How to press flowers and botanical finds from the field
What you will need;
- your field press (supplied)
- tweezers (supplied)
- RE-USEABLE blotting paper… allow to dry out completely between pressings (supplied)
- any other type of ‘scrap’ paper… printing paper is perfect (can also be reused… dry out before re-use).
- somewhere to store your flowers when they are ready to come out of the press
TIP: once you have the specimens you want to press, you need to press them as soon asbyou can. Otherwise they will wilt and die.
TIP: in order not to damage any of your delicate treasures, it is best to handle them with a tweezer, both before and after you have pressed them.
1. Open your press. Keep the straps laid under the bottom section of your press… this will make it easier to secure the press when you are done. Place the top section of your press, and all the blotting paper to one side.
2. Place one layer of blotting paper down on top of the bottom section of your press.
3. Carefully place your specimens on top of the blotting paper, allowing enough space between each one.
TIP: lay your flowers face down… that way you have more control over how the petals and leaves are positioned on the paper… you can carefully manoeuvre them with your tweezers, making sure they are as ‘neat’ on the paper as possible.
4. Take 2 sheets of blotting paper and lay them on top of the specimens you have just laid out.
5. Repeat steps 3 and 4 until you have no more flowers to press, or your blotting paper is used up… there should be enough blotting paper for 10 layers of pressing.
6. Take the top section of your press, and lower it onto your pile of paper and flowers.
7. Fasten both straps around the entirety of the press, as tight as they will go. When you check them half an hour later, you should be able to tighten them a bit more (this is because the moisture from your specimens has already started absorbing into the paper.) Keep on doing this to ensure that the contents don’t become loose in the press, until you can get home and are ready to finish off.
At this point, it is imperative that you get more paper in as soon as possible, to make sure that there isn’t too much moisture remaining in the plants or flowers.
8. When you are home, undo your press. Take off the top section of your press and remove the entire block of blotting paper with the specimens inside, and place it next to your press. Now take a few sheets of scrap paper cut to the same size as the blotting paper, and place it down on top of the bottom section of the press.
9. Next take one layer of specimens and place it as it is (the specimens in between 2 layers of blotting paper) on top of the printing paper you have just put onto the press.
10. Repeat steps 8 and 9 until all your blotting paper coated specimens are stacked up on the bottom section of your press. Place the top section of your press on top. Put your full press in a dark corner (make sure you keep your straps somewhere safe), and pop some heavy books or bricks on top. This will ensure that enough pressure is applied to your specimens.
11. This step is by far the most important one of them all. After your flowers have been in the press for 24 hours or so, change the papers. Do this by undoing your press and unstacking everything, keeping the flowers safely in between the layers of blotting paper. Put all the scrap paper to one side to dry, and take fresh or previously used but dry scrap or printing paper, and layer up as before (steps 8 – 10). This will ensure that as much moisture as possible is drawn away from the specimens… increasing the chance of colour retention, and decreasing the likelihood of mould.
12. Depending on the type of flower or plant that you are pressing, your specimens could take anything from 2-6 weeks to be ready. Unless you are pushed for time, I would recommend not checking until the 3 week mark.
TIP: you should know that you flowers are ready to come out of the press if they are completely dry. If they are not, they may be slightly cold or damp to touch. If they are, just pop them back in the press for another week or so.