flower press

A Traditional Flower Press

my flower press

Several years ago my husband made me a flower press that was large enough to get in lots and lots of flowers and leaves from my garden. Every gardener should have a flower press to preserve the beauty of their garden flowers.

Why not make a flower press and give it to your gardening friend as a gift. It will really be appreciated.

Cut two pieces of ply wood, or any other wood - 17 inches by 14 inches. Drill holes in each of the four corners. Put the two pieces of wood on top of each other to make the top and bottom of the press. Put a 4 or 5 inch bolt with a wing nut on it though each corner. These enable you to separate the top and bottom of the press.

Collect pieces of cardboard and sheets of unused blank newsprint to fit inside the press. They should be slightly smaller than the press to fit inside. Pick your flowers and lay out on a sheet of newsprint, add another sheet on top and put between two pieces of cardboard and slot inside the flower press. Tighten the screws and leave until dry.

Various flowers take longer to dry than others. Flowers that press well are pansies, violets, impatience and coreopsis. Don't forget to press a variety of leaves as well. I can add many layers of cardboard and paper inside my press. I check the garden daily for new items to press.

I decorated the top of my flower press with an ivy stencil.

You can make many crafts from the dried flowers and leaves
- decorate candles by gluing pressed flowers on and adding a bow
-create your own notepaper and envelopes, you can cover the flowers with mactac
-make a bookmark by gluing a pressed flower onto a piece of tag board, laminating will make it last longer
-make a pressed flower arrangement and mount inside a picture frame to make a lovely picture to hang

A Microwave Flower Press

Cut two pieces of thick cardboard - about 10 inches square - but the actual size will depend on the dimensions of your microwave. You also need sheets of newsprint the same size, and wide elastic bands. You can't fit the larger leaves or many flowers into this press, so you might want to have several of them so that you can do lots of flowers and leaves one right after the other.

Arrange the flowers or leaves on the newsprint, add another sheet of newsprint, and a piece of cardboard top and bottom. Place elastic bands around all edges - use at least 4. When you take the press out of the microwave, you have to let it cool before opening and using again.

A tip for when they come out of the microwave is to put them under some heavy books while they cool. You need to set the microwave for around 2 minutes on medium to "cook" the flowers. :) You will probably have to experiment a few times as all microwaves heat differently. Once the press is totally cool, you can carefully check the flowers or leaves. If they do not appear to be completely dry, put them back in for another minute or so. Then proceed with the same cooling down time.

This is a good book with directions for using your microwave for pressed flowers. It includes directions and many projects you can make.

craftygardener.ca

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Several years ago my husband made me a flower press that was large enough to get in lots and lots of flowers and leaves from my garden. Every gardener should have a flower press to preserve the beauty of their garden flowers. Why not make a flower press and give it to your gardening friend as a gift. It will really be appreciated.
	Cut two pieces of ply wood, or any other wood - 17 inches by 14 inches. Drill holes in each of the four corners. Put the two pieces of wood on top of each other to make the top and bottom of the press. Put a 4 or 5 inch bolt with a wing nut on it though each corner. These enable you to separate the top and bottom of the press.
Collect pieces of cardboard and sheets of unused blank newsprint to fit inside the press. They should be slightly smaller than the press to fit inside. Pick your flowers and lay out on a sheet of newsprint, add another sheet on top and put between two pieces of cardboard and slot inside the flower press. Tighten the screws and leave until dry. Various flowers take longer to dry than others. Flowers that press well are pansies, violets, impatience and coreopsis. Don't forget to press a variety of leaves as well. I can add many layers of cardboard and paper inside my press. I check the garden daily for new items to press. I decorated the top of my flower press with an ivy stencil.