FABRIC FLOWER TUTORIAL

It’s here, like I promised!  I have had an enormous amount of traffic to the original post of the fabric flowers and I mentioned that I would eventually give a tutorial on how I do it.  This project was not created by me, nor was it created by the person from which I found it.  Apparently, it’s a craft that’s been done since the 60s or 70s I’ve heard. 


What you will need:

• Fabric  This is a project where you can use up some of those scraps.
• Glue  I really like using Tacky Glue.  It is much better than regular school glue and it really is… well… tacky.  I also use the glue bottle to form the petals.
• Floral wire  I use the 18 gauge, white fabric wrapped floral wire.  In my area, it seems that Hobby Lobby is the only place that sells this exact kind but Wal-Mart does carry the wire too.  Just not the 18 gauge.
• Rounded tool  This could be just about anything as long as it’s smaller than your glue bottle.  I’m partial to my wooden spoon because the handle gives a great shape.  You’ll see why soon.
• Floral tape  You can find this at the Dollar store, Wal-Mart or any craft store with a floral department.
• Wire cutters
• Felt balls  I like to use 18mm in various yellow shades.  I buy mine from Honey Canada on Etsy.

Start of with wrapping your floral wire around the glue bottle and twisting the ends around each other.  Leave as little or as much as you want for the length of the stem.  I find that using the tip of my wire cutters to flatten the sharp pointed end helps save my fingers.

Then use your rounded tool (in my case, my wooden spoon) to pull your petal into shape.  Just slip your circle onto the end of your tool and give it a nice tug.

Add a line of glue onto the petal.  Don’t worry so much about globs and drips.  Tacky glue dries clear and I feel like I have a better hold when the glue is smushed around the wire on the fabric.

Lay the petal glue side down on the right side of the fabric.  Make sure your wire stems are somewhat straight so that they will lay down and not want to flip up.  The placement of the wires onto the fabric is totally up to you.  You can line them up in a row like shown above, or you can alternate them like in the photo below to save fabric.

Then sit back and let them dry.

Once they are dry you can start cutting them out.  Use a pair of nice sharp scissors so you can cut through any glue that has smushed out and dried on the sides of the wire, but I wouldn’t recommend using your beloved fabric scissors.  You want to cut close to the wire around the outside of the petal.

I like to have five petals in my flowers because this size petal just seems to fit together best that way.  So, once you have five, group them together making sure the tops of the petals are all flush and even.  I try to have them all facing each other with right sides all toward the inside.  It makes it easier to spread them out later.

Next, take your fabric tape and start winding it around the top just below the petal and work your way down the stem twisting tightly.  This is where you will thank yourself for smashing down those pesky pointed ends earlier when you twisted the petal shape.  Some floral tape sticks to itself nicely but I’ve worked with some that need a little help with a dab of glue.

Now you can start unfolding your petals back.  If you have any facing the wrong way just twist them into position.  Then bend them back into a nice curve.  I like to use something rounded like a glue stick but you can use your fingers as well.  It’s all about preference.  Drop a felt ball inside with a bit of glue and Voila!  You just made a fabric flower!! 

I love watching these flowers come to life.  I think my favorite so far is using white fabric with a yellow felt ball to make daisy-like flowers.  They’re just so happy!
Have fun with it and I’d love to see some of your flowers if you make any!  Leave a comment and link to me!