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Save a Bit of Spring

It’s easy to press and save spring flowers.

boy picking flowers

What you need:

flowers collected outside
paper towels
newspaper
large, heavy books, such as phone directories
clear contact paper (optional)

What you do:

Pick a bouquet. On your next walk, gather a handful of spring flowers to press. If you’re not in your own yard, be sure you have permission to collect the blossoms. Flowers that press nicely are violets, bluebells, and creeping phlox. Many trees and shrubs also flower in early spring. Flowers with fewer petals will press better than those with a lot of petals.
Put the blossoms in the paper. Lay the flowers on one half of a paper towel sheet. Fold the other half of the paper towel over the flowers. Place the folded towel inside a section of newspaper that is several pages thick. (The newspaper will absorb moisture from the flowers, preventing it from seeping through to the pages of the book you’ll use for pressing.)
Book ’em. Sandwich the flowers in folded papers between the pages of a heavy book. Set more books on top. The extra weight will help flatten your flowers even more.
Change the paper daily. After a day, open the book and remove the papers. Carefully transfer the flowers to a new piece of paper towel and fresh newspaper. Then put them back in the book for another day. Repeat this step again the next day. After three days, the flowers should be dry and flat.
Pretty pressings. You can arrange and glue the pressed flowers on a piece of paper to make nature art, a bookmark, or a card. They can be used to decorate most anything. You may want to cover your finished design with clear contact paper. It will protect the flowers and keep them from falling apart.

Activity: Susan Goodman