Pressing flowers is a wonderful way to preserve your favorite spring and summer blooms and making your own homemade flower press is so easy! It’s a great way to create custom sizes and you can also decorate the outside of them. I used brass hardware for ours but you can also use stainless steel or zinc which is more economical. Hardware can be purchased at your local hardware store, or I’ve provided links below for the brass hardware that I used. I’m using hardwood leftover from another project that I’ve cut down to size. We use pressed flowers for so many crafts, such as these pressed flower notebooks and beeswax candles in recycled jars.

Materials:

– 2 pieces of wood, cut to the same size – I’m using maple hardwood that I’ve cut into two 9″ x 11″ pieces
– 4x – 1/4″ flat head machine screws , a minimum of 3″ long – or as an alternative you can use carriage bolts like these
– 4x – 1/4″ wing nuts
– 4x – 1/4″ washers
– printer paper
– cardboard

Tools:

– power drill
– 1/4″ drill bit
– 15/32″ forstner bit – optional but recommended to countersink your screws. 15/32″ is what the head of the screws I am using measures– make sure you measure your actual screws if you aren’t using the ones I linked above. The size of the countersink hole doesn’t need to be exact but it does needs to be at least the same diameter or larger.

Instructions for making a wood flower press

Step 1: How to prepare your wood

Use a pencil to make a mark in each corner that is 1″ away from the edge. Use a 1/4″ drill bit to drill all four holes. Use the first board as a guide to drill the holes in the second piece of wood. If you have clamps, you can also clamp the boards together and drill them at the same time. It is important to keep your drill straight when creating the holes and to make sure that the holes line up correctly when they are stacked together.

Step 2: How to countersink the bottom screws (optional)

To countersink your screws so that the bottom of the press is flush on the bottom, use a 1/2″ forstner bit to drill approximately half the depth of the hole. This will sink the head of your screw into the base of the wood so that the press will be flat on the bottom.

Step 3: Choosing your paper

The best paper to use for a flower press is one that will absorb moisture well and does not have texture. Printer paper works very well and is the type of paper I’d recommend. I don’t recommend using parchment or wax paper since it does not absorb moisture well, nor do I recommend using paper towels as the texture will leave imprints on your flowers. The paper can be reused for quite some time– just make sure that you let it dry in between uses.

Step 4: How to cut your paper and cardboard

Trim several sheets of paper and cardboard to the correct size so that they fit nicely inside of where the screws are, usually about 1-2″ smaller than the overall dimension of your wood boards. Notch each corner at an angle to accommodate the screws.

How to assemble and use your flower press

To assemble the press, insert your screws facing upwards into the bottom piece of wood. Place a piece of the cardboard on top of the wood followed by a piece of paper. Lay your flowers on top of the paper in a single layer. Make sure that you do not overlap any of the petals otherwise they will stick together. Place a second sheet of paper on top of the flowers, followed by another piece of cardboard. Add additional layers as desired. When you’re done adding layers, add a final piece of cardboard on top followed by the second board on the very top. To tighten your press, place a washer on each screw and secure with the wing nuts.

Tips for pressing flowers

Harvest your flowers right before you’re ready to press them to minimize wilting and make sure that your flowers are free of moisture before you add them to your press to prevent molding. A good time to collect blooms is late morning after morning dew has dried. Smaller, flatter flowers like pansies and violas are quick and easy to press, while thicker flowers like roses and marigolds will take longer and may benefit from changing out the paper every couple of days. Some flowers are more ideal for pressing than others and will retain their color better– the fun part is experimenting! The process for pressing flowers can take anywhere from 1-3 weeks depending on the size and thickness of your flowers.