DIY Framed Cork Moodboard

Welcome to today's tutorial.  Sorry for the lateness on this one, but with Easter going on and a two year old who is just coming to understand the wonders of chocolate, well it's been a busy weekend to say the least!  Hopefully your holiday has been peaceful and fun-filled in equal measure!  Given that we're all now recovering from chocolate comas, I thought I'd keep today's tutorial quick and easy.  Today we're making moodboards using just a frame and some cork roll, easily found at any big craft shop!  It features my rolled roses, click here to visit that post (opens in another window, so you won't lose this one!) to learn how to make simple rolled roses from fabric scraps and ribbon.

For this tutorial, you will need the following:

• A roll of craft cork
• a picture frame (mine is for and 8X10 and was from a discount shop, but any frame will do)
• lace or ribbon (enough for two 20cm lengths)
• velvet ribbon 1.5cm (I made 6 strips of 10cm each in pink and blue.  Make as many as you would like for the amount of thumb tacks you wish to use).
• thumb tacks (brass tacks with a nice large flat face for good adherence to your roses are best)
• double sided tape
• scissors
• craft glue and skewer
• marker
• extra strong glue (E6000 or similar)

Start by unrolling your cork, and lay it down as flat as possible.  Dismantle your frame and use the glass as a template for cutting your cork.  Use the marker to draw around the glass then cut the cork with scissors.  Depending on the thickness of your cork and the length of the points on your tacks you will probably need a few layers.  I stuck with 3 layers, which still left the tacks slightly proud of the cork, but any more than that and I wouldn't have been able to close the frame again.
To keep your cork layers together, put a strip of double sided tape along the top and bottom, and a strip down the middle of two of the layers and sandwich them all together, making sure to keep the edges as even as possible.  By putting the tape down the middle, you prevent the top layer of cork from bowing out of the frame.
Cut your lace or ribbon to two 20cm lengths and position them diagonally across two of the corners of your cork.  Pin them in place and turn the whole thing over.  Use double sided tape to secure the ends of the lace or ribbon to the back of the cork.  Remove the pins.

Now it's time to reassemble the frame.  Set the glass aside, as you won't need it (I do these sort of things a lot, stay tuned for a tutorial for what to do with that glass!).  Sit your cork in your frame and replace the back, being careful if the cork is a bit thick for your frame.  It may need some gentle persuasion.

Follow my Rolled Rose tutorial for turning the strips of velvet ribbon into pretty little roses.  Glue the roses onto your tacks with strong glue (not just craft glue, as it won't bond properly to the metal of the tacks).  Let them dry thoroughly before using.

Here's the result so far:

Now, at this point its perfect for a few different uses; to organise the mail or notes as part of your household command centre or office, or as somewhere to keep reminders, invitations or keepsakes.  I used mine to create a little shabby moodboard.

Ribbon, felt flowers, eyelet lace, a vintage-look label, some silk flowers, paint chips and a cute little souvenir Mum picked up in Singapore or Malaysia.  It's a great way to draw a few different things together, get them out of the drawers and up where they can be seen and give inspiration for decor or a craft project.  An option would be to replace the lace in the bottom corner with a strip of pretty fabric to make a pocket for larger items or envelopes.

So there you are, a nice easy one for the Easter recovery!  Let me know what you used your board for by leaving a pic in the comments, or on my Facebook page.

Take care,
Emma

Shabby Rosie Posey

Welcome to this week's tutorial: making your own gorgeous little shabby chic poseys!  This tutorial will also feature a couple of alternative uses for your posies and flowers.  Let's get making!

