Paper Lace

Hello Friends!

Oh happiness. Oh joy! Oh relief!! I'm finally internet-connected and rolling with technology again. I've been unable to work on my blog since late Friday when I lost access to the internet...hardware problem. Of course I have a smart phone so I haven't been completely offline but when I couldn't get all of my pictures and files and everything I need to blog where I needed it to be, I was seriously off-kilter. Now...I'm on kilter again and all is right with the bloggy world.

 

Today's project is one that popped into my mind as I was walking through Joann the other day. I was in the wedding section, looking for different supplies I might be able to use creatively. Then I saw these. Doilies. And I immediately thought of making rosettes with them.

Have you ever seen the ribbons given at state fairs, horse shows and lots of other competitive events? That's what rosettes look like, with a center medallion and different layers of gathered ribbon around the center. When I make rosettes, rather than ribbon I use (primarily) paper or cardstock. In this case, though, I thought I'd give these doilies a try.

 

 

I knew these particular doilies would work well because they're rectangular and could be folded in the style needed to make this shape.

They were made by folding two doilies 'accordion-style' and then folding each stack in half as shown (a few pictures above). I used a tape roller to tape the two sides together at the center and then used the tape roller again to attach the two doilies at their sides.

 

 

Once the two were connected, I fanned out the paper and attached the last side of the two doilies together. When they were arranged in a circle, I used hot glue where all the folds meet in the center to stabilize and connect the rosette.  The center medallions were cut and then glittered with, in this case, silver and pearl (you can use whatever color coordinates with your event). When the rosette was stabilized, I attached each medallion with more hot glue.

 

This project was very inexpensive; I made three rosettes for $1.20 (6 doilies to a pack, they were on sale from $2.00) plus a glue stick; I could easily have made a dozen for under $5 plus a few glue sticks. So there you go.

 

I'm always happy when my ideas turn out even close to what I had envisioned. I love the lacy look of this rosette, perfect for weddings or showers or brunches. I think a collection of 20 or so of these rosettes hanging at different heights would make a fantastic display at any event. It's very doable for anyone with time, a little glue and some mad folding skills!

 

By the way, do you like the little leaf heart that I spied on my walk this morning? I thought it looked perfect - a little crackly and a little misshapen - but still a heart nonetheless. It made me smile in spite of my internet-challenged weekend. A very good thing.

Stay tuned.

~ M ~