Scrapbook & Cards Today Blog: The Potting Shed Tutorial with Becky Fleck, Part 1

Good morning, everyone! Is summer (or winter) winding down in your part of the world? I wish it was here in Montana, but we are still suffering through 90+ degree days. I’m so ready for autumn and I think my pups are, too!

Did you see this Potting Shed project on page 72 of our Summer issue? I originally created it for the Editor’s page, but when the boss saw the completed project, she snagged it for the Something Special page. I loved altering Maya Road’s house shadow box with these pretty flowers!

Since the Summer issue came out, we’ve received a lot of emails asking how to create the various flowers on this project. So I am going to be here today and tomorrow to show you how! Today we are going to cover the carnations and foxglove in the window box:

To get started, you will need the following supplies to create all of the flowers on the project.

Don’t worry if you do not have the exact same dies, punches and tools that I used. Any substitutions in a like size or shape will still create a beautiful flower! You can also use larger dies and punches to create larger flowers.

Stamens

Before making the flower part, you’ll need to have a few stamens handy. You can either repurpose them from existing paper flowers in your stash, or you can make your own.

You will need white twine, thin craft glue (or fabric stiffener), dimensional paint (such as Liquid Pearls by Ranger) and a clip.

Trim several 2” pieces of white twine. Dip them into white craft glue and squeeze of the excess. Set them aside to dry on a piece of waxed paper.

Squeeze out a small puddle of dimensional paint onto waxed paper. Dip one end of each piece of twine into the paint. Hang them upside down from a clip to dry. Super easy!

Carnation

Trim a 3” piece of Maya Road’s yellow Paper Twine Cording and carefully untwist it. Smooth it out with your fingers to lay flat.

Using a small five or six-petal flower die, die cut six pieces per flower. Since the paper cording is thin like tissue paper, you can die cut through several layers. (Note: if you use the same Spellbinders die shown here, you will only need the largest flower.)

With a large-ended stylus and a foam pad (a mouse pad works great), press down into the center of each flower to create a depression. It will look a little bit like a cup. Don’t worry about the flowers wrinkling up.

Using a very small dot of wet glue in the center of each flower, layer six flowers together, offsetting the petals. After the layers have dried, pierce a small hole down the center of all layers.

Add a small drop of glue over the hole and slip a stamen into it. After the stamen has dried in place, fluff the layers until you are happy with the shape of the flower. You can also pinch the layers tighter together to form more of a bud that has not yet fully opened.

Try this same technique with tissue paper and you’ll get the same result. Also, if you do not have stamens handy, you can make them yourself.

Foxglove Flower

Now, onto the foxglove flower. It kind of looks like a little carrot, doesn’t it!? This one is a bit more fussy to make but I love the look when it’s completed.

Punch or die cut several hearts. The height of the heart will determine the size of the flower.

Using a large ball stylus and a foam pad, rub the ball over the heart in circular motion to break down the paper and soften it. It will curl up on the sides, which is what you want.

With the barrel of a narrow pen or other long, round object (knitting needle, bamboo skewer, wooden dowel), curl the heart vertically around the barrel. Paper has memory, so it will remember this shape. Slip the heart off the barrel.

Following the shape of the curl, curl the two ends of the heart towards each other and overlap them, creating a cone-line shape. Use wet adhesive to secure the ends together.

Measure the height of your “cone” and trim a very thin (1/8”) piece of white cardstock to that height plus 1/4". In my case, the cone is 3/4” tall, so my scrap of white cardstock will be 1/8” x 1”. With fine-tipped scissors, cut the strip into three equal pieces, but do not cut all the way to the end. Curl the tips by running your thumbnail over them. Dip the three tips into dimensional paint and set it aside to dry.

To create the center stamen, pinch the bottom together and twist it between your thumb and finger, pulling the curls out in three separate directions. When you are happy with the shape, squeeze a bit of wet glue into the cone and insert the stamen. Set it aside to dry.

Please join me tomorrow when I will be covering how to make the roses and teeny weeny flowers. Oh, and we have a special give-away you won’t want to miss too!

Comments

I TOTALLY loved that when I saw it in the magazine, Becky! And these tutorial steps are awesome! I especially love the stamen idea! Thanks for sharing your 'how-to' tips with us!

Posted by: Kathy P | August 22, 2013 at 10:56 AM

wow! this is phenomenal! and thanks for the great tip on the flower stamens. I would have never thought of that....

Posted by: Jennifer Scull | August 22, 2013 at 11:09 AM

I absolutely love the Potting Shed. Thank you for expanding on the instructions. I hope to do this in September. A Birthday gift for me. Thank you for the opportunity to win a special giveaway.

Posted by: Marguerite | August 22, 2013 at 11:12 AM

Wow the detail work on this... Outstanding! Loved the project when I saw it in the mag. Can't imagine how many hours went into that creation but the result is amazing. Great tutorial. TFS!:)

Posted by: Cassandra | August 22, 2013 at 11:17 AM