Showing posts with label easy paper flowers. Show all posts
Showing posts with label easy paper flowers. Show all posts

15.5.18

DIY Dandelions and Daisies


Everything in the garden looks good in May I think, even the weeds have a kind of charm, and I have a soft spot for these bursts of yellow and white that pepper the grass.

Know it's not everyone's favourite, but I love a sunny yellow flower.

These paper daisies and dandelions are easy to make and can be used in lots of different ways - to stick on cards or pictures, or as decorations.

You will need:

Plain white paper
Yellow paper (optional)
Scissors
Glue stick
Craft glue
Yellow tissue paper

1. For the little daisies, fold an A4 sheet of plain paper in half, lengthways, then fold it again lengthways two more times.




2. Cut thin strips by cutting across the folded paper, then unfurl your strips and snip into pieces by cutting on the creases.


3. Rub glue stick in the middle of a petal piece and stick another one at right-angles to it, to make a cross. Rub more glue in the middle and attach another two petal strands, to fill the gaps.



We found the best way was to assemble a daisy on a finger tip! The first rub of glue seemed to fix the petal strip steady on the tip, making it easier to add the other pieces, but use whatever method you find best.

4. Use a hole punch to punch out small yellow circles - if you don't have yellow paper, colour in some plain paper.


5. Rub glue in the centre again, wet your finger to help pick up the little yellow circle, and glue it down.

6. For the dandelions, fold a sheet of tissue paper a few times so it's easier to cut across. Cut a few 4/5cm strips.


7. Cut a fringe along an open end of one of the pieces (keep the cuts close together). Make the cuts about 2cm long (no more than halfway down your strip)


8. Open up the strip and dab some glue along it at intervals, just under the fringe, then fold the strip in half.

Best not to use a glue stick like we did... because the tissue paper is easy to rip - better to use a small amount of glue on a brush.



9. Dab more glue along the length of this shorter strip, again just under the fringe, and tightly roll your strip. It can be fiddly to start off, but once you get going you can hopefully roll it between your finger and thumb, and remember to press tightly just under the fringe where the glue is. Brush some glue on the end of the strip and tightly roll the last bit.



10. Puff out the dandelion with your fingers, trim the centre if you want, to make it flatter. We cut the stalk bit off so we could stick them on a picture.












7.4.15

Easy paper flowers


We're festooned with  flowers at the moment…mostly cheery, bright cardboard and paper ones. It all started with egg box roses, daffs and snowdrops a few weeks ago, and now there are paper daisies sprinkled around the kitchen like flower confetti! 

They are really easy to make and useful for other projects too.

You will need:
Coloured paper or plain paper to paint
General purpose scissors

For the other projects:
Small scissors (like nail scissors)
Ball of plasticine or modelling clay
Pipe cleaner
White card
Paint
Buttons
Ribbon, braid, string
PVA craft glue

1.  Find things to draw around in the kitchen, like tins, jars or side plates.



2.  It's best to start with a big circle first, to get some practice. Draw around your shape and cut it out.



3  Fold the circle in half, then in quarters and then eighths.



4.  About 1cm (1/2") up from the tip, draw a line straight across and mark it in the middle.

5.  Draw a petal shape from this mark to a top corner and repeat on the other side, making sure the petals look alike.



6.  Then, cut carefully along the pencil lines, making sure the tip of both petals stays pointy - and open up your flower.




7.  When you've made a few and feel more confident, try some smaller circles, so you can build up  flowers with a few petal layers.



8.  If you'd like to make a daisy to add to a spring flower posy, put one of your cut-outs on a ball of plasticine and push the closed tip of the small scissors through the middle of the paper. Don't make the hole too big.

9.  Push a pipe cleaner up through the hole and bend the top 3cm (1") over at a right-angle - then carefully spiral the bendy wire around itself, to make the centre of you flower. Push the paper back up under the pipe cleaner centre.





Making some flower bunting or a daisy chain is another fun thing to do with your cut-out flowers.

10. Find a longish piece ribbon or something similar, and cut to the length you want for your bunting. We used quite thin sequin braid, with a bit of sparkle, but to be honest thicker is better for stable bunting that doesn't swing about too much. 

11. Chose three different sized circles - for the outer petals, inner petals and the centre. 




12. A bottle lid makes a good centre circle template - we went for yellow middles, but pick whatever colour you like. Cut out flowers from the other bigger circles, and make enough of each to space out along your ribbon (roughly 20cm (8") between our flowers). 

13. Glue the centres in the middle of the inner petals, then brush a good amount of glue all over the middle section of the biggest flower and lay the ribbon over it, a little above the halfway point, to stop it flipping over when it's hanging up.

14. Next, dab a bit more glue on the back of the inner petals and stick them down over the ribbon and position so the petals are between the ones below.



15. Repeat along your ribbon - use a ruler or tape measure to space them evenly - then leave to dry.



16. To make a daisy chain, cut out white flowers with yellow centres and glue them straight onto the ribbon. The small yellow centres can be more fiddly to cut, so, if you want just paint them on instead.



17. Smaller flowers make lovely card decorations too. My daughter made these - some with painted centres and some with buttons, which works really well. The vase is cut out from an old birthday card.



I've had a little primrose idea….