{Green} My Favorite Things #7: Fabric Flowers

Project Wedding's DIY Wedding Challenge 2010 Paper Flower Bouquets

Last weekend I shared tutorials for paper flowers. Picking up where I left off, here's a round up of fabric flower tutorials. Before I share the rest of the fabric flower tutorials, indulge me while I share some yarn flowers. (The bouquets above are a mix of paper and yarn flowers.)

Credits: Yarn Flowers designed by Lauren De Bellis, photographed by Kate Mathis for Country Living, spotted on Poppytalk.

These yarn flowers are a flash from the past. My mom, my sister, and I used to sit around the dining room table on rainy days making these to top packages. Kid Craft Central has a tutorial that matches how my mom taught us. One thing my mom did to keep the blooms fully plumped was to add a little spray starch to stiffen the finished flower.

When we were planning our wedding I fell in love with chiffon, tulle, and organdie flowers. There was something so romantic about how soft and ethereal they appeared.

Credits (left to right): Chiffon Peonies by Ruffles and Stuff; Chiffon and Tulle Flowers photographed by Olivia Kanaley, spotted on Project Wedding; Organza Flower Headband by Elizabeth Anne Designs from a tutorial by Reese Dixon.

There's also something timeless about organdie as evidenced by this tutorial from 1922.

Organdie flower tutorial shared on Wearing History. For information about the type of stitches used,  Lauren recommends reading Lesson X-A Good Start Deserves a Good Finish from Paris Frocks at Home (1930) at Vintage Sewing.info.

Want something a little more substantial? What about turning t-shirts into flowers? These two tutorials will show you how: Linda of Craftaholics Anonymous makes pom pons and Maize Hutton creates a bouquet for The Bride's Cafe.

Credits: Top Row (left to right) - Jersey Pom Pons by Craftaholics Anonymous, spotted on Something Old, Something New; Flower Roses photographed by Mark Brooke, spotted on Green Wedding Shoes. Bottom Row (left to right) - Handkerchief Rosettes by Ruffles and Stuff; Handkerchief Roses from Eco-Proper, spotted on My DIY Wedding Day.

Some brides have handkerchiefs from their mothers or grandmothers that they use for their Something Old, typically wrapping it around their bouquet. Another thing you can do with handkerchiefs is create flowers. You could even wear the handkerchief flowers in your hair or go flowerless for your groom's boutonnière.

{Green} My Favorite Things #6: Paper Flowers

First let me apologize for the sporadic posting this week. I've had lots to sidetrack me - honeymoon planning, class, and Marketo's Rock Your Revenue Roadshow. I promise next week will more than make up for it.

• Monday, we'll continue with recaps. Not one, but two! I have a deadline now - our book must be done and in our hands before we leave on our honeymoon.
• Wednesday, the Pampering the Groom series covers selecting a custom shirt for your groom and the men in the wedding party.
• Thursday, I'll be featuring {Heritage & Craft} Vintage and Custom Rentals. If your wedding dreams involve furniture, sweet details, or props, you aren't going to want to miss this post. I interviewed Erin yesterday; she's amazingly creative and energetic.

Of course there will be eye candy - shoes on Tuesday, purses on Thursday, and movie-inspired fashions on Friday.

It's sunny outside and Spring is on my mind. Therefore, I've got a round up of paper flower tutorials for you (if you like fabric flowers, check back next Saturday).

Credits: Top Row (left to right) - Paper Flowers photographed by For You Love Me, spotted on Ruffled (tutorial for these world's easiest paper flowers from Miss Trail Mix (Weddingbee)); Paper Boutonniere, photographed by Pat Furey, spotted on Project Wedding (tutorial for paper leaves on Just Something I Made). Center Photos - Paper Flowers handmade by Wire & Paper (template for making the flowers and tutorial on 'i do' it yourself), photographed by KIM+PHIL Photography, spotted on Weddings Fresh. Bottom Row (left to right) - Crepe Poppies Daisies and Pearls spotted on The Sweetest Occasion; Origami flowers crafted/photographed by Miss Guinea Pig (Weddingbee) from a tutorial by Folding Trees.

I couldn't find a tutorial that I liked for creating boutonnieres from vintage paper (top right image in the scrapbook above). So, I'm going to cheat and include a fabric flower tutorial.

Credit: Jessica Jones of How About Orange

Jess of How About Orange shows us how to turn fabric scraps into formed flowers with a little bit of Stiffen Stuff, a button, and thread. By changing up fabrics and sizes of flowers you can change a bare wall into a gorgeous waterfall of Spring color. For your paper flowers, substitute Mod Podge for Stiffen Stuff and paper for the fabric scraps.

Other tutorials for paper flowers

• Raid your kitchen cabinets for cute cupcake wrappers (or substitute ruffled coffee filters) to create interesting flowers in no time at all.
• Add 3D pinwheel flowers to the walls of your hall. Vary sizes for greatest interest.
• Double the materials Nice Package requires and you've got colorful paper pom pom spheres that you can hang in doorways, from staircases, or top tables with.

P.S. If it's gorgeous weather where you are today, please don't start crafting now. Go enjoy the day!

My Favorite Things #4

Naomi's twist on her TuesdayShoesday post reminded me of the tangle of shoes I had tossed in my closet up until a few weeks ago. With statement shoes in vogue and more art than function why not display them?

Credits: Leon spotted on Enchanted Dream Weddings; Bolaget Fastighetsformedling discovered on decor8. 

This idea of displaying shoes, set my imagination in motion. I immediately thought of a Cinderella-inspired engagement session in a shoe store or cobbler shop.

Back to reality and to my "Get Organized. Stay Organized." resolution. A wall of shoes would definitely keep me organized. The downside? cubes would go crazy if I dedicated an entire wall of our apartment to shoes, but the neatly arranged column of shoes might work. I have some lovely vintage black pumps and slippers that need to be admired.

