I’ve dreamed of growing flowers that can be cut and used in floral arrangements. Unfortunately, my cats prevent me from having nice things including houseplants, cut flowers and nice furniture. The tuxedo cat is Simon (the destroyer of floral arrangements) and the tabby cat is Kimber (the destroyer of houseplants).
Years ago my mother-in-law gave me her flower press which consists of two wooden boards held together with screws and wing nuts. It contains layers of paper to absorb the moisture in the plants. I refreshed the old paper and replaced it with cardboard, construction paper, paper towels and parchment paper. I positioned the fresh flowers between the paper towel and parchment paper to both prevent sticking and absorb moisture. Of course you don’t need a flower press, a heavy book will do. You can speed up the process by using the microwave (YouTube tutorial here: https://youtu.be/IIb879Uhda8) however you will not be able to get them as flat as the flower press which is an important detail for some projects. I marked my calendar and tightened the screws after a week and removed them after two weeks. Your results may vary depending on the types of flowers and conditions in your home.
I was most impressed by the roses which flattened out and dried into cute little button shapes. The petunias surprised me by starting out red and ending up purple!? The pressed petunias were translucent, delicate and painfully thin. I was disappointed that the nasturtium lost some of the painterly effect seen in the leaves prior to drying. The small coreopsis petals hung together well and dried beautifully.
I decided that the best way to store these delicate beauties would be under sheet protectors. I filled the sleeves with card stock and gently placed the dried flowers, leaves and ferns into the sleeve. The static under the plastic was frustrating for placement but was just what I needed to keep them from falling out. Now I have a binder to help me store and collect the delicate specimens. Next, I will use Modge Podge to fasten them to greeting cards or position them for framing.
My bedroom has floral Audubon prints and I imagine framed pressed flowers will be a welcome addition. I hope that preserving the garden in this way will reminded me of the warm summer months when we are deep in a Michigan winter.
The Pirate Pieman 
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