Roses are hard to press whole for a few reasons:
The petals can break up when you try to open them up flat.
The thick layers of petals hold too much moisture to be absorbed quickly enough.
Certain varieties are simply not suitable for pressing with conventional methods.
While not all roses can be pressed whole, many can, and the method in this post will help you.
One scope note: This method works on so-called “modern roses,” which are the most common and you’ll find in grocery store bunches and typical wedding bouquets.
“Modern” roses generally press well whole.
“Garden roses” are different and not suitable for this method. Their thinner petals and dense layers often require deconstruction or other advanced methods I’ll cover in future posts.
Garden roses may be pressed whole using a more advanced technique, which I'll cover in a future post.
In this post, you’ll learn:
How to prep a rose so it does not brown at the center
The timing of each step
Which colors hold and which lighten
Let’s dig in!
Step 1: Soften the rose on the counter
Snip the stem to a couple of inches and set the rose on the counter. No water.
Softening takes a couple of hours to 2 full days, depending on the variety.
Thick, leathery petals need at least 24 hours and often 48.
Ready when… you hold the rose by the stem and it’s floppy. The petals feel almost like silk and turn outward without resisting you. If they push back when you reflex them, give it more time.
Gone too far when… the rose wrinkles and dries out. Wrinkled but still mostly soft will press fine. Crunchy is too late in most cases. A rose left too long darkens or may develop brown spots.
Step 2: Thin it to 3 rows
Remove the bruised, cracked or browned petals first. They are almost always on the outside. Do not dig deeper than you need to.
Then open the rose from the inside out with your fingers.
A rose that has been softened feels like silk: it’s soft and very pliable.
Now take petals off from the innermost row outward, one row at a time, until 2-3 rows are left (the outermost layers).
Starting with the outermost row, gently reflex the petals. Generally, 2-3 rows are enough.
Order matters. Pull petals at random, and the structure breaks; then the rest falls apart in your hands. One row at a time, always from the middle out.
Three is the number (for white roses, you may want to do two or even one row). More than three rows, browning shows up at the petal bases and around the center.
Holding the stem, carefully pull the cluster of center petals to thin out and reveal the center of the rose.
(If you want the full picture on that, I have written about why pressed flowers turn brown.)
Step 3: Trim the stem
Cut the stem as close to the base of the flower as you can without cutting into the flower itself.
After you remove the petals, snip the stem close to the base, careful not to break up the hip.
The rose needs to sit completely flat with nothing propping it up.
Step 4: The microwave round
Aim for roughly 60% dry. You are pulling the bulk of the moisture out fast, before it sits in those layers and turns.
With a microwave press: I use a Microfleur.
Without one: build the sandwich yourself from smooth microfiber cloths. They pull moisture out of the flower and carry it to the outer layer, so the rose dries faster.
Fold 2 cloths as the base
Set the rose in the middle, face up
Top with 2 more folded cloths
Add a flat-bottomed plate wide enough to cover the stack
Weight it with heavy ceramic bowls, around a pound in total
No water or metal!
I prefer to place the rose face up in the microwave press to have more control over the petals. Gentle smooth them out.
Run the rounds at 70 to 80% power, never higher:
Round 1: 30 seconds
Round 2: 20 to 30 seconds
Every round after: 20 to 25 seconds
Most roses take 2 to 3 rounds.
Open the press between every round and wipe the plates dry. Give it about 30 seconds before going again, whether you are using a Microfleur or the cloth sandwich.
Wipe both plates between every round. Check the rose to make sure it’s cool enough for the next round. It usually takes less than a minute to cool off.
Stop when the petal edges just start to dry. The rose should come out damp and limp. Crisping edges mean one round too many, and they will burn next.
Gently wipe the back of the rose and let it cool a couple of minutes before it goes into the press.
Step 5: Into the wooden press for 9 to 10 days
Arrange your layers as usual, cardboard included. I use blotting paper.
After 3 rounds in the microwave, the rose is ready for the press.
Use far more paper than seems necessary for the first 48 hours: 6 sheets of blotting paper on each side of the flower, or at least 12 per side with copy paper.
Tighten the press as hard as you can. I stand on mine!
Date it and set a phone reminder for 48 hours.
Day 2: change the paper; the rose should be around 80% dry.
Day 5: check and paper change if it feels damp
Day 9 to 10: fully pressed
At the 48-hour change, look closely at the center. Browning that was not there when the rose went in means tighten harder and change the paper again the next day.
What has already browned is permanent, and fast action stops it spreading further.
Done means stiff and papery. The petals should not flex or bend at all. A rose is too thick to judge by feel the way you would with something delicate.
Press the leaves and greenery alongside it. They skip the microwave and go straight into the press.
When it’s fully pressed and dry, the petals are very smooth, stiff and paper, and the center is very flat and firm,
Spray roses press differently
Spray roses soften in a few hours rather than days, and they do not need thinning. Press them in their fuller form.
Do clean out the small creased petals clustered around the center. You want a clean, open middle, because folded petals will not look good once they are flat.
Several fit in the press at once. Add microwave rounds when you do, since more flowers means more moisture.
What to expect from different colors
Some colors come through beautifully. Others lighten. That is chemistry, and no trick prevents it.
Hold well but will darken:
Red, particularly the deep reds. The strongest performers of the lot.
Dark purple, for the same reason. Darker going in means better holding.
Orange, which does very well.
Deeper yellows, meaning a rich yellow rather than an orange one. These keep color noticeably better than pale yellows.
Shift:
Dark pink presses well and still changes.
Lighter yellows settle into a soft buttery shade.
Light pink, pale and white lighten, mostly during the microwave round.
Pressing petal by petal with a diligent paper-changing routine holds pastel color better. Even then, pressed flowers fade naturally over time. That is true of every method.
Experiment with the lighter roses anyway. The results may surprise you!
More on the pale end of the spectrum in my guide to pressing white flowers.
Go deeper
My complete guide to microwave pressing: the full method behind step 4, including timings for other flowers
Why pressed flowers turn brown: the causes of browning across every flower, not just roses
How to press flowers with a traditional flower press: the wooden press setup used in step 5
Have you tried pressing a rose whole, or have you been taking them apart petal by petal? Tell me in the comments which varieties have given you the most trouble.
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