The Anchored Gift: DIY Pressed Flower Frame

A handmade spring gift rooted in beauty, intention, and love in action.

This post is part of The Anchored Gift, a monthly series of handmade gifts designed to be made with your hands and given with love. If you are new here, you can read all about the heart behind this series here.

This Month’s Anchor

Kindness comes up often in our thoughts, intentions, and occasionally in our plans. But 1 John 3:18 gently reminds us that love is not something we say. It is something we do. It is the meal left on a neighbor’s porch. The card slipped under a door. The small, handmade thing that says without a single spoken word, I saw you. I thought of you. You mattered enough to me that I slowed down and made something, just for you.

“Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth.” — 1 John 3:18

The Heart Behind This Month’s Anchored Gift

There is something quietly magical about a pressed flower. It is a living moment, frozen in time, held between two pieces of glass for someone to admire every single day. It carries the memory of a garden, a morning walk, a season worth keeping. And when you pair it with a truth that anchors, it becomes something far more than décor. It becomes love made visible.

The sweetest part? You can make this for under $10. Look for floating frames on sale or clearance. You can press your own flowers, which keeps the cost low. Many of the items were from my craft supplies. The floating frame was found on clearance at HomeGoods for $6!

Pressed flower frames on Etsy start around $21, and full kits can run as high as $115. But what you will make with your own hands will be every bit as beautiful, and infinitely more meaningful, than anything that comes in a box.

This gift is for anyone. A neighbor is going through quite a hard season. A teacher who has poured herself out all year. A perfect stranger, the Lord puts on your heart. You do not need a reason or an occasion. You just need willing hands and a heart ready to give.

Are you ready to make something beautiful together? Let’s begin.

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What Is a Glass Floating Frame?

Before we gather our supplies, let me show you the simple little frame that makes this whole project possible.

A glass floating frame is made of two pieces of clear glass held together by small clips or a slim frame edge. Because both sides are transparent, whatever you place inside appears to float between the glass, giving your pressed flowers and quote a clean, gallery-worthy presentation that looks far more expensive than it is.

And that last part matters here. Because this gift is not about impressing anyone. It is about reaching someone. The frame is simply the vessel that carries the truth.

You can find small glass floating frames at craft stores, dollar stores, and online. They are a beautiful base for this month’s Anchored Gift.

Pressed Flower Frame With Inspirational Quote

One of the things I love most about this project is that it begins long before you ever pick up a frame. Pressing flowers is an unhurried act. It asks you to slow down, pay attention to what is blooming around you, and save something beautiful before it fades. That is not just good crafting. That is good living.

You have two options here: 1) press your own flowers; or 2) purchase a pre-made sheet of pressed flowers, ferns, and botanicals. Both are completely wonderful. I happened to have some leftover blooms from last year’s birdhouse DIY project, which made this particular frame even more meaningful to me. Nothing goes to waste when you are paying attention.

If you would like to press your own, here are my best tips:

Tips for Pressing Flowers

Choose the Right Flowers: Flat or single-layer blooms press most successfully. Pansies, violas, daisies, Queen Anne’s lace, ferns, Johnny Jump-Ups (wild pansies), and small wildflowers are a few of my favorites. Thick, multi-petaled flowers like roses can be pressed but require more patience.

Press Them Early: Pick your flowers mid-morning after any dew has dried but before the afternoon heat sets in. Fresh, hydrated blooms press with the most vibrant color.

The Book Method: Place your flowers face down between two sheets of parchment paper inside a heavy book. Stack additional heavy books on top and leave undisturbed for two to four weeks. The longer you wait, the more completely dried and flat your flowers will be.

The Microwave Method: For faster results, place flowers between two sheets of parchment paper and microwave at low power in 30-second intervals, checking between intervals. This method can produce pressed flowers in just a few minutes, though colors may be slightly less vibrant than the book method.

Seal Your Colors: Once pressed, store your flowers in a dry, dark place until you are ready to use them. Exposure to direct sunlight over time can fade colors, so keep your finished frame out of harsh direct light to ensure longevity.

A note on store-bought flowers: There is absolutely no shame in purchasing a pre-made sheet of pressed botanicals. The love is not in the pressing. The love is in the giving.

Choosing Your Quote: The Truth That Anchors Your Gift

The quote you choose becomes the soul of your piece. Choose something that carries real weight, a truth the person who receives this will return to again and again, long after the flowers have caught their eye.

This month, I chose one of my all-time favorites:

“I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” — Maya Angelou

It is the perfect companion to this gift because the gift itself is the proof. You slowed down, made something, and thought of someone so much that you pressed a flower and framed a truth just for them. They will never forget how that made them feel.

