I was asked by several people to explain how I made the paper rose that I used on one of the DT cards that I did for Dutch Paper Crafts (see blog entry LifeStyle Crafts Embossing Folders). The idea was not my own, having learned it well over a year ago via someone else's blog. I was going to simply direct readers to the original blog site for the instructions, but when I clicked on my bookmarks, I received a message that the blog no longer existed. There are probably other blogs with the instructions, but it was just a lot quicker for me to make a few of the roses and photo the instructions as I went along. So, here is my attempt to share the instructions for these easy, but lovely looking, little paper roses. (This will be a long blog entry as I will be sharing a lot of photos.)
You will need one 5-petal flower punch. I'm showing various ones that I own. You will notice that several have just rounded petals and several have a "scalloped" looking petal. Either style will work. The larger the punch, the larger the flower. I've used all of the above at various times to make my roses. You can even cut the pieces from your Cricut as many of the cartridges have a 5-petal flower.
You only need to punch three flowers. These can be punched from paper or cardstock. It is your choice. I tend to use cardstock in solid colours to match the card/project I am making. I also ink the edges a lot to give more colour and texture, but this is not necessay. As you see, I am using the scalloped punch this time for my sample.
After you have punched the three flowers, you will need to cut them as follows: Cut a slit in your first piece between two of the petals. Cut the slit only to the middle of the flower but not through the middle (does not show well in the photos, but the first flower on the left). Cut one petal out of the second piece (do not discard any of your cut pieces as you will be using them). Cut two petals out of your third piece. You should have something similar to the piecs shown in the photo above.
This is where you will ink the edges of your pieces if that is your choice. Now, using a quick drying glue (I use Scott's quick dry), create your layers in this manner: glue the two petals beside the slit to each other. You will be adhering the bottom of the right petal to the top of the left petal so that you've form a 4 petal cone shape. For the second piece, adhere the two petals beside the cut out space in the same manner so that you have a 3 petal cone shape. The third piece is also done the same way so that you have a 2 piece cone. The fourth piece (the two petals cut out of your third piece) are then rolled so that one side rolls toward the front and the other side rolls toward the back. Your last piece (the single petal cut from your second piece) is rolled into a small cone. At this point, if you want, you can curl your first three pieces so the petals roll toward the back. This is done by lightly spritzing the underside with water and gently rolling over a pencil, stylis, skewer or whatever you might use for rolling your pieces.
It is now time to assemble your rose. Put a dab of glue in the bottom middle of your first piece (the 4 petal piece). Place your 3-petal piece on top so that the petals of the two pieces are off-set from each other. I usually place my rose on my cushion pad while assembling and take my stylis to gently push down in the middle to make sure the two pieces adhere to each other Do the same for the third piece (2-petal cone). (You may need to cut a small amount off the bottom of each cone so that they fit nicely inside of each other. Just snip off the point of the cone.)
Taking your last two pieces, place a dab of glue in the middle of your rose and then place the piece that is rolled to the front and the back inside the top cone. With your tweezers, gently maneuver the piece so that folds create the middle of the rose. Lastly, add a dab of glue to the middle of the last piece and place the tightly wound piece in the center. I have found that I have to trim a bit off the bottom of the last two pieces or they will stick up above the top of my flower. You may have to play with the last piece until it is to your liking.
These roses really do not take a lot of time and become even quicker as you get more used to the procedure. Here are four different roses that I made for this tutorial. The two pink ones were made using the scalloped punch and the two yellow ones were made using the rounded petals. I inked one of the pink roses (on the right) and turned down the petals. The other pink rose was not inked nor were the petals turned. I tend to like my petals better not turned. They seem to lie better on my card and with the punched leaves that I make. The non-rolled ones just remind me a bit more of the commercial roses that I buy. It is definitely up to you and what you like best.
I hope my instructions have been clear and that you will give this a try. These roses are wonderful additions when I don't have the right colour in my commercial stash for the project I' working with. I've used the small punch and the jumbo one (the technique is the same), and all results are quite pretty. Be aware that probably no two of your roses will look the same. This is OK as no two roses, even from the same bush, are going to be the same. Just have fun.
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