How to make your own pressed leaf botanical art

Tap into the biophilia trend and make your own pressed leaf botanical artwork to adorn your walls

Pressed leaf art © Katie Lee

Published: April 17, 2024 at 2:50 pm

Bring nature indoors with this easy-to-make botanical artwork, using beautiful fresh leaves. Ferns are particularly good for this project, but oak, ivy, linden, rowan and plane leaves will also look dramatic and beautiful when pressed.

The same pressing process will work for flowers too, so play around with adding blooms to your piece for a burst of colour. Pressed leaves and flowers will fade if hung in direct sunlight so take this into consideration when deciding where to display them.

How to make a pressed leaf artwork

You will need

Selection of fresh fern leaves
Flower press (or heavy books)
Blotting paper picture frame
Spray mount mounting board
Craft knife ruler

Step 1

Gather your leaves ready for pressing. Flat leaves will achieve the best results. Ferns are particularly good for this project, but oak, ivy, linden, rowan and plane leaves will also look dramatic and beautiful when pressed.

Step 2

To begin, place your leaves onto a piece of blotting paper, making sure they have enough room around them to flatten out. You may need several pieces of paper.

Step 3

Lay another piece of blotting paper on top and place in the flower press or under a stack of heavy books for around five weeks. Alternatively, you can use an iron on a low heat setting to press onto the paper to speed up the process and create pressed leaves in an afternoon. If you decide to use an iron, make sure you don’t push the iron across the paper as it will damage and tear the leaves. Simply press and lift the iron across the paper as many times as needed.

Step 4

Use a craft knife and ruler to cut a piece of mounting board to fit your frame.

Step 5

Once they’re pressed, carefully spray the back of the leaves with a light coat of spray mount and gently apply them to your chosen mounting board. Press lightly to ensure they’re firmly adhered. Place the mounted leaves inside the picture frame and hang in your desired position.

Craft guide courtesy of Sophie Hill: @sophiesgaff. Photography Katie Lee