Summer Wildflowers: How to Make a Display Box

by Rachel Hammond on May 9th, 2019 | 1 Comment »

Summertime is for treasure hunting. Shells, wildflowers, rocks, and leaves are like precious jewels in the hands of an inquisitive kid, especially when it comes from a special vacation. We just spent a week in northern Minnesota visiting my grandparents. My kids logged plenty of time up at their cabin digging around in the shallows for just the right rocks and scouring the hillside for just the perfect wildflowers.

We were able to take the rocks home in a bucket, but the wildflowers were a bit trickier to preserve. So we decided to make a display box to keep them as a special memory of our visit. We used our flowers, but this little box could be used for any item that could be folded into a paper accordion, including pressed leaves, plants, or even thin pieces of shell.

DIY Display Box

What You'll Need

Wildflowers
Jewelry box
White cardstock
Map printout of vacation location
Mod Podge or Collage Pauge
Foam brush
White glue

How To Do It

1. First, press the flowers. No flower press? Grab a thick book. On our trip, we gently arranged the stems between the pages of an old book and left it for a few days on a bookshelf at the cabin.

2. After several days, carefully remove the pressed flowers and pick out the best stems. Out of the eight we pressed, I chose my five favorite. Take the foam insert from the jewelry box and trace enough rows of squares to fit all of your blooms. I traced two rows of squares and cut out both rows.

3. Glue the rows of squares together and fold them into a long accordion strip.

4. Take the flowers and gently attach them to each panel of the accordion with the decoupage glue. Apply another thin layer of glue on top of the flowers to keep them in place and write the name of each flower at the bottom of each panel.

5. While the flowers are drying, it is time to decorate the box. I printed a Google image of where my grandparent's lake is located and "wrapped" the lid of the box, but you could also use an actual map or another printed image from where the treasures were found.

6. The last step is to attach your accordion to the inside of the box, either the bottom or to the foam insert if you want it to sit a bit higher. The box is now complete, and your little wildflower gatherer has an adorable, permanent (and compact) way to show off their summer treasures!

What summer crafts are you doing with your children?

Rachel Hammond is a contributing editor at Mom Colored Glasses, a website that provides inspiration and information for moms everywhere as we look at the world through mom colored glasses. Regular topics include recipes, green living, DIY, health, app and book reviews, family life, adoption, and more. When she isn't writing, Rachel loves to spend time with her family, read, write, and run!