For this tutorial you will need the following:

• Velvet ribbon 1.5cm wide cut to 10cm lengths (5/8ths" by 4")
• Lace. Mine is 3.5cm cut to 12cm lengths (1 3/8ths " by 4 3/4")
• Florists wire.  The wire used here comes in 46cm lengths (about 18"), some are left full length for beading and stringing buttons, others are cut in half for the velvet and lace roses.
• Needle and Thread (use a colour that blends in with the lace)
• Scissors
• Ruler
• Ribbon for tying posey
• Florists or washi tape
• Pliers (preferably a pair each of needle nose and round nose, as well as nippers for cutting the wire.  If you only have a pair of normal household pliers, that's ok.  See the notes in the tutorial about how to use these.)
• Beads.  These could be glass or plastic.  Use a mix of pearls, rounds and spears.
• Buttons.  Make pairs of buttons, one larger than the other.
• Craft glue, bamboo skewer and cardboard to protect your work surface.

Method

Start by forming your velvet ribbon roses.  For full instructions, check out my Rolled Rose Tutorial post.

Make 3 each of light pink and dark pink.

Next, make the lace flowers.  Thread a needle with sewing cotton in a colour to match your lace (mine is slightly contrasting so you can see it) and form a large waste knot at the end.  Roll up the first 2 centimetres (1") and put a stitch through the bottom of it to hold it in place.  Make large basting stitches along the bottom of your lace, then pull and coil the lace to form a ruffled rose shape.  Put a few stitches through the bottom of it, making sure to sew through all the layers.

Using a pair of flat pliers (or household pliers wrapped with masking tape to soften the ridges), wrap the end of one of your half-lengths of wire around the base of the lace rose.  Make sure to enclose all the layers, and squeeze to tighten.  Make 6 lace roses.

To add stems to your velvet roses, start by making a coil at the end of one of the half-lengths of wire.  Use round nose pliers to get started (or use household pliers and bed the end of the wire around the bamboo skewer), then use needle nose pliers, to pinch the coil and bend it along the length of the wire.  When the coil is about 1cm in diameter, bend it at 90 degrees to the rest of the wire length.

Use craft (or hot glue if you prefer), to bond the velvet roses to the wire coil.

To wire the buttons, use full length wires folded loosely in half.  Thread the two ends into the buttonholes (diagonally opposite if using buttons with 4 holes) of a small button and a larger button.  Hold the wire with pliers and turn the buttons with your fingers to twist the wires together and secure the button so it doesn't move.  Continue to twist the length of the wire together.  Make 3 - 4 button wires.

Use a similar method for the beaded wires.  Fold a full length wire loosely in half to find the middle.  Thread the bead, pearl or crystal on one end until it's in the middle, then twist the wires by holding them near the bead with pliers and using your fingers to turn the bead.  Be careful to wind onlly tight enough to stop the bead from moving, without over winding as they can be fragile.  Make 2-3 beaded wires for each kind of bead you're using.

Put together your posey by holding the stems in your hand, adding different types of roses, button wires and beaded wires, until it's all together.  Use the florist or washi tape to hold the posey together, and then use a ribbon to tie a bow.  Trim the stems as necessary with pliers.

Posey's like this make great decor and gifts, but there are many other applications for these forever flowers.

This boutonniere was made with a lace rose, a velvet rose, a button and a plastic rose which was attached to a wire using the same method as the velvet rose.  The stems were then wrapped in white ribbon and the vintage style key tied on with ivory ribbon.

This wreath was made with an embroidery hoop.  Wide white ribbon was wrapped around where the flowers were going.  A posey of lace, velvet and plastic roses with bead and button wires was attached in place with pink lace and pins.  The shipping tag was stamped and the lace was attached with double sided tape before the button and rose were added with glue.  Finally, a ribbon was attached to the top of the tag and the tag attached to the hoop with double sided tape.

Three lengths of wire were used to anchor the plastic and velvet ribbon roses.  The ends were coiled  and then the wires were glued to the middle of the slide.  The glue was hidden with ribbon and buttons glued on, then the flowers attached.

Thought of more uses for these pretty little poseys?  Let me know in the comments, and share your pics on instagram! (tag me in @liliflorapretty so I can share it)

Keep watching over the next few weeks for some exciting developments for both Liliflora Pretty and a revisit to a previous project I may have just found a happy home for!

Take care,
Emma