Tutorial: Fabric Flowers

I've been meaning to take step-by-step pictures of this little process for awhile because these flowers are quite simple to make. It took me a time or two when I first started, but now I can whip one out in the dark (although I haven't tried. Hot glue is involved and things could go downhill rather quickly.). Anyway, they're not difficult and require very few supplies (things you likely already have) which is nice because craft projects are rarely cheap. 

You will need:

Hot glue gun and glue sticks

Scissors

Fabric (I used burlap but you can use ribbon, patterned fabric... anything your little heart desires)

Cut your fabric into strips that are roughly an inch or inch and a half wide. Clearly, when I say "roughly", I mean it. You don't have to cut ALL of your fabric. Just start with one strip and go from there.

Using your thinnest strip and roll one end up like this. Glue it in place. This is the center of your flower.

This is where it started off tricky for me, because this isn't something easily explained. You're going to sort of flip the fabric backward. It will make a "petal" of sorts.

Continue doing that, gluing where it needs it.

In this picture, I'd gotten to the end of a strip of fabric, but wanted a larger sized flower, so I glued the end of that strip down where you couldn't see it and began a new strip right where I left off.

I used three strips, and saved my widest one for last because I think it looks better, like a real flower opening up wider or something. Here's how it looks from the back.

I cut a rough circle from my fabric to cover the messy back of my flower. Not only does it look better from the back, it helps it all stay together a little better.

And here we go from the front. The burlap definitely gives it a rustic sort of look, and this looks completely different from flowers I've made from ribbons and such.

As for what you can do with your flowers, pretty much anything. Glue to a headband or a pin for your hair, or you can do what I did, which was glue them onto a wreath.

Seriously quite easy. It makes a cute baby girl gift in a pinch, an embellishment for a plain shirt, or even a nice wreath update. 

One note though: Do not wear fleece while making this (if you're using burlap). I was in my pjs while I made this (which is also why all these pictures were taken on my comforter... I wanted to be cozy) and didn't think to change. Carson thought that I'd sat in something, and I guess I sort of did. Burlap fuzzies everywhere.