The Ancient Art of Pressed Flowers

Where It All Began

About five years ago, I was watching a Netflix series, Anne with an E. Anne loved to use books to press flowers, and I was totally inspired by this old tradition that began in 16th-century Japan as a craft known as Oshibana. Originally practiced by samurai, it served as a way to promote patience, concentration, and a connection to nature. However, the foundational practice of pressing botanicals dates back even further, to ancient Egypt.

How I Press Flowers

There are several ways to press flowers. Essentially, what I do is cut fresh flowers and press them in between books. I leave them there to slowly dry for weeks, and, surprise! You open the book to see beautiful, dried flowers that you can use in art and crafts. I love this method as it combines my love for books, flowers, and traditions.

Fresh flowers will dry nicer, cutting them and pressing them right away make a difference. Adding weight is also an important part of the process, I add more books to increase the weight.

The Beauty of Waiting

Pressing flowers is a nice, simple practice that takes time and waiting, but is so rewarding. In a world of instant gratification, having to wait weeks to get your dried flowers seems way too long. Of course, there are products out there that now cut this process into mere minutes: you place the flowers in the device and into the microwave, and that's it, your dried flowers are ready to go.

Savoring the Present

But why are we robbing ourselves of the experience of waiting and anticipation? What happened to savoring, the deliberate practice of fully experiencing a positive moment as it happens. This world is constantly asking us to go faster; and as we do, we forget to be present. We lose touch with enjoying the present moment because we are constantly asking what is next, and we are constantly maximizing production and speeding up processes. That is exactly what I want to avoid with my art: mass production and a lack of presence and individuality.

"He has made everything beautiful in its time." — Ecclesiastes 3:11

I love reading and although I do have my special books just for pressing flowers, as you can see in my image above; I do also use the books that I am reading to press flowers that I find along the way. I have obtained beautiful results that way too.

A Simple Reminder

Let the art of pressing flowers be a good reminder of staying present, of perhaps cutting the Prime subscription and waiting for shipping, and enjoying the waiting! It will never be more money, the winning lotto ticket, or the title that brings fulfillment and joy in life.

Here is a very simple reminder: slow down. We are not machines, we are humans, meant to create, connect, be kind. While productivity is important, a good balance is a must to be able to live a more fulfilling life.

An example of bookmarks that I have created with dried flowers. Manipulating dried flowers is challenging, they are very delicate and prone to break - you have to have patience and use the right tools. The end-result makes it all worth it. If you want me to make you a bookmark, feel free to reach out.

These are mini-wooden-canvas (4 by 4 inches), the art is made mainly with watercolors but I made sure to add tiny little pressed flowers to add an extra touch. If you want your own little art, feel free to reach out.