(2) Use flowers. They are already well designed. After pressing and drying them, attach them to your card to add pleasure and taste.​—See box.

[Box on page 26, 27]

A Distinctive Decoration

Decorating with pressed flowers can enhance your cards. This is a simple, inexpensive means of giving your cards a distinctive style. You need very little equipment.

Collecting the Flowers

◻ Make sure you have permission to pick the flowers you want.

◻ Avoid picking in the rain.

◻ Do not pick old flowers or leaves.

◻ Do not waste flowers.

Some flowers do not press well if they are fleshy (bluebells, lilies, orchids) or have an awkward shape (daffodils, lilac, large roses, thistles).

Pressing the Flowers

◻ Place flowers between sheets of blotting paper clamped between two sheets of plywood. Adding a few layers of newspaper will help absorb the moisture. Tighten the clamps daily as the flowers dry.

◻ Wait for at least a week before opening the press.

◻ Briefly check to see that the flowers are properly pressed, and if needed, reposition on dry paper.

◻ Close the press tightly again, and leave it in a warm, dry place for two or three weeks more before removing the flowers.

Mounting the Flowers

◻ Use a minimum of adhesive.

◻ Handle the dried flowers with care, perhaps using a pair of tweezers.