You can print your quote in a simple, elegant font on cardstock or vellum, or handwrite it for that extra personal touch. Either way, it becomes something uniquely yours and uniquely theirs.

Some of my favorites are listed below:

Faith-rooted Anchor

• “He has made everything beautiful in its time.” — Ecclesiastes 3:11
• “She is clothed with strength and dignity.” — Proverbs 31:25
• “You are altogether beautiful.” — Song of Solomon 4:7

Universal Truth

• “In every walk with nature, one receives far more than he seeks.” — John Muir
• “Wherever life plants you, bloom with grace.” — Author Unknown

Pure Encouragement

• “You make the world more beautiful just by being in it.”
• “Bloom where you are planted.”

The right quote is simply the one that feels most true to the person receiving it. Trust your heart. You know them.

What You Will Need

Gather everything before you begin so your workspace flows smoothly:

• Glass floating frame, 4 x 6 inches or 5 x 7 inches, works beautifully for this project.
• Floral – pressed flowers, ferns, and leaves
• Cardstock or Vellum Paper
• Quote – Your chosen quote printed or handwritten on cardstock or vellum. Vellum gives a dreamy, translucent effect and pairs beautifully with pressed florals. I love using both options.
• Pair of fine-tip tweezers for handling delicate petals
• Matted Mod Podge or Quick Dry Tacky Glue (clear drying glue)
• Artist paintbrush
• Scissors or a paper cutter
• Extras: A soft cloth for cleaning the glass.

Pro Tip: I found my floating glass frame at HomeGoods on clearance for $6. Be sure to watch for sales, check clearance sections, or look at dollar stores and thrift shops for frames.

Pressed Flower Frame Tutorial

1. Clean Your Glass

Carefully disassemble your floating frame and clean both pieces of glass thoroughly with a soft, lint-free cloth. Even small fingerprints will be visible once the frame is assembled, so take your time here. Set the glass pieces aside on a clean, flat surface.

2. Prepare Your Quote

Print or handwrite your chosen quote and trim it to fit your frame. If you are using vellum, its translucency will let your pressed flowers show through the paper beautifully, creating a layered, ethereal effect. Cardstock in white, ivory, or kraft works beautifully as well. Cardstock is sturdier and a little heavier.

Careful not to smudge your quote after printing it. Unfortunately, it was a lesson learned.

3. Arrange Your Design

Before gluing anything, lay out your pressed flowers and quote, and play with the arrangement until you love it. A few design tips to keep in mind: anchor larger blooms first, then fill in with smaller flowers and leaves. Allow some flowers to overlap the edges of your quote for a loose, garden-fresh feel. Leave a little breathing room so each element can be appreciated.

Pro Tip: Take a photo of your arrangement before you start gluing. It is easy to forget exactly where everything was once you start moving pieces around.

4. Glue Your Elements

Using your fine-tip tweezers and a tiny amount of clear Quick Tack craft glue or Mod Podge, carefully secure each pressed flower and leaf in place strategically around the quote. Less glue is always better with delicate pressed florals. Allow everything to dry completely before moving on.

5. The Frame

Use a soft cloth to give the outside of both glass pieces one final wipe to remove fingerprints before displaying.

7. Display, Give, and Let It Speak

Open your frame, gently insert your pressed flower artwork, and center it carefully between the glass. Then step back and look at what your hands just made.

This is love made visible.

It looks beautiful propped on a windowsill, a bookshelf, a nightstand, an office desk, or a bathroom vanity. But before you set it out in your own home, I want to gently ask you, is there someone who needs this more than you do right now?

You do not need a birthday, a holiday, or a housewarming to give this away. The best gifts rarely wait for an occasion.

Because people will forget what you said. They will forget what you did. But they will never forget how you made them feel.

That is the whole heart of The Anchored Gift. Not just something beautiful to make. Something meaningful to give.

Made with your hands. Anchored in love. Given with intention.

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Final Thoughts

There is something deeply grounding about working with flowers, even after they have been pressed and dried. They carry with them the memory of a garden, a walk, a season, a moment worth keeping. When you pair that natural beauty with an anchoring truth, the result is more than just home décor. It is a small, daily reminder of what matters most.

This project costs less than a cup of coffee to make, yet it will bring beauty and meaning to someone’s life every single day. And if you choose to give it away, to anyone, for no reason at all except that they came to mind, you will have done exactly what 1 John 3:18 calls us to. You will have loved not with words, but with your hands. With your time. With intention.

That is the Anchored Gift. That is the whole beautiful point.

Now go find your flowers, find your words, and let them bloom together.

Happy creating, sweet friend.

XOXO,