Flirty Flower Tutorial Valentines Day Crafts. Easy DIY #valentinesday

For those that have been with me since the beginning, you will remember my background is in making fashion flower accessories for women and little girls. It’s what I used to do before transitioning over to blogging. I loved it, but blogging was a better fit for me. I still love playing in the craft room though. My layered fashion flowers were known for their unique style. Valentine’s Day was always when I loved crafting these. But the great thing is that these layered flowers are great for more than just hair accessories. They are perfect for embellishments for other crafts! Crafts like a DIY Valentine’s wreath! So I thought I’d share a simple DIY flower tutorial to help you have a unique centerpiece this Valentine’s season.

DIY Flower tutorial

The secret to why my flowers are always so unique is that I mix flowers. Most sites will gather flowers and mix and match colors but still stay with the same “breed” of flower. But I mix them. You will see what I mean as we work through this tutorial. We are going to make a large 7-8″ embellishment flower for the DIY Valentines wreath I just shared. This large flower is also the perfect size for an embellishment on a hair bow holder.

You will need:

• Hot glue
• 2 large 7 Inch Gerber Daisy silk flowers (one deep red/pink, the other a very light pink)
• 1 deep red/pink Dahlia Silk flower
• 1 light pink 4-5″ Gerber Daisy silk flower
• 1 white Zinnia Flower
• 2 carnations (one white, if possible find the other that is white with a pink tip of the petals. If not, then a light pink will do well.)
• Large glitter heart (found in valentine’s section of Walmart- comes in a package of 4. They are on sticks. I cut the stick off)
• 1 light pink rose cabochon 
• 4 small red hearts, flat back rhinestones
• Joann’s  non Toxic glitter glue.
• Small paint brush for crafts

Any question about this, you will be able to see what I’m talking about in the photos during the tutorial.

With the flowers, you will not be using the entire flower for the craft. This is why I have such a huge collection of silk flower petals in my craft room. Because I take the flowers apart. And then I use up each size petal in its own creation. So these were all leftovers I had in my craft room from other projects. But if you are starting from scratch you will need to buy the entire flower to get started. Just know you will have left over petals that you can use to mix and match and create many other flower crafts.

Where to find supplies for our layered Flower tutorial

This was always one of the biggest questions I was always asked in my craft business. Where in the world do you find all your supplies? The answer is all over! I always go where the best deals are for the best product. I am fairly picky too. For my base flowers (the first layer and largest petals) I like thicker stronger petals that don’t rip as easily. So I purchase these from Porters or Joann’s or Michael’s when they have a sale. When we lived in Kansas, I also used Hobby Lobby all the time. I miss that place. We don’t have one nearby. But for the thicker petals, more often than not they all come from Porters.

For the filler flowers, the smaller petals closer towards the center, I pick up all kinds of different flowers from the above craft stores as well as Walmart, Family Dollar, the Dollar Tree and just about anywhere that would sell silk flowers in a craft section. Certain styles I can only find at Walmart. Others only at Family Dollar and only in certain seasons. As you begin shopping you start to notice a pattern as to when certain colors come out. When certain flower “breeds” are sold. That is when I stock up. Because I won’t be able to get them again for another year.

The Rose Cabochon is one that I buy in bulk from Etsy. There are many craft suppliers there that you can get a fair amount at decent prices. Sometimes Ebay has a good selection but not often.

Recently I just learned of Tophatter. Apparently they have auctions on craft supplies. So now I’ll probably have to be visiting there more often to see if I can strike an amazing steal of a deal on some of these craft supplies!

The best thing I can say about shopping for craft supplies. If possible, wait until a sale and then stock up. At least with the flowers. They add up quickly in cost. I always stock the sales flyer for when Porters has a 40% or more sale on Silk flowers and then I stock up. They are too expensive otherwise. But those are the highest quality silk flowers. They have thicker petals and more vibrant colors. From other stores, sales are nice, but not a must.

Flower tutorial:  How to layer your flower

First you need to gather your large 7″ daisies. Take them apart. You need a large light pink, dark pink and another light pink. Layer them together. Line up the centers of the flower. But rotate each layer of the flower so that the petals are not directly on top of each other. You want the petal of the flower beneath to show in between the petals of the flower on top.

 

I always stack up my flowers all the way to the end, including embellishment in the center before I ever actually use any hot glue. That way if I change my mind, I can take a layer out or add in something else. So layer up your petals making sure you have the right size petal lined up. You want the petals to gently get smaller as we get higher up and closer to the center.

