Thursday, February 10, 2011

Making Paper Roses - more details


I did a little more experimenting with my file for the paper roses today.  I wanted to try enlarge the cut to make some really large flowers.  I found that it was easier to assemble large flowers but it is still tricky to get the petals to line up correctly to give a natural flower look.  I tend to have problems with hot glue guns so I used Scor-Tape as my adhesive and it worked great!

If you missed the post about my inspiration for these flowers and the DCWV version that started the whole project, you can read it HERE.




I used a shape from Accent Essentials as the base to give me the spiral and then added circles and ovals to create the petals.  Here is the preview of the final shape.  It is similar to the template you can download from the DCWV blog but not exactly the same shape.  I may try some other shapes to form the petals...




You can see how I fit things together in this screen shot.




I made this shape in two larger sizes to make some BIG roses.  Here they are when I first removed them from the mat - they are totally flat.




I used a chopstick to curl each of the petals so the flower would have some shape.




Here is a closer view of the curled petals.




I assembled the center by turning the petals around the center and securing every so often with Scor-Tape.  I could have stopped here but I decided to add the outer layer.




This resulted in a rose about six or seven inches in diameter.



If you keep the petals more vertical the flower will be a bit smaller.




As you twist and turn around the flower, you sometimes need to make a fold or pleat to get the petals to fall correctly.




I need to practice some more to keep my petals from getting into rows - the flowers look more natural if the petals are staggered and not overlapping directly.




The first flowers I made were much smaller.  They all were made from the same spiral shapes - I just resized the file for each cut.




This photo gives you an idea of the relative sizes of the flowers.  You can adapt the size and shape of the petals to create exactly the flower you would like.  Paper choices are important - these are all test cuts on extra paper I had on hand  - I will choose the papers more carefully to get the look I'd like my final flowers to have.  I think the larger flowers could use a more defined center and might be better done in two coordinating papers.


I still need to convert the file for Gypsy users and test it.  I'll try to post both the Design Studio and the Gypsy versions sometime on Friday.  I started to have some pain in my left shoulder today and it is bothering me a lot - I don't know if it has anything to do with the procedure they did on my back but I need to rest and see how I feel in the morning. 


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34 comments:

  1. Diane,
    I love this flower. I still need to download the Gypsy files and learn to use it more. I am such a greenhorn. I hope that your shoulder get better soon. Just a note to say thanks for all you do. I have learned alot from you and appreciate the instructions and procedures.
    Blog:
    http://lovethatexpressions.blogspot.com/

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  2. These roses look great, love how you created them. I seem to have a natural ability to see how something is put together where I only see the outline lol. This is what I love about your site I always learn something new so thank you.
    Kim xXx

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  3. Great roses!!!
    Thank you very much for all your post and the how you create your cuts they are so easy to understand
    Hope you are feeling much better.
    Have a great weekend
    beazora@yahoo.com

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  4. Wow this is so cool. I might have to try it with my Gypsy but I am not sure I will be able to do it.
    Now you take care of yourself. I hope you feel better soon.

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  5. Wow!!! this is amazing how you made this flower. I love all of your work:-D I check your stuff every morning.

    dendearmas@aol.com

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  6. Beautiful roses!!! I'll be sure to come back for the Gypsy files!!

    Feel better soon!


    TFS, Cheryl @ CardsbyCG.blogspot.com

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  7. I'm going to have to learn how to download gypsy files & get this one. I really like how the smaller flowers turned out, because like you said, they look better when the petals are more staggered (I tell my cake students that all the time).

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  8. Thanks for the more details on making these paper roses. I tried making some from the site you previously provided. I have decided that with my little cricut, they are just to small and do not look good at all. So, today, I am going to hand cut the two pieces from a large file size and try again. Perhaps, once I learn how to make the big ones, the smaller ones will be easier and look better.

    Thanks a million for all the great files you are adding. They are so very helpful for me.

    Kimberly

    kimberly.pate@gmail.com
    http://scrappingrookie.blogspot.com/

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  9. Diane,
    This is fabulous. Thank you for doing this. I hate cutting by hand, but I loved these flowers so much. I noticed that even Erin at DCWV had the same problem with the petals not wanting to stagger enough. I think that is why she used hot glue so she could sort of pinch and stretch the layers and form the flowers better.
    Hope your shoulders are better after resting them. Back problems are no fun.
    Marcie

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  10. Hi Diane,

    Your flowers look great, hope your shoulder is less painful and that your back surgery is a success,
    thanks for all your ideas and help.

