The Pressing of Wild Florets

 

The Suffolk countryside is blooming at the moment with wild beauties which scatter the fields and hedgerows with unexpected colours. I wanted to capture the true details of the beauties before they past and is was to late. However, a photograph or painting/drawing just didn't seem to cut it for me, and then I remembered the art of flower pressing. 

 

A few of the flowers which I picked and put in a vase before pressing to enjoy them a little longer before they were hidden away between the pages of books.

 To press the flowers, I followed the instructions in a book I found of my mothers, by Sylvia Pepper. Having only pressed flowers as a child, I recall completely forgetting which books I used to press them in. They must still be in my parents bookshelves somewhere waiting to be found! 

I found the process of pressing the flowers allowed me to study their beauty in even more detail and I found it quite satisfying. It was also rather exciting not knowing how they will turn out! Although I must be patient, as Sylvia writes,  it can take around 4-6 weeks to press flowers properly.

A pile of books on my bedroom floor, the result of my flower pressing session: