It's Easy to Preserve Your Bouquet—Learn How to Press Roses 3 Easy Ways (2024)

If there’s one thing better than fresh roses, it’s preserving their beauty by pressing them. Pressed roses can be used in fun DIY projects, such as cards or bookmarks. Not to mention their sentimental value.

You can also press roses you received from a loved one or special occasions, allowing you to capture the moment in time and cherish the memories over and over. And the best part? Pressing roses is a beginner-friendly project that can be done in various ways.

Here’s everything you need to know about how to press roses, as told by two floral experts.

How to Press Rose Petals

Pressing just rose petals is simple. Remove petals from the rose head carefully, one by one.Then, place the petals on the paper in rows, making sure each petal doesn’t overlap or touch.

Press the petals using your preferred method. When using a flower press or book, check in on your progress over two to five weeks, until they’re dry and fully pressed. If you want rose petals to lay completely flat, make small cuts on each side of the bottom of the petal before pressing, Flynn says.

How to Press Rose Heads and Stems

Cut off the stems leaving only the rose heads, or use the whole rose. Trim the stem and remove leaves, as needed. If you keep some leaves, make sure they don’t touch each other or the rose head.

Remove exterior petals from the rose heads, at least one layer. Place the rose heads face down onto the paper. If pressing multiple rose heads at once, make sure they are spread out and don’t touch each other.

Press the rose heads using your preferred method. When using a flower press or book, check in on your progress over two to five weeks, until they’re dry and fully pressed.

How to Press Roses With a Flower Press

If you press roses and flowers frequently, invest in a traditional flower press, which consists of two pieces of wood, with layers of paper and cardboard in between, that are pressed together by tightening the wingnuts.

1. Add a piece of cardboard to the base of the flower press and layer three to five pieces of paper on top.How many pieces of paper you need depends on the flowers. Thicker flowers need more paper, while thinner flowers or petals need less.
2. Place roses on top of the paper and line them in a row until the paper is full. You can do so by individual petals, with rose heads, or with rose heads and stems.
3. Add another three to five pieces of paper on top, and layer another piece of cardboard on top of the paper.
4. Repeat steps two to five until your flower is complete or you reach the top of the press.
5. Add the top cover of the press and secure it in place with the wingnuts. Be sure to tighten the wingnuts as much as possible.
6. Store the press in a warm and dry area with proper air circulation.
7. Check on each flower layer every three days and change paper if necessary, until the roses are fully pressed and dry. It can take anywhere between two to six weeks.
8. Once dry, remove the flowers with a painter’s palette knife or tweezers. Store them in an acid-free box until you’re ready to use them.

How to Press Roses With a Book

Using a book is a beginner-friendly way to press roses. It works just as well as a traditional flower press, Synod says. All you need are multiple (preferably larger and heavy) books and paper.

1. Open up the book and line it with paper.
2. Place roses on the paper spread out and not touching each other. If the book is large enough, you can turn to about one inch’s worth of pages and repeat steps one and two until the book is full.
3. Put the book in a warm and dry space with air circulation.
4. Weigh down the book by stacking additional books on top of it or another heavy weight.
5. In three days, return to the flower pages and swap out the paper with dry ones, if needed.
6. Periodically check in on your flowers every few days for two to six weeks until the roses are fully pressed and dry.

How to Press Roses With a Microwave Press

If you’re looking for a quick way to press roses, consider a microwave press. This method extracts moisture quickly, and it’s easy to do, according to Synod. It’s also great for smaller projects, like greeting cards or bookmarks, Flynn says.

1. Open your microwave press.
2. Open up your roses and remove some petals from the inside. Doing so will help flatten roses while in the press.
3. Lay the roses face down on the proper layer of the microwave press. Then, clip in the sides.
4. Microwave in intervals of 15 to 30 seconds until the roses are completely dried.

Additional Tips for Pressing Roses

• According to both Flynn and Synod, some rose colors press better than others. Deep colors press best, such as red, purple, toffee, orange, and yellow. Lighter colors, like white roses, tend to lose their color more.
• To help preserve colors in lighter roses, Synod recommends deconstructing the whole flower (petal by petal) while pressing.
• Fresher flowers tend to press better, according to Flynn.
• When reconstructing roses after pressing, Synod recommends starting with five petals and connecting them. Then, work inward and stack three petals on top for dimension. Use Mod Podge to seal it all together.