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  11. I love your file. I hope you post it soon. I was wondering how I could do these with the cricut.
    marilyn2222 @ hotmail.com

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  12. Diane,

    The flowers are beautiful and your directions are always so easy to follow! - Donna

    PS - I left you some love on my blog!

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  13. Thank you so much for sharing this file. It was very easy to follow and I have wanted to make these flowers for forever but didn't know where to start. Thank you, thank you, thank you for sharing!!

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  14. Diana, I hope you should gets better. Thanks so much for all your work and all you share. You are such a wonderful teacher and inspiration.

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  15. Thank you. I had planned to ask you if you could make these paper roses to use with Design Studio and was excited to see that you had already done so. I will be looking for the download

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  16. You are so awesome with DS!! I will definitely download the file but now I have to buy Accent Essentials!! (as if I needed an excuse to shop!)

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  17. Wonderful wonderful .. do you think I can use another spiral and George for the ovals. I don't have the same carts you do.

    Love love the petals on the spiral roses AND the large large rose.

    Read your newsletter every day but seldom come to your blog .. cause you do a great job of giving info in your Newsletter.

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  18. WOW Diane, leave it to you to make a design studio file for these beautiful flowers. I can't wait to give it a try. TFS! Hugs- Glora

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  19. Thank you so much Diane. I am a brand new Gypsy owner as of two days ago and I hardly know how to turn it on but hopefully can learn with your files in the future.
    I love that you share so freely and are willing to take requests too!

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  20. Wow, these flowers look beautiful. Nice job! And thanks for doing all the hard work for us.

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  21. WOW What can I say this flower is wonderful and so beautiful, TFS it with us.
    Hugs
    Fi xx

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  22. Oh my, this is completely and utterly incredible! I actually own a Silhouette SD but I think I might be able to create something similar for it -- would it be ok with you if I posted a tutorial for Silhouette users on my blog -- of course if you let me, I'll be referencing you and your blog and giving you all the credit for the idea!

    Please let me know if that's ok? I've love to share this with Silhouette users. You can see my blog here:
    http://blog.craftandsmile.com/

    Email craftandsmile @ fio.oib.com if you like, or reply here -- I'll be watching!

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  23. Oh, and I just had back surgery (herniate disc) last week myself, so I hope your surgery is going well and you are resting and following doctor's orders!

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  24. I've been wanting to make roses with my cricut. I have a gypsy and haven't used it. Maybe I could do both. Yes! That will be my first project on the gypsy - I can't wait....

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  25. Your flowers are beautiful. I don't have the energy to work that hard when I can purchase them though. Hope you get feeling well soon.

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  26. I love the flower. I figured if anybody would be able to come up with a file for these flowers, it would be you! You are so good with computer stuff, like that. Darn, I don't have accent essentials cartridge. Flowers are such a hot trend right now. It would be great to come up with a cut file and have our Cricuts do all the cutting. It would save so much time. Thanks for doing that.

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  27. Just loving your flowers! Sending hugs and get well wishes for a speedy recovery! Sandra

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  28. Take care of yourself Diane! We can all wait for the patterns. It is just so nice of you to even give them to us. Hope your pain is gone and you have a wonderful weekend!

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  29. You have outdone yourself AGAIN! I love your design and am looking forward to the gypsy file. Have you heard if we can use Design Studio files with the new Craft Room when it comes out?

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  30. These flowers are so beautiful! I've been waiting to try them and I hope to soon.
    Thanks for the files and the easy instructions!

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  31. Thank you so much. You are awesome. These are just gorgeous. Thanks so much for all your hard work and creativity.

    FayraiDesigns

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  32. These are SO pretty!! Thanks so much for sharing!
    Shellee

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  33. Diane, Thank you for this particular tutorial and making or going to make the file public for Cricut. I need to utilize my Cricut for this project because of my limited hand use. With your file with DS and my Expression Cricut I'm going to be able to make these fabulous roses!
    I will go search for the file now. I had to write my comment first!
    I hope you are feeling better with your shoulder and back. Happy Valentine's Day!
    Sher

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  34. Thank you so much for helping me (a novice) at paper roses!!!

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