Pressed Flowers – A celebration of…

Queen Victoria used to press flowers from important events – what a clever way to preserve a happy memory. I bet flicking through her scrap book would evoke all the colours and sounds of those special days and take her back there immediately to revel in the memory.

I had a go at pressing a hellebore last year, straight from the garden into a metal-edged glass frame and hung it on the wall, in a lazy experiment. I’m pleased to report that it has now dried completely and the colour has stayed vivid. I made sure I didn’t put it in any direct sunlight and that it was as dry as possible before shutting it in. It looks beautiful and serves to remind me of that gorgeous summer’s day, sitting with my parents in their garden admiring their flowers.

If you would like to take less of a risk and press some blooms properly, you could get a pressing book (although a stack of paper works just as well) and simply select some flowers you’d like to press. If you are seeking wild flowers, make sure they are responsibly sourced and at first, it’s easiest to start with flat flowers.

Simply lay the flowers down between the sheets and make sure you adjust them to show their best side! You can add a square of kitchen paper either side to extract any moisture. Once they’re safely between the pages, put a weight on top and leave them undisturbed for a week or two.

The delicate pressed flowers can stay in the pressing book, with annotations and a date if desired. Alternatively you can glue a stem onto a plain background to make a striking gift card or do as I did and pop some in frames to add instant colour and joy to a wall. This ancient art form is a way of preserving the joy of nature all year round and who doesn’t love that idea.