Preserving a four leaf clover

August 20, 2016 6:13 AM

I have a four leaf clover that is very important to me; I pressed it successfully between the pages of a book. How can I preserve it going forward?

I'd like to wear/carry it or to be able to display it - anything as long as it's protected. I want to be able to interact with it on a daily basis in some way.

I saw this old thread: https://ask.metafilter.com/61541/Keeping-a-four-leaf-clover-forever but the solution seems shaky and I really, really, REALLY can't destroy this clover. I know it sounds silly, but it's so important to me.

(The backstory is that this is a four leaf clover that I found at my newborn nephew's grave. I need to keep it safe. Any option that is potentially dangerous is a non-starter.)

posted by punchtothehead to Grab Bag (8 answers total)

You could encase it in resin as per this tutorial. Practice with some similar clover leafs so that you got the technique down.
posted by Too-Ticky at 6:36 AM on August 20, 2016 [5 favorites]

Or, simpler, though not as nice-looking: you could laminate it between two sheets of laminating foil, then cut it out and put it in a locket or something like that. Again, practice with other clover leafs to see if you like the effect, and repeat until you feel safe.
posted by Too-Ticky at 7:06 AM on August 20, 2016 [1 favorite]

When I want to preserve something like this, I get 2-inch-wide clear strapping tape and put down a piece with the adhesive side up.

I place the object on it, and then put another piece of tape on top, adhesive side down. Press it, run your thumb over it a few times, and then trim it with scissors.

That's what I did to my Medicare card, which was just a thick piece of paper.
posted by Chocolate Pickle at 10:21 AM on August 20, 2016

What about a glass locket? This is just one (particularly fancy) of dozens of options on etsy.
posted by mollymayhem at 12:22 PM on August 20, 2016 [1 favorite]

I would frame it between a piece of archival cardboard and glass. Any method that involves something sticky would be too risky IMO.
posted by third word on a random page at 2:52 PM on August 20, 2016 [1 favorite]

Well, I can tell you what not to do. Don't seal it into a button with a button maker. I did that once and the clover turned brown. (Fortunately it didn't mean as much to me as your clover does to you, plus I made a second button that said "Don't Press Your Luck!")
posted by aws17576 at 4:22 PM on August 20, 2016 [1 favorite]

There is a 4-leaf clover that I found in 1984 simply Mod Podged onto a wood plaque at my mom's, for one successful sticky method data point.
posted by stefnet at 6:50 PM on August 20, 2016

I just found a five leafed clover in a book that was published in 1894. More than 100 years later, still pressed. Totally brown at this point though, not green.

If you decide not to carry it with you, it would be so cool to press it in a book and leave it as a little time capsule for someone else, someday...
posted by slateyness at 7:51 PM on August 21, 2016