Next add one more deep pink Gerber Daisy slightly smaller than the last light pink petal. Then move onto the smaller flowers. The next layer is Deep pink or red Dahlia petal. Then a smaller white Zinnia.

 

After the white Zinnia, add another layer of the deep red/pink Dahlia flower. Just slightly smaller than the last Dahlia layer. Remember to try to stagger the petals. Then finish off the layering with a layer of a white carnation and then another carnation with the pink tips.

Once you have all the petals layered as you want it is time to glue them together. Gently lift all but the bottom layer up, keeping them in order and lay the pile upside down next to you. Put a layer of hot glue around the center of the first layer of petals. Take the very next layer off the top of the upside down pile and replace it on top of the base layer just as you did when we are layering up the flower the first time. Press down ensuring the glue is smoothed between the layers.

If you skip smoothing the layers together, you can end up with hard glue bumps in the flower and it offsets the way the flower lays. Now continue to repeat the process. Glue in center. Gently apply the next layer. Then glue again. Until you finish with the layering of the flower petals.

Flower Tutorial: Embellishing the layered flower.

This is when the real fun starts happening. It is fun mixing and matching the layers of petals. But I really love the embellishment! I love frills, glitter, crystals, lace, and it goes on and on! I just love this part.

So I told you I found these large red hearts on sticks in the Valentine’s section at Walmart. They were near the Valentine goodie bag and home decor section.

Take one of the large hearts and cut off the wooden stem. I left a little so as to keep the red ribbon intact. Glue the back side and sit it off center in the middle of the layered flower.

Now, the layered flower is looking pretty good as it is. But this is me. I like frilly. I like Glitter. You will learn quickly I don’t stop at just “pretty good”. But as you are creating your own, you can stop whenever you like. It is your craft after all. I’m just giving you the flower tutorial.

Next I take the rose cabochon and apply hot glue to the back and center it in the middle of the large heart.

And again, you can stop if you want. But I’m still going.

As I said, I love glitter. So bring on the glitter! I don’t always add glitter, but with a big glittery heart in the center, the petals are looking a little dull. I use Joann’s Craft Essentials Glitter glue. It needs to be the non-toxic variety. I’ve tried other brands, but the glitter is in larger chunks and it doesn’t spread as smoothly on the petals. So I went back to the Joann’s brand.

It comes in a variety of  colors, but I like this white neutral color for the layered flower crafts. Simply apply a small amount on the end of a quality craft paint brush. You don’t want too low quality paint brush as the bristles will come out on you as you paint and stay on the flower. But you don’t have to spend a ton on a professional brush either. I think I got my brush at Walmart for around $2.

With paint on the brush gently brush on the tips of the outermost petals. I don’t paint every petal. Sometimes I skip layers. It all just depends on the colors of the petals and how it looks as I go along. I start painting the tips of the largest layer of petals. Then slowly work my way in until I am satisfied with the amount of glitter. I like the “frosted” look it gives the tips of the petals.

Now this is the part that takes the longest of all. Letting the glitter glue dry.

Again you could be finished here. But hey. This is me. I’m a bit crazy with crafts and embellishments. As if you couldn’t already tell. A few years back I found these adorable heart flat back rhinestones. They are the perfect addition for the embellishment addict like myself.

It is hard not overdoing it with the glue on the back since they are so small. But with practice you will get it. It takes just a teeny tiny dot of hot glue on the back of the heart rhinestone. Then place them on a few petals on the outside tip. I try to evenly space them around the flower. Sometimes I can do every 3 petals, or every 4. Sometimes the numbers don’t always work so I just wing it.

 

And now I’m done! Yes, even I have my embellishment limits.

These flowers are fantastic for using in a variety of crafts. I use them in making hair bow holders for my daughter but more recently my Valentine’s Day wreath. But the possibilities are endless. You can use these anywhere you would use a big bow. They are unique and no one else will have one like it!

 

If you need help or clarification, go ahead and ask! I read all the comments and I’ll reply as soon as I can.

And don’t forget to share your own creations with me! I love seeing your photos! Show me  your finished layered flowers after reading our Flower tutorial! My email is located in the “about me” section in the right sidebar. Or you can share with me on Facebook or Google+!

Are you ready to get your crafting on?

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