Think Pink

I am helping with a baby shower next month and wanted to create some handmade touches for the event.  After spending way too much time on Pinterest and the Internet, I decided to get to work.

Last year when sweet little Julia Jones got married, I became obsessed with the dyed coffee filters her and her sisters made.  I KNEW that someday, I too would be making these by the hundreds.

I dyed white filters pink and gray-brown.  In addition to making a variety of flowers, I also used the dyed filters and made a bunting.

A BIG thanks to Emily Jones who introduced me to the blog with her inspiration.  http://www.auntpeaches.com/2010/09/coffee-filter-roses.html

I have written instructions to share,  but cannot figure out how to upload the document!  In my next life I am coming back as a computer geek wizard!  I did some painful cutting and pasting, so my efforts wouldn't be a total loss! 

 

I loved turning jars and bottles into cute glittered vases and plain, cheap coffee filters into amazing flowers.  WARNING: can be addicting and cause lack of sleep {since you might not be able to stop creating once you start!}  Notice the moisture on the inside of the largest bottle/vase.  It needed to be rinsed and I didn't give it time to dry thoroughly.

PREP:

To make diluted paint mixture, add 3-4 Tablespoons of acrylic paint to ½ cup water and mix thoroughly.  Pour into a deep glass or metal container and add 2 more cups of water, stirring until mixed.

Place individual coffee filters into diluted paint mixture.  Immerse filters into paint mixture then gently squeeze out excess liquid.

Open up filters and lay them out on a flat surface to dry.  You can also leave filters “balled up” from squeezing out excess paint and place on baking sheet and dry outside.  Here in the Arizona summer that takes about ten minutes.  Each of these methods produce a different look.  Give both a try!

GATHER:

Glitter, white craft glue {suitable for glass and glitter}, painters' tape, dyed coffee filters {mine are the 6-8 cup size}, skewers, floral tape jars or bottles and decorative scissors.

BEGIN:

Vases - Place painters’ tape around the bottle to create guidelines for painting on the glue.  Add glue below the tape and sprinkle with glitter.  On another glass container, add glue between two strips of take and sprinkle with glitter.  Let dry completely before removing tape to reveal double or single glitter lines.

Flowers - Fold filter in half and half again.  Repeat twice, so you now have 3 filters.  Pinch bottom of filters together and wrap florist tape around them and the wooden skewer, wrapping down to the bottom of the skewer.  This technique is used to create the two flowers in the shortest vases.  To make a fuller flower use 4 filters.

Use decorative scissors around edges once you have folded filters in half and half again to create middle flower.

Fold one filter in half and half again, roll into a spiral.  Take second filter and repeat, only this time start spiraling around first filter.  Fold two more filters in half and half again.  Snip off SMALL tip where all layers meet.  Open up third and forth filters and push rolled spiral points down into center.  Smush to desired shape.  Pinch excess filter section and hold firmly with left hand while working wooden skewer into the center of the spiral.  Be patient and twist gently till skewer pierces all layers.  Push skewer down through hole. to position flower near top of skewer.  Wrap with florist tape as instructed above.  This technique makes flower number four - tallest one on the left.

I need to perfect flower number five before providing instructions.  I wasn’t happy with how that one turnedout  which is why I ended up making velvet ribbon leaves, adding lace, seam binding bows and a pearl.  This is the tallest flower on the right. 

I cannot wait for the baby shower.  It will be LOTS of fun!