bouts attempt #1

My first hands-on DIY projects! (Somehow DIY/Photoshop-ing the save the dates doesn't seem to count the same in the hands-on category.) This was a pretty minor project... that wasn't all that exciting, but I'm gonna blog about it anyway! :-P

Come along with me on my boutonniere-ing adventure! Soooo.... Yesterday afternoon, I went to JoAnn's AND Michael's. Lemme tell you... anytime before or around Christmas time is not a good time to try to shop for silk/fake orange flowers. :-P JoAnn's had like 2 orange flowers and they were too BIG and ugly, and Michael's had some faded looking orange things. Both pretty fail. But then I picked up some berry looking ball-y things, some floral tape, and green ribbon that I hope is somewhat sort of hopefully no one will really notice if it doesn't 100% match the bridesmaid dresses we haven't gotten yet sage/green ribbon. I really wanted to find some orange flowers so I could practice and get rolling on these boutonnieres, and my mother has this cute bouquet of little fake orange flowers in the bathroom. I asked nicely and she said I could borrow some... if I cut them from the back. :-P

Here goes. My supplies!

Two orange flowers already assembled together with floral tape, a sprig of berry looking ball-y things, a spool of floral tape, green ribbon and a leaf I cut off from the orange flowers. :)  (Sorry lighting is so poor)

Sorry this picture is focused on the WRONG thing (fingers bad, flowers good) but you just add piece by piece, and you just wind the floral tape down, making sure to keep it all tight and together.

Btw, I did not know that FLORAL TAPE WAS SO STICKY!!! Not like... you put it on and it won't come off... but it's just some tacky stuff! But it's quite wonderful how you can rewind and redo parts and it'll still be sticky.

And here is my prototype! :) I thought it was rather cute for a first try. haha. But I think it's a tad bit on the small side. I was working with limited supplies and floral options. I would definitely like to try the orange flower I WAS looking for... it's a bit bigger and it'd look nicer with bigger flowers that won't get lost in the mix. I like how the ball-y things give it more dimension though they wouldn't competely cooperate so they're all just kind of bunched up in a row back there. I think I'd like more a leafy backdrop.

Close up.  I don't know why the little balls have spots on them. Ew. >_<  I didn't do it well on this but I like it when there's an arch of grass in the back.  :-P

I'm excited cause when I do have the supplies I want to work with, I think it could go well!  And they'll cost like... 35 cents each or something.  :-P  What do you think I can improve on?  Are there too many berry balls?