I was recently inspired by a wreath I saw in this post by Sarah from Thrifty Decor Chick. Her flower wreath was adorable, and I knew I could probably pull some version of it off. She used felt, and that was my original intention too, but I went to my craft stash, and I wasn't inspired by any of my left over felt. Since there is practically no budget these days {and by practically I really mean none}, I decided to use pages from an old book I had on hand and make paper flowers! This suited my personal style better anyway. I'm kind of a paper/letters/words/quotes/anything literature sort of nerd...
Of course, I bought a grapevine wreath at Michael's {for just $2.50} about a week ago. I hung it up. Blank. And there it sat, until I worked up the nerve to actually attempt the flowers, but once I jumped in, I had NO idea what I was so paranoid about. They were super easy, and sort of addicting, to make! This is what my finished wreath looks like...
Some of the feedback on my Facebook page is that it's a little plain, and I thought so too at first. I toyed around with the idea of adding copper glitter to just the flowers, but then I decided that I like the neutral/natural look of it, and I might have to have it hang around for awhile, so I like it just the way it is. For now, anyway!
Ok. First things first. How do you make those adorable little flowers? Gather whatever medium you plan on making the flowers out of, a pen, a glass or cup, scissors and your hot glue gun. Then, using the cup, trace a circle on your material.
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| Click on the photo to enlarge |
Next, cut it out. Then, cut a swirl around the paper {like you learned in first grade and thought was the coolest technique ever}. After that, start from the inside and wrap it around until you create a flower. You can adjust the size of your flower by how tight you wrap, so play with it and make a variety of sizes. Now, turn the flower over and give it a good dose of hot glue. Hold it together carefully until the glue dries enough to support the flower. Repeat until you have as many flowers as you want.
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| Click on the photo to enlarge |
The last step is the fun part! Start hot gluing those puppies wherever you want on your wreath. As I got going, I realized I wanted something else on it too, so I dug out some burlap{ish} ribbon I had leftover from a project and played with it on the wreath. To give it interest, I decided to make loops and glue it down every inch or so. Then, I liked how the end of the ribbon was naturally curling, so I played with that and glued it in an interesting resting place. Lastly, I finished the ends of the ribbon off with my paper flowers in a random pattern.
The wreath went back up on the front door {a house original from 1941}, but I didn't hang it on my typical bronze wreath hook. I decided to hang it on a decorative hook that you'd most likely see in a mudroom or kitchen {or somewhere someone needed a hook}...
I bought the hook at Hobby Lobby about seven years ago {or more}, but I do have one that I painted robin's egg/light turquoise{ish}. It's available for sale in my Etsy shop.
Anyway, I liked making the flowers SO much that I decided to give the lonely little wreath hanging on our dining room mirror a face lift too...
I'd love to hear about your flower making shenanigans {or any other paper crafts you've LOVED doing}, so comment or leave a link to those posts below! Let me know if you're just as addicted to making them as I am or if you'll never be attempting this again...
This post has been linked to The Inspired Room's 2011 Fall Nesting Party! Click the picture to join the fun!
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