You use the newspaper between the blotter paper for pressing flowers. The order is corregated cardboard, blotter paper, newspaper, the plant, newspaper, blotter paper, corregated cardboard, etc....The blotter paper is not meant to touch the plants but to provide a smooth surface between the layers of corregated cardboard. The cardboard probvides the airflow needed to dry the contents of the press. If your press did not come with cardboard then get some boxes and cut some to size. I do not use paper towels next to any plant pressing. They can and do leave imprints on pressings. Newspaper ink is now a soy based product and does not smear as easily as it used to and have never had ink rub off on any plant pressing. I buy additional blotter paper at the art supply store-just take a blotter with you and they can get something close that is suitable. The sheets are very large (30" x 40"?) so I cut them myself. You can also buy traditional blotters for plant presses at places like Forestry Suppliers or Carolina Biological supply.

I order bags from OmniPak. Order online. You can get all sizes and thickness of bags from them. I ordered 1,000 each of 2 sizes. I got the 1.5 mil. Next I may get 2 mil, but they will be thick. The 1.5 is pretty nice. You order twist ties seperately. I forgot so I got some at another place.

Probably. Same principle that others use with plastic wrap before bag. I don't know which is better. I learned to use freezer paper from my mother. I think it really cuts down freezer burn as well as ice build up (i.e., doesn't build condensation). I don't know if that's because it's paper (plastic inside) or if it's because there's less air than a bag (alone). They sell special tape but we've always used masking tape. And a china marker for writing on it. And no bag. Just the paper. My mother always uses EZFoil pans underneath the food, which go right in the oven, and then are reused. Cut the paper a little bigger than what you're wrapping. Cut some tape first, and stick it to the edge of the counter. Bring the ends together and fold over about an inch together, then roll down, folding over, until it's flat tight. There shouldn't be so much paper as to make a lump; maybe three or four rolls over. If you have too much paper, cut it down first. Tape into place. Smooth down the top at each end and fold the corners up and across, forming a point. Fold that up or down, tight, and tape into place. Label. It's very old fashioned. The advice I got here when I was asking about individual portions was to freeze them in small containers or spaced on a baking sheet, then removed from containers/sheet, wrap with plastic and vacuum seal in a vacuum bag with something like Food Saver. Very fancy. Will probably pay for itself in the long run. But I haven't gotten that far yet... Freezer paper is also great for making stencils, and you can iron it, temporarily, onto paper or fabric to stiffen it, or to draw on cutting patterns so you can cut out. Or iron onto your mesh if you're silk screening. Freezer paper is great stuff. :)

My applique is also Baltimore album type...in fact, I did a whole quilt of Baltimore album blocks, several years ago... a great travel project... but working from the bottom up to the last, top piece, I've not ever had a problem getting things in their proper place. It's always seemed to me that there was a bit of wiggle room. For placement of pieces, I just keep a pic of what it is I'm copying in fabric, to go by...I try to keep the whole process as simple as I can. I can't understand why you couldn't get the glue out, though, unless you weren't using the right glue..... sometimes I get a regular washable glue stick from Joanne's or other quilt shop, if they're on sale...sometimes I use one that is for kids, that says it's washable...and, have never had a problem getting any of it out....and, if you get it in the wrong place, it doesn't matter....a few swipes with a damp washcloth will remove it. I absolutely love the glue to hold a piece in place, and use it for other quilt related projects. I did a grandmother's flower garden, using the plastic templates to make each octagon...to hold the fabric to the template I used the glue stick...then, when the little corners were sewed together, and all the octagons sewed together to make the 'block' I'd pop out the plastic from each little segment...the glue holding all the segs to their fabric made the whole thing rigid,and thus easy to sew the segs together....and the plastic was easily popped out, regardless of the glue. I saw the use of the octagon plastic templates on Simply Quilts, but they seemed expensive when I priced them at a quilt shop...so, I begged from my friends, all their cottage cheese/sr cream, etc lids and cut out my own. It takes a lot of them, but it sure makes making the octagons easy. Needless to say, I love my glue stick!