DIY Plaster Roses

I just went on a plaster rose-making spree! I have a silicone rose mold by Martha Stewart and decided to attempt to fill it with plaster. As you can see, the plaster picks up the fine details of the mold so it worked quite well. It also dries quickly, which allowed me to whip out several batches in a short period of time. I am going to use these flowers in embellishing furniture, frames, and the like.

I'm Happy Again

"What a glorious feelin'...I'm Happy Again!" This fabric design was inspired by an afternoon I spent singin' in the rain with a lovely friend. It's in this week's Wellies and Galoshes challenge on Spoonflower.

Peach Gerberas

 When it comes to store-bought flowers, gerberas are one of my favourites. They are available in a variety of colors, last quite a while, and make an undeniably cheerful bouquet. These particular flowers started out a peachy yellow and then, after a few days, turned a delicate coral in their vase. I love to arrange fresh flowers into vignettes to liven up a room.

Their detail is stunning.



1st Blogiversary!

 

 Today's the day! The traditional gift for a 1st anniversary is paper and the modern gift is clocks, so here you are: a paper clock, paper slice of cake, paper flower, and paper diamonds! In response to my PaperLove post I received a request for a tutorial on how to make paper flowers like the one on top of the slice of cake. So, for some celebratory crafting:

Materials:

String

Scissors

Thin paper (I used blank newsprint. Weights between tissue and multiuse paper work best)

Step 1: Cut about 8 rectangular sheets of paper and layer them on top of each other. They don't have to be exactly the same size (the imperfection makes for more realistic petals), and obviously the bigger you make the sheets the larger your flower will be. The width is the approximate diameter. These pieces are about 3'' wide.

Step 2: Accordion fold the sheets, parallel to the width.

Step 3: Knot string around the center of the folded sheets, perpendicular to the width.

Step 4: Carefully separate the sheets to arrange them into petals.

Step 5: Sometimes the paper tears slightly on the folded ridges, so cutting the sharp corners off the petals makes the whole flower look more natural.

Also, if you are interested in making these satisfyingly geometric diamonds, I used this post's template, which I printed on cardstock, painted metallic, cut out, scored, and glued together with hot glue. Here's to the coming year of creativity!

Pssst! You can now follow my blog with Bloglovin!

Quick Tip: DIY Painted Hanger

Since I often display garments on my walls I like to have them on pretty hangers. I painted this simple wooden hanger with polka dots on one side and floral on the other. The floral was freehanded, but the polka dots can be easily made by dipping the end of a dowel in paint and using it as a stamp. You'd be surprised by how these functionally pretty, reversible hangers brighten up your storage.