Another Fantastic Flower tutorial from Joanne

These flowers are simple to make, and don't take as long as the steps in the tutorial would imply!
It is important to make sure that the pieces are dry before attempting any shaping.

Supplies:

• Plain white printer paper
• Green card or paper
• Punches - leaf, heart, 1/4" circle, stamen
• Embossing mat (or similar spongy surface)
• Sponge
• Markers
• Tweezers, Needle tool (or darning needle), embossing ball tool
  
• Stickles
• PVA glue

For each flower punch out four hearts, one 1/4" circle, and one stamen from the white paper, and one leaf from the green.




















Put a small blob of pva glue on a scrap of paper, and touch the point of the heart to it to transfer a tiny bit of glue. Only a very tiny amount is needed.


















Stick the four hearts to the circle as shown.



















Sponge colour onto the outer edge of the heart petals. I used colour from my marker, and transfered it onto the sponge by wiping the brush nib repeatedly in a patch on the sponge. Set aside to dry.



















Using the markers, colour the stamen shape as shown. Then add a touch of Stickles glitter glue on each rounded end. Set aside to dry.




















Place the heart assembly face down on the embossing mat. Using the needle tool held flat on the mat, curl each curve of the heart top by making a sweeping motion from the edge towards the centre - a bit like spreading butter. Press gently into the mat at the same time. If it curls too much then use less pressure, too little then use more. Only do this just on the curved parts of the heart shape - not all the way in to the centre.

















Turn the piece face up again, and using the ball embossing tool start at the base of one heart, and make a spiral going in towards the centre. At first use only very gentle pressure, and then get a little firmer as you get into the middle. The more you want the shape to cup, the more pressure you need. If it cups more than you want, then gently spread the petals back down with your fingers.



































Use the embossing tool in the same way to cup the stamen shape. Don't use the tool over the ends with the glitter glue.

















Put a tiny spot of glue in the centre of the heart assembly, and add the stamens. If you don't have a bottle with a fine applicator, then use a cocktail stick or toothpick to apply a spot.














Place the leaf onto the embossing mat, and use the needle tool to score vein lines. Hold the tool flat against the mat, and press and pull the point from the stem of the leaf towards the tip. Then draw the needle from the centre vein to the edges to create the side veins.
































Turn the flower upside down and put a tiny blob of pva in the centre. Place the stem of the leaf in the blob of glue. Leave to dry.
















Finished flower. I have added a touch of clear Stickles to the centre of the flower - still wet in the photo!













In the arrangement I made on the challenge card, I added a few extra leaves here and there to fill it out. It is not necessary to stick the leaf to the flower base if you find it more convenient for your arranging.

A note from Julie

Thank you to Joanne for another brilliant tutorial ~ you can find more of Joanne's lovely creations on her Mainly Flowers blog HERE

If you use Joanne's Tutorial to make your own flowers please leave a comment with a link to your creation so that we can come and admire xx

How to make labels for your craft

Transfer method

You will need

• Word Processor/Graphic editor to design your logo



• Strip of fabric ( I'm using ribbons for this tutorial)



• Iron



• 1 Sheet of Iron on transfers ( I've used Rymans)



• Inkjet printer



• Your creative head

Design your Logo

I use Corel Paint Shop Pro to design my logo. For this tutorial I've used Microsoft Word as most people have this word processor.

1. For a step by step guide on creating your logo using Microsoft Word try this



2. This is an important step for this method. Once you are happy with your logo, group your images together then flip your design to create a mirror image. Here's a step by step guide on how to group images



3. To flip the images make a copy of your original image(now grouped). Highlight the copied image.On the drawing toolbar, click on draw, then click on rotate or flip then on flip horizontal. Here's a picture of my logos before and after I flipped it
   
   
   
   
   
   

Print your Logo

1. Highlight your flipped image and on the drop down menu click on copy.
   
   



2. On the menu bar Click on Tools. On the drop down menu highlight Letters and Mailings. From the sub menu click on Envelopes and Labels. You should get something like this
   
   
   
   
   
   



3. Click on options and you will get this
   
   
   



4. From the label products menu choose a template. I've chosen the Avery Standard and 8460 address. Play around with this until you find a label that works for your design



5. Click ok and it should take you back to the screen in step 2. Now click on New Document and a new screen will open. If there are no grid lines showing on the menu bar click on Table and on the drop down menu click on Show Gridlines



6. Right click your mouse and an image of your logo should appear on the document. Move the image into the boxes. repeat this process until you have filled all the boxes.Play around with the position of the images and adjust the box height and width until you are happy with the positioning.You can make the image smaller or bigger by left clicking on the image and dragging any of the circles.



7. Once you are happy, print your images directly on to the transfer sheet( Follow manufacturers instructions)

Transfer image to Fabric

1. Cut your printed logos into strips like this
   
   
   



2. Iron the strips on to your chosen fabric (Follow manufacturers instructions)



3. You should now have something like this
   
   
   
   
   
   



4. Cut to your required length. I've used a pinking scissors for a decorative edge.

sew your label on to your lovely craft or use fabric glue. I also use studs both to secure and to add an extra bling to my labels

This is quick and easy once you've got the hang of it and the results can be really pretty. The disadvantage of this method is that it will wear off with time and you cant iron it once the image is transferred.

in part 2 there's a tutorial on how to make labels using another method. Hope you enjoyed this one. if you found it useful or you need me to explain any of the steps drop me a line.

Iron- on Adhesive method

You will need

• Word Processor/Graphic editor to design your logo



• fabric measuring 8 1/4" x 11 3/4" ( Size of A4 paper) I am using plain old cotton for mine



• Iron- on Adhesive( I've used Therm o Web, Heat n Bond purchased from John Lewis Uk)



• Iron



• Inkjet Printer



• Your creative head

Design your Logo

1. Follow step 1 and 2 in this post to design your label but don't flip your finished image. Group your images together so you have one completed image

Prepare Fabric for printing

1. Cut the iron- on adhesive thingy (Therm o web, Heat n Bond) to the same size as the fabric (A4 paper) and then follow the manufacturers instructions for bonding it to your fabric. ( Don't peel of the backing paper yet)

The one on the right is the iron adhesive cut to size ( It comes in the pack as one strip 17" x1.25 yards) Ps it doesn't usually arrive this ruffled I've ruffled it to show the difference as its the same colour as my fabric.

and this is it ironed on and bonded.

Print your Logo

1. Follow steps 1 - 6 under Print your logo in this post ( Ignore the bit about flipping your image)



2. Put the bonded fabric in your printer and print your design. ( if your fabric is thick you may need to give it a bit of a helping hand )

This is what it looks like printed out.

I leave the backing paper on and cut the labels to the size and shape as needed.

Once you cut to the size and shape, peel of the backing paper and iron on to your bag/craft.( Follow manufacturers instructions) You can also sew it on.

...and this is the label on my craft-y bag

and the label belongs to this bag

This is the method I use for my labels. You can sew it, its washable and you can iron it. I suspect there's a lot more creativity to come out of it yet.

A bit about Therm o Web.

I think this is an American product. I did buy mine from John Lewis (UK) a while ago. I went back for more recently and they had sold out.

I've done a search on the web for UK based suppliers and so far have found this web site. Somewhere on the site it does say they are trade suppliers but I haven't checked it out yet.

If you do know of a shop either on line or bricks and mortar selling this product please let me know.

Hope you found this tutorial useful. If you did I'd love to hear from you.

Oge

x

A note from Julie :

Thank you Oge for a great tutorial

Please check out Oge's fantastic site HERE it is FAB!!