Preserving fresh flowers by drying them yourself is wonderfully rewarding. Once you know how to press flowers, you can create beautiful cards or artwork with your blooms. Whether you want to know how to press flowers for framing or how to make pressed flowers for greetings cards, we’ll show you the easy way to achieve great results.

How to press fresh flowers to make them last

The key to creating beautiful pressed flowers is to work quickly once you’ve chosen your blooms. Although it will take weeks for them to be ready, the speed with which you start the drying process is essential. The sooner you dry them out once you’ve picked them, the more likely it is that you’ll prevent the petals turning brown.

The easiest, best way to press flowers

When thinking about how to press flowers at home, you might assume you need some fancy equipment, but the great news is you don’t! All you need are some heavy books and some absorbent kitchen paper.

If your paper of choice has textures on it, you might also end up with some interesting patterns being imprinted on the petals. Intrigued? Here’s how to press flowers in a book.

How to press flowers in a book step by step

Follow these step-by-step instructions to learn how to make pressed flowers:

1. First, find a heavy book. Choose an old one that you won’t mind getting a little wrinkled on the inside (the moisture it absorbs can damage the pages).
2. Take two sheets of kitchen paper and place your flower between them, then place this “flower sandwich” inside the book.
   

   Tip

   Choose a kitchen paper that’s super strong and absorbent, like Plenty The Original One.

3. Carefully close the book, and place additional heavy books on top of it, to help press down the pages surrounding the flower.
4. Every few days, change your sheets of kitchen paper for fresh ones.
5. After a couple of weeks, carefully remove the completely dried flower with your fingers or tweezers.

The best way to press flowers quickly

If you want results faster, you can speed up the process by using another item you already own: an iron. Here’s how to press fresh flowers using an iron:

1. Place the flower between two pieces of absorbent paper.
2. Place a heavy book on top of the paper, to flatten the flower, then lift it off after a few minutes.
3. Heat the iron to a low temperature (without any water in it), and press it on the top sheet of paper for 10 to 15 seconds – just press, don’t move it around.
4. Wait for the paper to cool, and repeat the pressing process.
5. Check if the flower has dried by carefully lifting the top sheet of paper.

How to display pressed flowers

Once you’ve created dried flowers, you might wonder what to do with them. There are various options, one of which is to stick them to a card to give to a loved one. You can also create your own floral artwork by placing them inside frames. It doesn’t matter if you want to know how to press flowers for framing or card making – the process is just the same.

Now you know how to press flowers at home, you can start creating your floral masterpieces to capture those pretty petals for years to come. Happy pressing!