Showing posts with label rolled paper flower. Show all posts
Showing posts with label rolled paper flower. Show all posts

Wednesday, February 15, 2012

Tutorial: Rolled Paper Flowers

Now that you've had a couple days to dye your coffee filters, I imagine that your crafty little fingers are itching for more coffee-filter-fun...


First, plug in your glue gun and make sure you have plenty of glue sticks.

Grab your favorite pair of scissors, and a big pile of your lovely coffee filters (or any paper of your choice)

Since coffee filters are so thin, I usually layer and roll 2-3 at a time.  For this flower, I'm using 2 filters.

If you are using something other than coffee filters, you'll want to cut out a circle.  If you're not a great circle-cutter, you may want to trace one before cutting, as it makes rolling the flowers a bit easier.

Next, cut a spiral out of your coffee filter. (Drawing it out first may make this step easier)

and we're cutting...


This is what your final product should resemble.  When you get to the end of the spiral, there will be a small circle left that's about the size of a penny.
The place where you started cutting will also be where you start rolling the flower

Starting where you started cutting, roll your filter like you'd roll up a area rug.  This will be the center of the flower and you want it as tight as possible.  The outer edge of the coffee filter will become the top of your flower.

  I had trouble getting flowers started with my big fingers, so I found it easier to fold down a tab as shown above to have more to hold on to.  

Notice once I fold over the tab, how tightly I start the center.

Once you get the center stiff enough that you can hold the top and bottom between 2 fingers, it makes it a lot easier to roll this way.
As you near the end of the filter, make sure to keep the bottom of the flower tight, as the top will start to get loose.

Finished rolling.  If your flower seems too tight and you want to look a little looser, cup it between your 2 hands and shake it, this will help loosen it up some without it falling apart.

This is where that little tab I mentioned above comes in handy...if your center becomes too loose, you can use the tab to tighten the center of the flower without starting over again.

If you are using book pages, scrapbook paper, cardstock, etc, you'll take some pressure off the flower and it will loosen itself.  Be careful not to let go of it too much, or your flower may fall apart.

Once you get to the end, you'll have the circle tabs sticking out at the bottom of the flower.

On the bottom of the flower and around the edge of the bottom, you want to glob on a whole bunch of hot glue.

Then, fold the circle tabs over the glue bottom of the flower.  If you are using more than one filter, make sure to glue each layer of the circle tab...

See the 2 tabs where it's labeled "bottom of flower"...

...that's where you need more glue.

And here's your flower.  If you have any petals that look out of place...don't be afraid to trim where needed.

Easy, right?


            So, now all you need to do is start rolling,
and rolling,

and just when you think you have enough...
. 
....roll a couple more.

 The pile of flowers above made half of the 12" wreath pictured below.


Still with me?? I think some of my instructions might be confusing?
If so, you might try the source I originally used when learning how to make these flowers.

You might also want to check out my original post showing how I make the flowers into a wreath.

Please don't hesitate to let me know if you have any questions, and I'll happily help in any way I can.

Finally - if you make a wreath, I'd love to see it and feature it here at Salvaged Whimsy...

Sharing at these parties:
MONDAY:
TUESDAY: 
Domestically Speaking (Paint Projects)
Faded Charm (White Projects)
THURSDAY:

take care - 
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Monday, February 13, 2012

Tutorial: Dying Coffee Filters


Dying coffee filters is so easy, you're going to wonder why you waited for a tutorial to try and do this.

What you'll need:
* 1-2 packages (200-300 filters) of 8-12 cup coffee filters 
*large bowl
*water
*dye of choice - coffee, food coloring, craft paint, etc
*2 large cookie sheets
*oven (or lots of time)
* rubber gloves (optional)

If you are planning to make a 9-10" wreath, you'll need to dye around 200-300 coffee filters.  I buy them at Aldi's - they are $.99 for 200 filters, which is the least expensive place I've found.  A dollar store might also be a good place to look.

Before anything else - get out your cookie sheets and preheat your oven to 200-250 degrees. (Please use your own discretion here - I do mine at 245, not sure why I chose that temperature. I'm in the kitchen the entire time the filters are in the oven.  Please don't blame me if you burn your house down.)

When I made the coffee filters for my pink wreath a couple weeks ago, I didn't have any food coloring, so instead I used something that always seems to dye my fingers (and anything else it touches) - a packet of single-serve sugar-free juice mix...

This is the Cranberry flavor from Kroger...yes, it's caffeinated and actually, pretty tasty.  I used my last packet  on this tutorial, so I apologize if I'm not my usual perky self (ha, right!)

