Would you like to have on your wall some pressed flower decorations that look like this:

Of course you would!

Creating craft projects and works of art with pressed flowers and leaves is a wonderfully absorbing hobby. Of course, the creative part comes at the end. Before that, you need to follow a plan of action and arm yourself with patience!

Step 1: Collect leaves and flowers.

Step 2: Carefully remove any water that may adhere to your specimen with absorbent tissue paper.

Step 3: Transfer the plants into a flower press or a large notebook (you may weigh down the latter with some heavy books). Take care to position every petal nicely, because the way they go in is the way they will come out.

Step 4: Sit back and wait two to four weeks for the plants to dry. The drying time depends on the plant size.

Step 4: Remove the dried plants. A pair of tweezers will come in handy for the delicate items.

Step 5: Now comes the fun part! Use your pressed flowers and leaves to complete a craft project, or a work of art. Your imagination is the only limit. Here are only some suggestions:

• Frame your pressed plants, by themselves or in combination with photos, and hang on a wall.
• Decoupage a vase, a candle, or a lampshade with pressed leaves and flowers.
• Design your own pressed flowers gift tags, birthday cards, and coasters.
• Apply small pressed flowers to your nails for some original dried flowers manicure.
• Scientifically-minded may want to simply make a herbarium (a pressed plants album).

Whatever you decide to do with your pressed leaves and flowers, always be sensitive to the need to preserve and protect your environment. After all, the conservation aspects take precedence over arts and crafts projects! Reach for that pretty flower only if you know that the plant in question is not endangered and always take the smallest sample possible. Even better, harvest only the plants you have raised from seeds! It will take longer, but you will have the benefit of a clear conscience.