Saving Spring

Though each season has its own unique attractions, I confess that spring is my favourite. As winter slips away, I wait eagerly for the first snowdrops and narcissi. They arrive in their pale beauty, then are followed by vibrant daffodils, intensely blue grape hyacinths and gaudy and delicious red tulips. At times, this riot of colour overlaps, but soon the reticent shades fade away to be replaced by their more audacious cousins.

I mourn the loss of one, just as I rejoice in the arrival of another. Greedily, I want them all to remain. Recently, I have found a way to do just that. And this particular alchemy requires very little in the way of equipment and more patience than skill.

Pressed for time

Mariia very sweetly bought me a large flower press for Mother’s Day. I’d tried drying flowers as child with the benefit of cartridge paper and encyclopedias with less than perfect results. With the right equipment though, I hoped I could achieve much more.

And to my delight, I was correct.

As I always do before starting a new project, I consulted the great wisdom of YouTube before I began. There I discovered every approach to pressing flowers from the deeply conservative to the crazily quirky. Of course, the latter appealed the most, but I thought best to begin with the basics.

The key to successfully pressing flowers is fairly simple. Ensure that your flowers are dry and in good condition. Naturally flatter blooms are easier to press than their more fulsome relatives (though this can be done). Thick blotting paper is the most efficient paper to use, though cartridge or watercolour paper is good too. Tweezers and scissors are essential.

Like most artistic projects, a process of trial and error is the best way to establish which flowers and leaves respond well to pressing. Ferns are a dream; dandelions a disaster.

The next part is patience. You will have to wait and wait for your results. My press suggested four or five days, but I gave it a full week.

The big reveal

Just as a potter peers anxiously into his kiln to check his pots have survived their firing, I cautiously lifted the first layers of card and paper to see what had made it through drying.

To my great joy, almost everything had remained intact – even the delicate blossoms and miniature narcissi. YouTube had recommended placing the flowers face down and I think this was the key to success.

Using the tweezers, where necessary, I peeled them off the paper and set them down carefully in a shallow box. One must remain calm during this process, as any strong breath or sigh sends them skittering across the table.

Even seeing them assembled higgledy-piggledy in the box seemed wonderful, but I knew that they would now need to be put to use.

Beginner’s luck

Since it was Easter weekend and my husband was keen to do a seasonal project of painting wooden eggs, what better to decorate them with than our spring flowers?

My husband covered the wood using old paints from the shed, I added ribbons and we left them to dry in the spring sunshine. If the weather were more clement, I’d have been tempted to leave them there, but, alas, more rain was imminent.

Once they were fully dry, I directed my husband to where I’d seen a big tree branch (yes, that is the sort of thing I notice) for our fake Easter tree and then we got decorating.

Mariia did some beautiful designs with acrylic pens, as did Jeff. I focused on decoupage and flowers. The results were much better than I’d anticipated and hung on my huge branch look very festive indeed.

Several coats of varnish later, these eggs were ready and protected for some time to come.

Leftovers

Our Easter eggs decorated, I still had plenty of blooms and leaves to use – not least since I’d done a second batch. Not quite ready to try the more ambitious projects, I thought I would make some lovely stationery: cards, envelopes and gift tags.

Their composition took a little thought and some rearranging, but I’m generally pleased with the results.

My flowers are now held in time in all their beauty and I certainly cannot ask for more than that.

But there are more spring flowers to come and seasons too. This little hobby should come with a warning. It is truly addictive and I am constantly looking for flowers that I think will press well. And all those quirky internet projects? Well, I think I shall have to try some.