Stop and Smell the Roses

I started up a new summer internship, which means for the past month I've been focused on commuter life and not so much on homesteading. However, with this long weekend, I found a new project.

Book page flowers!

I love flowers - particularly roses. But roses are expensive and unfortunately they die. Pinterest to the rescue.

What is more quaint, vintage and crafty than roses made from old book pages?

Somehow I managed to get my second cold of the summer and despite being an adult, my mother insisted I stay home from church and not spread germs to the entire congregation. So I opened the windows, turned on quiet hymns, and crafted not one, but a dozen paper roses.

It was a calming way to relax and meditate on the beauty of nature and the grace of God. Monday is just around the corner, but if you'd like to try your hand at these next weekend or during a quiet moment this week, here's how.

You'll need:

1. Book pages (from any book you don't want or read)
2. Scissors
3. Cotton swabs
4. Hot glue gun and glue sticks
5. Flower tape
6. Fake stems
7. Vase

First Step:

You will need five different sizes of petals, from about 1/2 inch to 2 inches wise and 1 to 2 inches tall, depending on how large you want your rose. Mine are about 3 1/2 to 4 inches in diameter.

Cut the paper in rounded petal designs, but don't worry about making them all the same. In fact, I'd suggest creating different variations for each rose, to keep them pretty and natural.

You can stack multiple book pages to cut out more than one petal of each size at a time, which might save your sanity, so I'd suggest it.

Each rose takes about 3 - 5 petals in each of the five sizes.

Second Step:

Using a cotton swab as your base, wrap one longer petal around in a tube shape and glue it down, as shown:

Third Step:

Roll the top of your smallest petal size about halfway down:

Fourth Step:

Pinch the bottom to create a rounded petal and glue onto the base. The 3 - 4 smallest petals should fold inward, covering the middle base.

Example of pinching with a larger petal for detail

For the Rest:

Roll, pinch and glue each successive petal, but instead of folding inward, fold out. I found it easiest to use scissors to curl the edges (like you would gift ribbon). There really isn't a science to this, you just fill them in where they look best.

Curled outward using the scissor method

In the end, you will have this:

The bottom:

You can purchase green flower tape and stems to seal your bases and have a nice long stem. I don't have any yet, so mine are just resting on the cotton swabs. I'll update once I get the supplies!

Finally, find a vase (mason jars are my favorite), twine, ribbon or lace and create a nice home for your bouquet! Perfect for your counter top or bedside table and no watering required.

If you love these but would rather have someone else make them - let me know! I'll ask for enough money to cover supplies and a little labor, but I can make them out of any paper you'd like. It takes about 20 minutes start - to - finish for each rose!

Happy Summer :)