Carol Duvall, host of HGTV's The Carol Duvall Show, presents tips on pressing flowers. Part of the fun is in collecting flowers for pressing. Look for blooms with flat centers, such as pansies, and don't forget leaves and ferns. Commercial flower presses are available--for example, one from Nature's Pressed that you can take with you while you collect flowers. The easiest way to press flowers is with a heavy phonebook. Place the flowers between two paper towels and place between the pages. Add weight by putting bricks on top of the phonebook. The paper towels absorb moisture from the flowers and prevent ink from the phonebook from rubbing off onto the flowers. Check the paper often, and change it if it has become saturated with moisture. Don't pick flowers early in the morning when they're moist with dew. Wait until they dry out. It'll take 2 to 3 weeks for the flowers to be completely dried and pressed. Here are some suggested projects to make with dried flowers: Place pressed flowers on note paper, and cover them with a piece of clear Con-TactB. paper or wide transparent tape (figure A). Use a mixture of 1 part white glue and 1 part water to glue pressed flowers to stationery. Brush the glue mixture on the back of each flower, place it on the paper, and brush more of the glue mixture over the top. The glue will disappear when it dries (figure B). To make an interesting textured sleeve for note cards, use inexpensive paper from a colored writing tablet. Place a sheet of the paper on a piece of cardboard. Position pressed flowers as desired. Put a piece of waxed paper cut larger than the writing paper over the paper and the pressed flowers. Cover the waxed paper with a piece of clear plastic wrap. Gently slide out the sheet of writing paper. Place a paper towel over the clear plastic wrap, and press with a warm iron. The plastic wrap and waxed paper will be laminated together and to the flowers. Cut to fit the note card, and glue to the card or leave it loose around the card as a decorative sleeve (figure C). Candles may be decorated with pressed flowers too. Purchase a pillar candle. Melt paraffin in a double boiler. If the wax is smoking, it's too hot. Apply a small amount of white glue to pressed flowers, and glue them to the candle. Use a paintbrush to apply a wax coating to the flowers and the side of the candle (figure D).
RESOURCES :
Flower presses
Sunstone, Inc.
Sunstone Inc.
Cooperstown, NY 13326
Phone: 607-547-8207
Fax: 607-547-8338
Dried, Pressed Flowers
Nature's Pressed
Website: www.naturespressed.com
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