Leaf Pressing

To begin your leaf pressing adventure, look for specimens without tears or insect damage. Collect attractive leaves off the ground or directly from the tree.

A family outing through the autumn woods, garden, or park provide all the materials you need to craft a one of a kind gift or seasonal decoration.

Bring back some leaves from a family vacation or a special day out to add to your scrapbook pages.

Frame your pressed leaves for a thrifty way to refresh a wall or room.

Before gathering leaves be sure to obtain permission for the landowner, never gather leaves within a nation park or forest area that have not fallen to the ground on their own.

Another word of caution before heading out on your gathering adventure: learn to identify poisong ivy, which is colorful in fall.

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Make an Oak Leaf Wreath

• Clusters of fresh oak leaves, plus seasonal elements such as rose hips and pinecones and ribbons

• Wreath base of wire, vine or straw

• Tools: floral wire, waxed green floral twine, a wire cutter, and scissors

• Attach a loop of floral wire to the wreath form for hanging

• Secure leaf clusters to the form by wrapping twine around stems with an overlapping motion, adding new clusters to conceal twine with each passing

• Accent with wired clusters of rose hips, pinecones, or tiny bottle gourds

• Add ribbon

How to Make a Flower Press for Leaf Pressing

Things you’ll need:

• 2 pieces of scrap plywood or other thin wood • 10 to 15 pieces of cardboard squares

• 20 to 26 pieces of watercolor or blotting paper

• 4 wing nuts with washers

• 4 4-inch screws

• Drill with bit to match

• Cut both pieces of wood to the desired size. Consider the size of the leaves or plants you want to press in your flower press. 12 by 12 is a manageable size to work with.

• Drill four holes in each corner of the wood pieces. Use the same size bit as the screws you intend to use.

• Trim the cardboard down to size so that it will fit between the pieces of wood. The corners will need to be trimmed at an angle to make room for the screws to go through the wood pieces only.

• Repeat the same trimming process with the blotting paper.

• Alternate the layers of cardboard and blotting paper and stack between the wood pieces as follows: cardboard, 2 pieces of blotting paper and cardboard. Continue this pattern for as many layers as you like.

• Collect flowers or leaves to be pressed and place them between the two pieces of blotting paper and cardboard. Continue layering.

• Slide the screw up from the underside of the press and slide the washer and wing nut on the exposed screw. Tighten the wing nut onto the pieces of wood. (This tightening is the process that presses the flowers.)

Your now ready for leaf pressing!

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