Tuesday night while dining at Puerto Allegre, I saw a television ad for a replica of Kate Middleton's engagement ring. So what's a girl to do? Start dreaming again of course.

The Finds: Pink Rosette Handbag from Windsor, $35.90, spotted on The Charity Wedding; Friedrich Blue Enamel with Gold Chain Necklace from Fashion Rerun,$34; Christian Dior from Sweet n Sour Vintage, $400; Ste. Lazare Angora Cardigan from Mademoiselle Coco, $75; Natural Fancy Pink Pear Cut Diamond Engagement Ring from Weston Jewelry, $21,999 spotted on Classic Bride; Valentino Bow Pump from Nordstrom $745.

Of course Cinderella would be wearing vintage Christian Dior when her prince slid the gorgeous fancy pink diamond on her hand. Anyone else out there create stories for outfits? Or is it just me? I love having friends get dressed up and play act while I photograph them.

We've got a lot coming up next week on the blog. On Monday, we recap our cocktail reception. On Wednesday, tune in for the second in our Pampering the Groom series. Thursday will have the long awaited DIY vintage-inspired stamps (had some technical difficulties with my scanner).

My Favorite Things #3

It's almost always about paper with me. Therefore it's no surprise that this week's round up of my favorite things are almost all paper. There's a map of San Francisco formed from type alone. For those looking for eco-friendly flowers: a bouquet made from vintage maps and a boutonnière with paper petals.

Not into paper poms? Why not try decorating styrofoam spheres with layers of cut out circles of vintage paper?

Looking for a unique way to store your engagement shoot or wedding photos? Pick up a skeleton key USB drive tie a couple of ribbons in your wedding colors around it and voila, a personalized keepsake!

The Finds (left to right clockwise): San Francisco Map by Axis Maps via Hello! Lucky, $14.95 to $195.25 with discounts for bulk purchases; Skeleton Key USB Drive by Fred Flare via Design*Sponge, $58; Cathy of California via Creative Odds 'n Ends; White Loft Studio via Sweetest Occasion; Kim + Phil Photography via 'I do' it yourself.

The Grand De-Cluttering will continue this weekend so no Saturday or Sunday posts. I'll be back bright and early on Monday with another recap - our first standing ovation. Wednesday, I kick off the first in a series I'm titling "Pampering the Groom." And just in time for Valentine's Day, on Thursday I'm going to show how to create vintage style stamps. You won't want to miss it!

So what are you up to this weekend? Anything going on that I should know about?

My Favorite Things #2

Lots of things caught my eye this week. From cool venues to ideas for romantic lighting DIY projects to personalized gifts for parents and the boys.

The Finds: Handmade Vintage Doily Lamp by Shannon South spotted on Apartment Therapy Main; The Ambiance Venue in San Francisco, CA spotted on Ruffled; Handmade Journal from the Bride to Her Mother spotted on Green Wedding Shoes photographed by Todd Pellowe; Engraved Collar Stays spotted on 100 Layer Cake photographed by W. Scott Chester Photography available from Quality Stays, $26.90 for 24 sets; Pine cone Bouquet spotted on Green Wedding Shoes photographed by Jenny Haas; Hollow Book Safe available from Conduit Press (Etsy), $55; Dried Rosebud Heart Wreath spotted on Writing with Light available from Heavenly Hearts (Not on the High Street), 13 pounds; Smokey quartz ring by Andrea Bonelli spotted on Unruly Things; Chalk Label Storage Jars from Hindsvik, $14 for a set of 2.

We're planning on creating a book with our story for our parents. Because personalized books were on my mind, I loved seeing the reaction another bride's mother had when presented with her daughter's journal. If money weren't an object ($40,000), this offer from Rigel Stuhmiller, a designer in Berkeley, CA, to develop a graphic novel (spotted on Paper Crave) would be tempting. (cubes loves graphic novels and is reading The Sandman by Neil Gaiman to me.)

As you might remember we struggled for awhile to come up with a gift for our groomsmen. Engraved flasks had been done (and humorously included in a friend's wedding ceremony) so we shied away from that path. However, had I seen the hollow book safe (with flask included), I might have been tempted to choose books over vintage traveling bars. Another gift idea that would have gone perfectly with the boys' custom shirts: engraved collar stays. I didn't know collars had stays until we sent cubes' shirt to the cleaner.

Finally at the end of the week, Hindsvik once again inspired me. Their chalk label storage jars brought to mind custom spice mixes. You could write the guest's name and table on the jars tackling two projects at once: escort cards and favors.

“When you love someone, all your saved-up wishes start coming out.”

~ by Elizabeth Bowen (1899-1973) discovered via Kiss the Groom

My Favorite Things #1

Here's a snapshot of what caught my eye this week.

Vintage Lucky One and The Pop Shoppe Soda Bottles from Hindsvik $18 ea; Taupe Wedding Dress by Sally Lacock via Love My Dress; Sterling Heart Padlock Clasp $30; JoTotes Camera Bags via How About Orange $89

I love the vintage soda bottles. They'd be great as props for a photo shoot or to hold flowers in a table centerpiece. I was also excited to see JoTotes' new vintage-inspired camera bag. (Unfortunately they're currently out of the purple, so I'll just have to wait for mine.) And of course I couldn't leave out this gorgeous wedding dress by Sally Lacock that I want to wear to a wedding this coming April as a guest.

Anything out there that really caught your eye this week?

Have a great weekend! Be sure to come back next week for another wedding recap (Monday), gorgeous flower girl dresses by Vintage Precious (Tuesday), creating your own custom jewelry with GemKitty (Thursday) and more!