You all loved my Instagram reel for the DIY Hammered Flowers. Hammered flowers are such an easy, simple, and quick way to create something new and fun. I knew I should post about another flower preserving technique!
If you love the look of pressed flowers, but you don’t want to wait four weeks to see results, this technique is for you! The drying process is sped up by applying a dry heat to the flowers.
Flowers that have more flat blooms, like violets and daisies, are the easiest to work with for this iron drying method. If you have a thicker flower, like roses or orchids, you can try cutting them in half first.
How good your ironed flower looks depends on how good your flower looks to begin with! Make sure that you pick blooms that are vibrant and free of blemishes. It is also best to pick them later in the day when they are dry from morning dew.
I found that when heat is applied to green leaves it turns them brown almost immediately. If you want to preserve green leaves, I suggest pressing them instead! Red leaves, like the ones off of my Japanese Maple did work well though!
I also suggest staying away from any flowers that are thick and hold a lot of moisture. I had a marigold bloom fall off of one of my plants. I gave it a test with this ironing method and it turned out horribly. Just a big soggy blob.
When in doubt, just give it a try! If the flower doesn’t look great, you can always toss it in the compost.
Turn on your iron onto low and make sure that the steam function is turned off. You’re trying to remove moisture, not add it!
While your iron is heating up, take one of your flowers and peel off any remaining green stems or leaves and any part of the flower that may hold extra moisture (like the base of the flower).
Place your flower on a piece of parchment paper and gently press down on the flower to make it lay a little more flat. This is the time to gently rearrange petals and make sure everything is in place!
Lay another piece of parchment paper on top of your flower and place the iron on top of the flower. Keep the iron in place for 20 seconds or so and then pick it up and take a look at your flower. After the first iron, it may look a little wilty. We still have some work to do!
Continue to place your iron on the flower for intervals of 20 seconds. You don’t want to move the iron back and forth, this may crinkle your flower! Once your flower begins to look a little dry and crispy on the outside of its petals, you are good to go!
Your flower will still need to dry for a few days after you’ve ironed them. The ironing technique helps remove the majority of moisture, but they will still need some time for their final crisp.
These florals look really cute in frames. Sometimes a simple background, just like a white piece of paper, or even just clear glass, make the flowers really pop!
A little while ago I saw this idea on Pinterest: pressing flowers with an iron. Super handy when you don’t want to wait a few weeks until they are all done and dry. I decided to try it myself. And I must say: it works pretty well! Not every flower is perfect for this and some flowers needed a day or two drying after being ironed. But if you have the right flower, they are absolutely beautiful!
Learn how to make pressed flowers with an iron after the jump. . .
1. Put the flowers and leaves on your greaseproof paper. Leave some room in between so they won’t touch each other after ironing.
2. Put another piece of greaseproof paper on top of the flowers. Preheat your iron on the highest temperature and place it on top of the flowers. Don’t move the iron! Just leave it for ten seconds, remove it, and place it somewhere else to repeat the process. You might hear your flowers sizzle. This means the moisture is coming out. As long as they are sizzling, the flowers aren’t completely dry.
3. Let the flowers cool in-between the greaseproof paper for a few minutes.
4. Remove the top layer of the paper. In this picture you can see that not every flower is pressed right with this methode. The pink flowers were a complete disaster. Just try some different flowers and you will find what works and what doesn’t.
If you want to learn more, please visit our website Tool Holder Definition, Types of Tool Holders in Cnc, Collets for Milling Machine.