How to Make Pressed Flower Stationery
How to Make Pressed Flower Stationery
Pick delicate greenery and flowers and press them between the pages of a thick book. First, sandwich the plantmaterial between two pieces of blotting paper. (Coffee filtersmake the best blotters, but you can also use tissue paper ornewsprint.) The blotting paper absorbs any moisture in the plant,and lets it dry out faster. It also protects the pages of yourbook! After placing the flowers in the pressing book, stack otherbooks on top of it for additional weight. Most flowers and leavesdry out in a week or two, but the thicker the plant, the more time they'll take to dry.
Some ideal plants forpressing are ferns, grasses, clover, honesty, Queen Anne'slace, hydrangea sprigs, pansies, buttercups, small daisies, sweetpea, and rose petals. Stay away from leaves or flowers that arefleshy or have bulky centers; they contain too much moisture andcan't be pressed flat. (An exception is the thick-leafed plantknown as lamb's tongue (or ears); it dries nicely and retains itsvelvety texture when pressed.)
To make pressed-flowerstationary, take a sheet of good quality paper and spread avery thin layer of mucilage or library paste on top, in themiddle of the sheet. With tweezers, pick up the pressed flowersand leaves and carefully place them on the glue. (Think aheadabout how you want to arrange them, because once they're on theglue, they can't be moved again.) Let the glue dry before using.
Note:If you want your stationary to fit into a hand-made envelope,you'll need to cut the stationary in half, width-wise. This willleave you with two sheets of paper, each 8 1/2 inches long by 51/2 inches wide.
Our question: Have you grown a garden or made other things using pressed flowers? Let us know by sending us your answer now!
The book has directions for making hand-made envelopes and planting your own garden!
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