How to Press Flowers: 4 Easy Methods That Actually Work

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How to press flowers for the first time, I ruined every single one.

I picked a fistful of wildflowers on a walk near my place in Cornelius, slapped them between two paper towels, stacked my biggest cookbook on top, and forgot about them for a month. What I pulled out looked like something Sailor dragged in from the yard. Brown, soggy, and sad.

So let me save you that. Learning how to press flowers is easy once somebody tells you the parts nobody tells you. I am going to tell you all of it.

Why Press Flowers at All

Because flowers do not last, and some of them you want to keep. A bloom from your garden. A flower from a bouquet someone gave you for a reason. Press it and you get to hold onto it for years instead of days.

Once they are pressed, you can frame them, set them in resin, or turn them into jewelry. I gather all of those ideas in my main pressed flower art post. But all of it starts with the pressing, so start here.

When to Pick Flowers for Pressing

This is the part nobody told me. Pick your flowers at their peak, not their end. Not fully blown open, not starting to wilt. The day they look their very best is the day to press them.

And pick them dry. Morning dew or rain trapped in the petals is what turns a pressed flower brown. Wait until the sun has dried them off.

The 4 Ways to Press Flowers

There is no single right way. There is the free way, the best way, and the fast way. Here are all four so you can pick what suits you.

Method 1: The Heavy Book (free)

The one I botched, done right. Lay your flower between two sheets of plain paper or parchment, not a paper towel, the texture prints onto the petals. Set that inside a heavy book, stack more books on top, and wait three to four weeks.

It costs you nothing. It is slow, and the results are good but not perfect. A fine place to start tonight with what you already own.

Method 2: The Wooden Flower Press (best results)

When you are ready to do this properly, a wooden press is the answer. You layer flowers between the boards, screw it down tight, and the even pressure gives you the flattest, most beautiful results of any method.

This is the one I use now. If you think you will press flowers more than once or twice, just buy them. You will not regret it.

Method 3: The Microwave Press (fastest)

Here is the one for the impatient among us, and I count myself in that group. A microwave flower press gives you a fully pressed, dried flower in a couple of minutes instead of a month.

You pop your flower in, microwave it in short bursts, and it comes out flat and dry and ready to use the same day. For a beginner who wants a win today, this is what I would buy first.

Method 4: The Iron (fast, in your laundry room)

No press, no patience, no problem. Flatten your flower in a book overnight first so it holds its shape. Then lay it between two sheets of parchment, set your iron on low with no steam, and press down for fifteen seconds at a time until it is dry.

Watch it. An iron that is too hot will scorch a petal in a heartbeat.

One more thing that helps with every method. A pair of fine-tip tweezers. Pressed petals are delicate, and fingers are clumsy, and these save you a lot of torn flowers.

Best Flowers to Press for Beginners

Start with flat, thin flowers. They press easily and rarely fail. Pansies, violets, cosmos, larkspur, ferns, and any wildflower. Queen Anne’s lace presses like a dream.

What gives beginners trouble is thick, bulky flowers. Roses, peonies, anything with a fat center.

What to Do With Thick Flowers

Do not try to flatten a rose whole. Either pull it apart and press the petals one at a time, or skip pressing altogether and dry it in silica gel instead. Silica keeps the flower’s full shape while it dries, which a press cannot do.

The Mistakes That Turn Flowers Brown

Learn from mine. Paper towel texture printed on the petals. Flowers picked wet. Flowers picked past their prime. And impatience, lifting the press to peek before they are done, which wrinkles them.

Avoid those four, and your flowers come out in the soft, jewel-toned color you are hoping for.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long does it take to press flowers? A book or wooden press takes three to four weeks. A microwave press takes a couple of minutes. The iron method takes a few minutes once the flower has sat in a book overnight.

Why did my pressed flowers turn brown? Usually, because they were picked wet, picked past their peak, or pressed against a paper towel. Pick dry flowers at their best and use smooth paper.

Can you press flowers from a bouquet? Yes. Whatever is in a vase in your kitchen will work. You do not need a garden to start.

Do pressed flowers last forever? They last for years. Some colors soften over time, and keeping them out of all-day direct sun helps them hold up.

What is the easiest method for a complete beginner? The heavy book if you want it tonight. The microwave press if you want a finished flower today. Both are beginner-proof.

When your flowers are pressed and ready, here is what to make with them. My full list of pressed flower art projects has twelve ideas, from framed prints to resin jewelry.