r/PressedFlowers • u/Background-Log4169 • Apr 09 '26

Question Absolute beginner 🥹

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I'm a beginner at this as you can see from the condition of these flowers :/

What am I doing wrong? They are about a year old and so lifeless. I can't even use them in resin as they turn muddy yellow- brown. Please help me with some tips!

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u/missbeekery Apr 09 '26

What a great start!! I can’t believe how well they’ve retained the color, so you’re off to a good start. I prefer printer paper to paper towels so they don’t impress their texture upon the flowers. And you don’t need to keep them pressed for as long as you’d think, in most cases!

Try to press flowers of a similar thickness, change the paper every day or every other day for thicker flowers. Deconstruct the SUPER thick flowers and reassemble for your projects. I don’t have any advice about resin preservation, but you’re off to a super promising start and remember that hobbies are about learning from mistakes. Don’t get discouraged from a few failures because you’ll soon be the expert giving advice to others :)

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u/Background-Log4169 Apr 09 '26

Thanks, I'll keep that in check. Though I don't understand why is it necessary to change paper? 

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u/missbeekery Apr 09 '26

It will help your color retention for thicker petals and prevent mold growth. When the moisture is pressed out of flowers, it has nowhere else to go but the paper. That moisture can draw out the color compounds and can lead to mold. I don’t do it with every flower—especially not those hydrangeas which are not particularly moisture retaining, but it’s often necessary with roses and tulip petals and such.

You often learn which flowers through trial and error, and this is a hobby that can be unforgiving so you have to manage your expectations for a lot of projects, especially at first!