One of my favorite embellishments to add to a card or scrapbook page is flowers.  There are so many gorgeous ones available to purchase in all shapes and sizes.  I actually have a whole shelving unit full of jars of different flowers but there are always those times when nothing I have seems to work for my card.  Sound familiar?  Then it is time to make my own.   I wanted to share some very simple techniques to create some stunning flowers.

I recently made this flower using Peony 2 and Blossom 2 and Spellbinders Blossom 3 die.  I used watercolor paper and spritzed it with water so it was quite damp.  I added some subtle color to the paper by touching a damp baby wipe to a stamp pad and then touching it to the paper several times.  I repeated this with one or two other colors.  The colors will spread and if you spritz them, they will spread more and lighten.

Then I stamped the Peony 2 and Blossom 2 on top of this with pink.  Once the paper dried I cut out the flowers with the coordinating Blossom 3 dies.

I wanted a little more color on the edges so I sponged them with more pink.  I also added a little to the back edges of the flowers and then made cuts between each petal.

Using a thick foam pad and a large tipped stylus, I began to press down on each petal along the edge and working towards the center.

As you continue to work your way around, the petals will curl up toward the center.

Next, press down and make a circular motion right in the center, causing the petals to pull in around each other.

To put the flowers together, I used SNS Dimensional Glue and added pearls and buttons to the centers, though you can also poke a hole in the center and add a brad.  For the large pink flower I used one Peony 2 and two smaller Blossom 2’s.  For the smaller blue flower, I used two Blossom 2’s.  These stamps can be purchased together as part of Stamp Set 429 – Blossoms, which also includes even larger flower images.

These flowers are really fun to play with, trying different cardstocks and dies.  Sparkle N Sprinkle has more great flower and medallion images, along with Cut Files that work great.  You can also use just the dies and/or cut files and then color them with inks, stains, or watercolors before shaping them.  SNS’ Pearlescent Watercolors work great.  You can even get even more shaping and curling by working with them while they are still damp.

And, of course, don’t forget about adding glitter.  Simply brush each petal with SNS Brushable Glue and sprinkle with glitter.

Now remember those baby wipes you used?  Don’t throw these away.  You can add more ink to them, or simply save the ones you use when cleaning your stamps.  Allow them to dry and then use flower dies on them.

For these I used a small punch (using cardstock) to create the center and gathered a small flower die cut around it, using a small amount of SNS Dimensional Glue.  I continued to add one more small and two larger die cuts.

Here are a few others I have made using different dies.

I hope this has inspired you to try this.  Be warned, it can become addictive!!

E. Marie

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