*If using craft paint, use as little paint possible to get your desired color, and mix it with a lot of water (4-6 cups) - the more watery the mixture, the better, if trying to achieve the stained look (and not painted).  
**If you're dying with coffee - make about 6-8 cups of coffee and pour 3-4 cups into a bowl, leaving some to use on later batches. You can use regular or decaffeinated.  I water it down some to cool it off before dipping my filters.

The amount you'll use depends on the shade of pink that you'd like...but it's better to go lighter, as you can always darken the color once the filters dry.
I fill a large butter container half full with water (temperature doesn't seem to matter) and sprinkle in a tiny amount of the juice mix or food coloring.  Make sure to mix together well to prevent blotches. Using diluted craft paint gives a more saturated color, but they are hard to keep from getting blotchy, if that matters to you.

 
Take a chunk of coffee filters

and divide them into smaller sections of 10-20 filters as you put them in the dye.

Once you have 50 or so filters,

push the filters down into the dye. (This is when you may want to use the "optional" rubber gloves)

Once all the coffee filters are wet

wring them out, making sure to check that they all are dyed. (Sometimes, the dye doesn't reach the middle of the "clump"...so you have to separate them out and re-dip as needed)

They don't need to soak for any amount of time before you remove them from the dye, they soak up the color pretty quickly. Soaking them for longer amounts of time doesn't seem to change the color at all.

Coffee filters are pretty durable, so don't be afraid to wring them out like you would a washcloth. The more dry they are now, means less time in the oven.

Then flatten them out and spread out on a cookie sheet in stacks of 5-10 filters.

And stick them in the oven - I do 2 trays at a time and 20 minutes usually is enough time.
If, after that time, some are still damp, you can either let them air dry the rest of the way, or put them back in the oven for a couple more minutes.
 (Sometimes the filteres on the top and bottom of the piles get discolored...I've thought about covering them with foil to prevent  this, but haven't tried it yet.)

I use different amounts of dye to get different shades.  If they aren't getting as dark as you'd like with any of the dying methods, you can re-dip them after they've dried and put them back in the oven to dry again.

 
These are all different shades made from just adding more of the juice mix or food coloring.  Also, if you are using the dyed filters to make flowers, remember that once the filters are rolled together, the color will look darker than the color of filter on its own.

Some other colors I've made using food coloring.

If you haven't seen the wreaths I've made using colored filters - here are a couple examples:
Using method shown above.

Using coffee-dyed filters

Made using watered-down black craft paint.

Purple Pink Coffee Filter Rolled Flower Wreath
Using diluted craft paint.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

In the next couple days, I'll be posting on how I make the paper flowers that I use for my wreaths.

Sharing this tutorial at some of these parties:

MONDAY:

TUESDAY: 
Domestically Speaking (Paint Projects)
Faded Charm (White Projects)
THURSDAY:

take care -
 

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Tuesday, January 17, 2012

Shades of Pink...or Not.

Despite the best efforts of my 2 toddlers (who I love and adore), I  should be able to finish all of the wreaths that a local  store  ordered, on time. 

I'm sorry if you're getting bored with all the wreaths "hanging" (ha!..uh, never mind) around these parts lately.  I promise that I have some furniture goodies on the way...I just need time to add the finishing touches.

Out of all the wreaths I've done so far, this one is my favorite...don't you think it's perfect for Valentine's Day...or a wedding, perhaps?
 

This wreath was featured by Courtney at French Country Cottage - if you haven't visited this blog, you're missing out - it's beautiful!  Thanks to Courtney!



I've had a lot of  requests for a tutorials on how I dye the coffee filters, and I'll try to get one put together soon. 

And here's another that the shop ordered...based on this design, but using coffee-dyed filters and book pages.  So, if your valentine isn't so much into pink, you could make this more neutral option:
 




If you're new to my blog and are interested in seeing more wreaths I've created, the best place would probably be my Etsy shop. 

Also, I have created a couple tutorials on how to do a basic coffee filter wreath and how to create the rolled paper flowers wreath.  The coffee-dyed wreath above is just a mixture of the 2 styles.  Now that I've done a lot more, I've changed things a little, and will explain further in an upcoming tutorial.

I'm always available to answer questions, so please don't hesitate to comment or email me.  I have about a bajillion flowers to make, so I'm off....but I miss all of you and haven't had as much time to check out other blogs, so if you have time, please let me know what you've been up to.

I'm plan to share at some of these parties:
MONDAY:
Thrifty Decor Chick (1st Monday of Each Month)
TUESDAY:
Kammy's Korner (Trash to Treasure)
WEDNESDAY:
Domestically Speaking (Paint Projects)
Faded Charm (White Projects)
THURSDAY:
FRIDAY:
Miss Mustard Seed (Furniture Only)
SATURDAY:
SUNDAY:


take care -
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