Sunday, March 27, 2011

Flower Making Tutorial and Card

I mentioned in a previous post that I would do a flower making tutorial.  I should say right up front that this is not my original idea.  I have seen many other designers making their own flowers and some have tutorials such as StampARTic.  Most of us take what we see others doing and put our own twist on it, and this is what I have done with a Crafting Passions tutorial.  So here goes......

  

The yellow flowers were made using the new Heartfelt Creations/Spellbinders Posy Patch die.  Heartfelt Creations has a number of lovely stamps that coordinate beautifully with new Spellbinders dies that were made specifically for their stamps.


The other flowers were made with the EK Success Retro Flower punches in small, medium and large.  In reality, any flower with individual petals will do (I think the Cricut has a flower that would work).







For the larger flower you will need 3 - 4 large pieces, 3 medium pieces and 2 - 3 smaller pieces.  The finished product will look more full-bodied with more layers.

 After cutting the flower pieces you may choose to color the edges, or you might want to give the pieces your own design by sprtzing with inks.  Just be sure that the ink you choose is waterproof because we will be saturating the paper with water.

 
Stack the layers on top of each other slightly rotated so that each successive layer can be seen.  Now you need to connect the layers to keep them together.  For the purposes of this tutorial I used brads, but you might want to sew on a button as an alternative.  It just depends on whether you want to see the center in the finished product.  I kept the brad hidden for most of my flowers.

 Once the layers are held together, spritz the whole thing with lots of water.  You may need to gently lift the petals to spritz the individual layers, and don't forget the bottom.  You want the paper VERY wet!  The purpose of this step is to make the petals pliable. I usually let it sit for about 5 minutes to really soak in and then spritz again.

When you are ready, start with the center and pull up one round of petals.  Squish them together, push down a bit, twist, and then pull up again.  You're distressing the petals in your own unique way!  Be careful not to pull to hard because the petals may come loose from the flower during this stage.

Continue pulling up rounds and distressing them until all the petals are in their upright position.  Spritz with water again if you feel the paper getting dry.  Now wait a bit - this is the hardest part for me.  Let the paper rest and begin to dry naturally.







The next step is to carefully peel back the layers starting from the outside.  Shape them as you go.  You can use a tooth pick, knitting needle, shop stick or some other round tool to roll the ends of the petals. Sometimes, just your fingers will do.

When you have the flower petals positioned just the way you want them put it down and let it dry all the way before using it on a project. As the flower dries you can work on the shaping a little more, but I have found that less is more in the case of these flowers.

Once the flower is completely dry it will be stiff and hold its shape. At this point you can use it as is or add more embellishment such as crystal lacquer to make it shiny, or Stickles for a special sparkle, or even air brushed to add more dimension.




When I made the smaller flowers I included a couple of layers of green paper to simulate leaves. Cut, layer, water and distress in the same manner.















Now on to the card I made using my new flowers.  The Tilda image is from the new Magnolia collection colored with Copic markers.


I added a little FlowerSoft to the bunny’s tail for some fluffiness. The gems are from the dollar store. Designer paper is the last bit of my Amor left over from a previous project and I think the card stock is from SU - Rose.  Spellbinders oval and scalloped oval set the scene for Tilda.

This card is entered into the following challenges:

Totally Gojuss - Spring
Outlawz - Sketch challenge
Simon Says - for a girl in your life
Aly's Sunday Sketch - Spring
Creative Inspirations - Flowers

Thanks for checking in. I hope this tutorial helps you make your own beautiful flowers!

Have a GREAT day!






24 comments:

Anonymous said...

Thank you for the great tutorial, your flowers are beautiful!

Anonymous said...

Great tutorial. Thank you for sharing. I love SCS and how folks give so freely!

valita said...

beautiful! and i loved your tutorial :)

Judy said...

Thank you for sharing your talent and this tutorial with us. Much appreciated. Also, your card is lovely.

farmhouse-story said...

gorgeous! tfs!

Roxann said...

Fabulous turtorial. Definately gonna try my hand at it.

tiffany said...

wow-such a great tutorial, thanks!! =)Tiffany
Breakfast at Tiffany's

Katherine K :) said...

Gorgeous flowers and super tutorial!

Nancy Jensen said...

Beautiful! Thanks for the tutorial!

Sheree said...

Wow!!! Nancy, you are so talented! Those flowers are beautiful and I'm so glad you've added a tutorial so I can try making some of them!
The glue dots you were asking about aren't 'glue' dots per say... I made them with my glue gun and tinted with Ranger alcohol inks.
Have an awesome weekend in the sunshine you artista!!

Unknown said...

Thank you for the wonderful tutorial!
I love easy and fabulous come together!

Unknown said...

OHH love the card and cant wait to make some of those flowers! I have an award for you here! http://eulandasilvey.blogspot.com/

Anonymous said...

Those flowers look so REAL!! And that's the best flower tutorial I have ever seen yet!!
Awesome to the MAX!!

Sherry Kushibab said...

I just love making flowers..check out the 'funkiejunkie' blog, she makes some great ones out of crinolin. I have made them and they are fun, you can color them with copics so they match your coloring. Found you thru Danas blog on following others...she had a great idea posting that. She is a fun and talented lady.

Ann said...

OMG, your flowers are so beautiful!!! Thanks so much for teaching us how you made them; I appreciate it! :)

jengd said...

Beautiful flowers! Thanks for the tutorial! Just popping in from the Getting Cricky hop.

Karen Howard said...

Your card is really pretty and I love this flower tutorial! I've bookmarked it to try. Thank you so much for the inspiration! Hugs, Karen

Unknown said...

Found you via the Getting Cricky Love link up party, but sticking with you as a follower because I really enjoy your blog.

Thanks for sharing your flower tutorial. It is something that I bookmarked for future reference.

Sue C
http://creativitybug.blogspot.com/

Trish and Treasure said...

Love this tutorial, thanks for taking the time to share!

Anonymous said...

Complex Post. This record helped me in my college assignment. Thnaks Alot

Sabahat said...

great tutorial! thanks for sharing:)

Sabahat said...

great tutorial! thanks for sharing:)

Teresa Arsenault said...

Nancy, these flowers are stunning. TY so much for this tutorial.
Hugs,
Teresa

Daksha Popat said...

thanks for the lovely tutorial with all photo details.....