Diary of a novice artist: pressing flowers, preserving plants.

Hello, I’m Brittny.
I’m the one who creates every terra print garment and I’m here to answer the question…
how do I press plants?

So you’ve decided to have some fun in the sun and make some cyanotype art. You’ve got your sensitized canvas, you know the sun will be out this afternoon, you’re ready with your cold water bath after it’s imprinted… but the plants you picked to print with are all wilted now! The crisp, intricate designs are shriveled and floppy and wilted and…
“THIS ISN’T GOING TO WORK!” you scream to yourself, disappointed and confused.
Don’t worry, you’re not alone. I’ve been there. I’ve made all the mistakes you can make and I’m here to share with you the best ways that I have found to capture the intricacies of those delicate patterns for years to come.

You don’t need a degree in herbalism or have a diploma from design school to create wonderful works of art. Just a little bit of excitement and patience is all it really takes.
First and foremost, you’re going to want to collect some fresh plants. Local farmers markets are a great place to start. Your local florist, grocery store, flower farm or plant store work too! (Let’s support our local businesses).

If you want to collect straight from nature - my personal favorite way - you should check out this free printable checklist to ethical wild-harvesting before you go:

• Some tips for collecting plants for pressing:
  - select plants with no dark spots, no wilting and no blemishes
  - if wild-harvesting, collect in the flowers when they are free of water droplets or dew. Mid day or evening works great.
  - try for plants that aren’t too thick, they take much longer to dry and can end up leaving a dark black silhouette instead of a detailed layered pattern.
  - single layer flowers/leaves work best.
  - experiment pressing plants in different stages of growth!
  
  Once you have responsibly collected your flora, you’re going to want to press it right away. I have a few types of flower presses (like this one) (or a larger option here), but if you have a big book you can slide a flower in-between the pages - as I’m sure we all have done at one point or another in our childhoods - it works great! Otherwise a few extra pieces of cardboard, paper and something heavy like a cinder block or a heavy rock… that works too. You don’t need anything fancy or expensive to make this work.
  
  Lay your flowers/plants on paper (any paper that can absorb moisture works), place another piece of paper on top. Then place the sandwiched plants on top of cardboard, add a piece to the top, lay on your heavy object, or place into the press and crank down. Voila! You’re on your way to having preserved plants that you can use again and again for your prints.
  
  You’re going to want your plants to fully dry before removing them from the press and this can take anywhere from a few days to a few weeks. Otherwise they can become moldy if they are still damp once removed and stored. How long it will take? Well, this depends on how thick the plant matter is and it also on how dry the room is that they’re stored in.
  Pick somewhere cool with some air flow if possible.
  
  While drying, plants will lose their water content, so if you’re using a press make sure to check back periodically to tighten the clamps and make sure the pressure is maintained.
  
  Once your flora and foliage are completely dry, it’s time to remove them and store them for your artwork! If the petals of the plants you’ve chosen are particularly thick, you might want to consider using tweezers to lift them and place them into a dry location out of the sunlight for later use. Paper folders or plastic containers with a lid work great for storage. I like to separate the different species of plants in long thin containers by sheets of paper and stack to store.

Supply List:

• Plants to press

• Cardboard

• A lot of scrap paper

• A large, heavy stack of books/cinder block or rock

• OR a Flower Press

• Tweezers (optional for removal )

• Storage containers

Enjoy your pressing and please share what you create! I love getting feedback and seeing others play with plants and get into nature brings my heart joy.
Tag Terra_prints on IG and let’s show the world your creations!

Briskly she went
through the fields,

yet paused
for the honeysuckle
or the rose,
her dark head

and her wet nose
touching
the face
of every one

with its petals
of silk
with its fragrance
rising

Luke: a Mary Oliver poem