A few flowers can become a bookmark, a card or a small display, but the method depends on what you want to keep. Pressing makes a flat specimen. Hanging flowers to air dry aims to keep more of their three-dimensional shape.
Choose flowers from your own permitted supply, with an adult checking the plant’s identity and suitability for handling. Do not use unknown or irritating plants, and keep materials away from mouths and pets. This is a decorative craft, not a way to prepare edible flowers.
Choose a method
| Your aim | Try | What to expect |
|---|---|---|
| A flat card or bookmark | Pressing small, fairly flat flowers or individual petals | Flattened shapes; colours may change. |
| A small bunch for a dry display | Air drying suitable stems | More shape retained, but flowers become fragile. |
| A large, fleshy flower head | Start with a different, simpler specimen | Thick wet material is harder to dry evenly. |
Press flowers between paper
Arrange dry-surfaced flowers or petals between absorbent paper, with space between them. Sandwich the paper between flat boards or inside a book protected against moisture and staining, then apply steady weight. Keep the stack somewhere dry and stable where it cannot fall on a child.
Check carefully after a few days; replace damp paper without disturbing fragile petals unnecessarily. Continue until the specimens are fully dry rather than working to a fixed deadline. Thickness and room conditions affect the time. The RHS school pressing resource explains plant pressing and related classroom projects.
Air-dry a small bunch
Remove lower leaves, gather a small loose bunch and secure the stems. Hang it upside down in a dry, well-ventilated place away from strong light. Keep the bunch small enough for air to move around it.
The RHS guide to drying flowers suggests suitable examples such as statice and yarrow, and gives around two to three weeks as a guide for air drying, with some material taking longer. Remove mouldy specimens and reconsider the drying location if moisture is a problem.
Keep an observation record
Before starting, draw one specimen or take a photograph. Give it a short label so you can match it to its record. Write down the method, start date and where you placed it. At each check, note a change rather than simply writing “done”.
- Specimen and date: __________
- Method used: __________
- Starting colour and shape: __________
- First check: what changed? __________
- Final check: dry, damp or uncertain? __________
- What would we change next time? __________
For a fair comparison, use similar flowers from the same bunch and change just one thing, such as pressing versus hanging. Predict which method will preserve the shape better and which will make a flatter result. The aim is to notice differences, not to produce a perfect sample.
Why have the flowers turned brown or gone mouldy?
Some colour change is part of drying; a dried flower need not match its fresh colour. Photograph the original so children can compare. A mouldy or persistently damp specimen should not be sealed into a card or frame. Discard it and try a thinner specimen or a drier, better-ventilated setup.
Petals can also crumble when handled after drying. Move them gently and plan the arrangement on scrap paper first. If a favourite flower breaks, individual petals may still suggest a pattern, but do not use any material showing mould.
Make something small
For a bookmark, arrange fully dried pressed petals on a strip of card and attach them with a small amount of suitable craft glue. Let the glue dry before using it. For a greeting card, leave a clear space for a short message and put the specimen’s name or date on the back.
Display dried material away from damp and strong sunlight. Keep it as a record of an afternoon together rather than expecting it to last unchanged forever. Find more family craft activities and printables.
