Pressed flower resin jewellery
CostLow
Includes: Resin, moulds or bezels, dried flowers, mixing cups, a UV lamp or curing time Example: A two-part epoxy resin kit around €15-25, and silicone pendant moulds a few euros
What it is
The flower matters more than the resin, and most beginners learn that backwards. They obsess over mixing ratios and bubbles, then watch a white rose turn the colour of weak tea inside an otherwise flawless pendant. Which blooms survive the casting, and which betray you, is the real skill of pressed flower resin jewellery, and it is mostly botany rather than chemistry.
Some flowers are loyal. Ferns, pansies, violas, larkspur, and most yellow and blue blooms hold their colour for years once sealed. Others fade fast: reds drift toward brown, purples can grey out, and white petals often turn translucent or tea-stained within weeks, because the pale pigment was never very stable to begin with. Experienced makers keep a private list of reliable species, and the loyal ones tend to be naturally thin and flat, which is no coincidence. The thinner the petal, the less moisture there is to brown and the cleaner the bloom reads through the clear coat.
How you dry the flower decides what shape of jewellery it suits. A flat press in a heavy book or a wooden flower press, two to three weeks under steady weight, gives the paper-thin profile that sits neatly in a slim pendant or stud earring. Silica gel works differently. The fine white desiccant cradles a bloom and pulls its moisture out in three or four days while holding the petals open, so a buttercup or a tiny rosebud keeps its rounded form for a chunkier bezel. One method flattens, the other preserves volume, and choosing wrong is why a domed flower cracks flat or a pressed one looks starved of depth.
The pull of it is sentiment you can wear. A sprig from a wedding bouquet, a weed from a first date's park, a herb from a grandmother's garden, each becomes a small worn keepsake long after the plant itself would have gone to compost.
How it works
Start with the plant calendar, not the resin kit, because the best pieces are decided in the garden weeks ahead. Gather blooms mid-morning once the dew has burned off, picking fresh, unblemished, naturally flat or thin flowers like violas, cosmos, ferns, and small daisies. A bloom that is already bruised or damp only gets worse under weight, so selection at this stage quietly sets the ceiling on everything that follows.
Match the drying method to the form you want. For flat-backed pendants and stud earrings, layer petals between sheets of absorbent paper inside a heavy book or a screw-down flower press, swap the paper after the first few days to wick away moisture, and leave it a fortnight or more. For rounded blooms destined for a deeper bezel, bury them gently in silica gel in a sealed tub for three to four days. Whichever route, the flower must come out crisp and bone-dry, since any leftover moisture browns and rots once sealed.
Plan the composition before a drop is poured. Lay your dried flowers out on the closed mould or bezel and shuffle them like a tiny collage, thinking about which face shows and how light will pass through translucent petals. A single fern frond often reads better than a crowded cluster. Build colour contrast deliberately, a yellow viola against a dark-tinted backing, so the bloom does not vanish into the resin.
Once the arrangement works, cast it in thin layers, settling the flower face-down for a flat-backed pendant. Demould only when fully cured, then sand and buff the edges smooth.
Benefits
What you need
Here's what to gather before you start. The essentials are marked.
Some links below are affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, trylii.com earns from qualifying purchases, at no extra cost to you.
FAQs
Trapped moisture, almost every time. If a flower is not completely dried before encasing, the residual water causes it to brown and decay inside the cured resin within days. Press flat flowers for two to three weeks or dry fuller blooms in silica gel for several days until they are bone dry and papery. Choosing pigment-stable flowers also helps, since some blooms, especially white ones, discolour even when dried correctly.
It depends on the piece. Two-part epoxy gives deep, hard, glassy results and suits larger pendants and thicker items, but must be mixed in exact ratios and cures over a day or more. UV resin cures in minutes under a lamp and is ideal for thin, small pieces like stud earrings, though it works best in shallow layers. Many makers keep both, using epoxy for depth and UV resin for quick small items.
Pour in thin layers and apply brief heat to the surface. Bubbles rise from both the resin and the flower, so passing a heat gun or a lighter flame quickly across the top moments after pouring thins the resin enough for the air to escape and pop. Keep the heat moving and brief to avoid scorching. Mixing epoxy slowly rather than whipping it, and warming the resin slightly, also reduces bubbles from the start.
Yes, with sensible precautions, but it is not to be done casually. Uncured epoxy and UV resin give off fumes and can irritate or sensitise skin, so always work in a well-ventilated space, wear nitrile gloves, and avoid skin contact with the liquid resin. Mix and cure away from food areas and keep it out of reach of children and pets. Once fully cured, the resin is inert and safe to wear, but the liquid stage demands care.
You might also like
CRAFT
Polymer clay earrings
CRAFT
Beaded jewellery
CRAFT
Custom pillow designs
CRAFT
Fabric button jewellery
CRAFT
Leather tooling and stamping
CRAFT
Bookbinding
CRAFT
Punch needle art
CRAFT
Soap making
CRAFT
Corn husk dolls
CRAFT
Fuzzy pipe cleaner creations
HOME
Setting up a recycling station
CRAFT
Tatting lace
See all in Craft & Creative Hands