Why You Should Invest in a Quality Flower Press
If you’ve been enjoying the wonderful process of traditional flower pressing, perhaps using books or a small flower press to preserve your flowers, you may be thinking about upgrading to a larger, professional-level press. Quality flower presses are a financial investment, but oh so worth it - you’ll get beautiful and reliable results if you are using the right equipment and you’ll be able to press a lot more flowers in one go.
A quality flower press will feel sturdy and heavy as it will be made of thick wood (ply-wood is commonly used due to its strength and durability). It should have six bolts to ensure even pressing (look for steel bolts - brass bolts look lovely but they wear out quickly over time as they are a soft metal) and I’d recommend buying a flower press that fits A4 paper; any smaller and you’ll be restricted to only being able to press small flowers, any larger and there’s a risk the wood will bow and the flowers in the centre won’t be fully compressed during the pressing process.
After trying many different flower presses, I was never completely happy with any of them, so I decided to design my own. They really do work brilliantly, and I’ve had lovely feedback from flower-pressers all over the world who now use them. I’m pleased to say that they are available for sale, so you can experience the joy of using a beautiful, tactile flower press too! My Meadow and Thyme flower presses are crafted in small batches here in the UK using gorgeous birch plywood, and sold in collaboration with the Netherwood Estate (the breathtaking location for my Traditional Flower Pressing Masterclasses). The team at Netherwood take care of the sales and shipping of the presses; if you are overseas please email them before placing your order and they’ll let you know the cost for shipping. They do regularly sell out, so if you see that they are in stock I’d recommend buying yours sooner rather than later!
Make sure you are also using the right paper and card for the layers inside your flower press as this can make a huge difference to how well your flowers press - I recommend quality blotting paper and greyboard (you’ll get both included with your Meadow and Thyme flower press). If you are ready to take the next step in your flower pressing journey, using a professional-level flower press will really elevate the look of your pressed flowers - it’s definitely my worst-kept secret for success!
