Monday, January 10, 2011

Rose Kissing Ball Tutorial

Finally!  I know I have been promising this tutorial for a while now. 

I was inspired by many different versions of kissing balls that I had seen, but my favorites have been the ones covered in roses.  All of the directions I found for making the roses involved using hot glue to make the roses, and after a nasty burn, I decided to find a better way to make them.
 



All you need is some crepe paper streamers (I used two rolls (approx. 100 ft. each)).  Glue sticks (I used 4 glue sticks for this project).  A stryrofoam ball (your choice of size) and a hot glue gun (for attaching the flowers).

Cut or tear your crepe paper into strips about 20"-24" long.  I varied my strips a bit so I would have bigger and smaller roses.

Crumple your strips up, this makes them more flexible and life-like.  (This would be a great job for the kids to help with!)



Unroll the strips and fold over the top edge 1/4"-1/2".  I wasn't very exact with this, you just want a folded edge to make the petals look softer.

Now comes the sticky part.  Use your glue stick to apply a line of glue along the bottom edge.  I found it helpful to work on a piece of wax paper.  Be careful not to push to hard or the crepe paper will rip.  You want to get enough glue that the paper will stick to itself as you are rolling.



Starting at one end, roll the strip to form the center of the rose.


Keep rolling and gathering the crepe paper around the center.  Be sure to pinch the bottom edge together.  It helps to have a damp towel nearby to wipe your fingers on when they get too sticky. The more you gather the flower the fuller it will look.


Roll and gather the whole strip, pinching the bottom to keep it together.

Make a pile of roses.  To attach to the ball, I folded the bottom edge over, added hot glue, and glued onto the styrofoam.  Nestle the roses up close to each other.



You can add a ribbon for hanging.

More uses for the crepe paper roses HERE.

36 comments:

Ada said...

I double love it!
I have wanted to make one for a while just wasn't sure where to start.
Thanks for the tut. It's great!

Princess of Everything (and then some) said...

I love this! I am going to have to try it!

Altaira said...

Love this! these will be perfect for the Alice in Wonderland theme party i am throwing for my daughter next month!! Thank you

Allison said...

I love this!!! I love the roses by themselves too!!

All So Cute said...

woww so romantic :)

~Angel S.~ said...

Thanks for all the lovely comments! I am glad I took the time to take some pictures.

JUJU e LELÊ Artesanatos said...

Muito lindo o trabalho.
Tutorial perfeito.
Parabéns!
Beijos,
Lelê
http://jlartesanatos.blogspot.com

Monica said...

So cute! What a great idea!

Nathalie Fleuri said...

So beautiful..

Nathalie Fleuri
olhaquechic.blogspot.com

Creative Mind said...

how easy & smart..thanks for the tutorial....

Jille said...

Thank you for sharing this. It would be so lovely to make in red for Valentine's day too!

John'aLee said...

What a cool tutorial! I'm going to make some of these for my sewing studio to hang from the ceiling.
Thanks so much for sharing!

Stephanie SM said...

would be fun to make! how long did it take?

Sherrie said...

That is just so gorgeous !
Thanks for sharing it with us all.
I would like to try it with a very fine fabric.
Sherrie from http://simpleliving-sherrie.blogspot.com/
I would love you to drop by when you have a moment .

Sweetly Fallen said...

So pretty! Thanks for sharing!

Crystal
http://www.SweetlyFallen.etsy.com

ali said...

Beautiful! Using streamers is such a great idea, I would have never thought of it!!
These would be great in a smaller version sprayed with a fragrance and hung in a closet. :)

Shelly said...

this is beautiful! great for a wedding! love it!

Joy said...

Let me start off with... I love it! Let me follow up with... I just had a baby so I still have a bit of "pregnacy" brain mixed with zero sleep. BUT...
I can't do it!!! I have been trying for the last hour and my rolls look like a rolled up piece of paper. I am trying to roll it not as tight but I can't get it. Help! Please!

Heart-Hands-Home said...

Joy, don't give up, you will figure it out! Let's see if I can help. First make sure you are just holding the bottom edge (where the glue stick is), I kinda scrunched the edge together as I rolled it. Sometimes they don't look like much until you are almost finished. Also, make sure that the flap from the folded edge is to the outside of the flower, I think it looks a little beter that way. I hope that helps you some!

Virginia said...

This flower ball looks really elegant in the soft pink and would be great for flower girls.

nona said...

love that and just might use that at my wedding. nice

Michaelbkarenb said...

can you tell me what size styrofoam ball you used?

Hearthandshome said...

I used a 6" styrofoam ball for the one in the picture, but have used smaller balls also.

Jessica Edwards1721 said...

how can i make these into a bouquet for the flowers girls?

Hearthandshome said...

You could try making the roses around a wire or chenille stem. Place it in the center and form the rose around the wire. Or you could make the roses and wind wire around them afterwards, you would just have to be sure to wrap it tightly to hold in place. Another option might be to glue them directly onto a bouquet holder. I know a couple of people were having their flower girls carry the ball of roses, just add a thick ribbon for carrying.
Hope on of these ideas helps you out!

Hearthandshome said...

http://heart-hands-home.blogspot.com/2011/03/more-crepe-paper-roses.html

Katie Davis said...

Love love love this! My bridesmaids carried kissing balls at my wedding 13 yrs ago yesterday-everyone loved them because they had never seen them before. Will be making some of these for my little girls room as topiaries

Stacy said...

Thank you so much for sharing your great idea! I too was looking for a less finger-burning way to make crepe paper roses - planning on attaching them to styrofoam cones of varying sizes to nestle together on a charger or in a long basket for entry way table decoration (wedding shower gifts). Now I'm motivated to get them done!!!

Hearthandshome said...

Yay- to no more burnt fingers! I love the idea of putting them on styrofoam cones. I have been making some flowers for a baby shower and hadn't decided how I was going to use them yet, I was thinking maybe a wreath for around the punch bowl, I would love to see pictures when you are done!

Denise said...

you can try gluing them to a half ball and glue that to bouquet holder.  I bet that would look really nice!

Denise said...

you can try gluing them to a half ball and glue that to bouquet holder.  I bet that would look really nice!

Our Homes said...

So creative....

Hearthandshome said...

Thank you!  They take a while to make, but I love the way they look.

zip codes said...

nice and very simple to make flowers from paper...thanks for sharing the pictures which makes things simple

Olshnka said...

I like this idea.another good idea is if u have alot of dried roses cut them at the top and hot glue them to the ball

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