Coffee Filter Chinese Lanterns

Happy Halloween!

Look!  A seasonally appropriate post!  Unfortunately, this post doesn't technically fit into the series of coffee-filter flower experiments, since these aren't really flowers. According to Wikipedia, the papery lanterns are actually the plant's fruit.  Regardless, they are charming and feel very 'fall'. 

The lanterns are very easy to make (I think I say this about all of my projects). Cut out four-petaled shapes from coffee-filters (1).  You can experiment with different sizes; I just folded a large coffee filter into fourths and then cut out the rudimentary shape.  Using watercolor paints, color the 'flowers' orange (2).  Allow them to dry.  Pierce a hole in the center of the 'flower' (3).  Next, cut out four 3-3.5 inch sections of thin wire (4).  One inch from the top, wrap the wires together (5).  Wrap this inch in brown floral tape (6).  Insert the taped section through the hole in the 'flower'.

Spread out the four wire sections to line up with the four petals (7). Using masking tape, tape each wire to the middle of each petal (8 & 9).  Trim any excess wire or tape that extends past the end of the petal. Finally, bend the petals downward to form the lantern shape (10).  Attach them in a row to a thick piece of floral wire using more brown floral tape (11).

I hope you enjoy making these and I hope you all have a safe and happy Halloween!

Coffee Filter Daisies

In one of her movies, Meg Ryan says that daisies are the friendliest of the flowers.  On this subject, as with many issues, I agree with Meg.   There is something so cheerful and bright about the plant!  So, in the midst of a time filled with ghosts and ghouls, severed hands and spiderwebs, I thought I'd make a few dozen daisies to help offset the fear with some friendliness.

The basic flower is rather simple and pretty easy to make in bulk.  I think that the separate center helps give the flower some dimensionality and depth.  To make the center, cut out several quarter-sized circles from a coffee filter (1).  Next, fringe the edges of the circles (2). Twist a loop at the end of a piece of thick wire (3) and slide 7-8 circles onto the wire (4 & 5).

Cut out a quarter-sized circle from card stock (6) and cut a slit in it (8).  Form a cone with the circle around the wire stem (8 & 9).  Slide the cone up to meet the rest of the center (10) and color it a vibrant yellow with markers or watercolor paints (11). 

With the center completed, we now want to focus on the petals.  To save time on tracing and cutting, I fold the coffee filter in half (13), and then into quarters (14).  Next, I fold the resulting fourth of a circle in half (15) and then in half again (16).  One of the edges will give you a pretty good guide to the size of your petals. Cut out thin, slightly rounded petals (17 & 18).

One coffee filter should produce four 'flower layers'.  After applying glue to the base of the flower center (20), slide the layers onto the stem. Press the top layer to the center to form a cohesive flower (21).  Then wrap the stem tightly in floral tape and you're finished.  Make a dozen of these and you'll have a touch of spring to counteract the spookiness of the season!

Coffee Filter Hydrangeas

Since the most popular posts seem to be those concerning coffee filter flowers, I thought I'd try to experiment with a few more types of flowers.  I've always liked hydrangeas; every time I enter Whole Foods and see the blue-green potted plants featured in the flower display, I have to sternly remind myself that anything dependent on me for food and water would die within a week. Paper hydrangeas, on the other hand, are much easier to take care of!

Materials need for this project include: coffee filters, thin silver wire, Styrofoam balls, watercolor paints, floral tape, green paper, and thick floral wire.

To begin, you need to cut out a large number of four-petaled flowers. They should be about 1.5 inches in diameter (1).  Next cut 1 inch pieces of wire and bend them into a narrow "U" shape (2). Insert the wire through the center of the flower (3). Small pins would work just as well if you want to skip step 2.  Attach the flowers to the Styrofoam ball in an overlapping pattern (4).  Make sure the ball is completely covered.  If you want to cover the ball first in coffee filter paper, you can avoid any unseemly white patches in your finished project. 

Paint the flowers in a mixture of blue, green, and purple hues (5 and 6). After the ball dries you will need to "fluff" the matted down petals. Finally, cut out a broad leaf from green paper and attach it to floral wire with floral tape.  Insert the wire into the base of the ball and you're done! I used rather small Styrofoam balls in my project because that's what I had on hand. After grouping three of the flowers together and pinning the sides together with wire, I think it came out rather cute.  A larger Styrofoam ball might work better and appear more realistic.

Let me know how your flowers turn out!

Coffee Filter Gladioli

These gladioli are the result of yet another coffee filter flower experiment. They are very simple to make if not slightly time consuming.  The basic components are coffee filters, floral tape, floral wire, and watercolor paints. 

To form the buds of the plant, I bunched up a small piece of scrap filter paper (2). After wrapping floral tape around the base of the pinched paper (3), I attached it to a 12 inch long piece of 16 gauge floral wire. Several more buds, made in a similar manner, were then attached to the wire in an alternating pattern (4).  The amount of exposed paper in the buds should gradually increase as one continues down the wire.

In order to make the flowers, I needed to cut out several circles of filter paper. I freehanded the designs, cutting wavy edges around the perimeter of the circles (6).  The circles ranged from around 1.5-2 inches in diameter. After layering two of the circles, a piece of 26 gauge wire was looped through the middle of the circles (7). The circles were then pinched around the wire and one of the ends was wrapped around the base of the flower (8).  Floral tape was wrapped around the exposed wire (9) completing the rudimentary flower. Next, I attached the flowers in increasing size in the same alternating pattern as before (10 & 11).

Paint the petals of the flowers and the buds with watercolor paints in hues of red, orange, and yellow. And you're finished, a fresh bouquet of coffee filter gladioli of your very own!

Coffee Filter Daffodils

 

As promised, another coffee filter flower experiment. These daffodils were very simple to make: coffee filters, floral wire, floral tape, green cardstock, and watercolor paints.

I think they turned out rather nicely. 

I'm thinking about attempting irises next.  I'm sure they're going to be more difficult to construct than the daffodils and the roses, but they're one of my favorite flowers so I have to at least try.

Coffee Filter Roses

Over the last several months I've been experimenting with making paper flowers.  So far I've really only had success with roses, orchids, and cherry blossoms.

While the roses turned out passingly well (I gave my mother a bouquet for her birthday) I've always felt that they could have been done better.

The other day I came across this woman, Cassie Mae Chappell, who makes flowers out of coffee filters. She paints the petals with watercolor paints to produce a really beautiful effect.

I thought I would try my hand at making roses and if they turned out well I would attempt other flowers.

 

My first attempt came out alright. Although, I think the petals look a little splotchy. I'll let you know how future experiments turn out...