This is one of several paper roses techniques I have tried in preparation for a friend’s June wedding centerpieces.  It was shared by crafter Cassie Chappell on the Martha Stewart Show.  You can watch the video (which flies through the process rather quickly), and read instructions here:  Coffe Filter Rose Tutorial.  It is absolutely stunning. The water color paint effect on the coffee filter creates the look of a real rose!

I got a little carried away with the tips and used acrylic wash on top of the watercolor

to get a more vibrant red.  Now I wish I hadn’t.  I think if I had just let them

dry, the difference between the tips and base would be more natural, like

Cassie’s in the video.  But still, I love them!  This is the first and only

one I made in this style.  It took awhile, and I think the bride

is going for the look of the larger petals like in this

paper rose tutorial I showed you, so it may be the last for awhile.

I stuck it in this vase with other roses I made from a different technique.

I have a certain mother with her eye on the bouquet (Hi Mom)!

So, what do you think?  That video is mind blowing,

particularly after you have tried this.

I hit pause and had to rewind like every 5 seconds!

Pin It]]> http://savedbylovecreations.com/2012/02/diy-coffee-filter-roses.html/feed 1 http://savedbylovecreations.com/2012/02/diy-coffee-filter-roses.html http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/SavedByLoveCreations/~3/s04pu7zq0dk/home-decor-with-kcompany-ephemera.html http://savedbylovecreations.com/2012/02/home-decor-with-kcompany-ephemera.html#comments Sat, 25 Feb 2012 11:00:20 +0000 SavedByLoveCreations http://savedbylovecreations.com/?p=6168 Are you decorating for spring yet?  Whatever your style or theme, scrapbooking supplies can be used to add detail and interest to your decor. Use ribbon, lace, twine and paper embellishments to capture a lovely feel. I spied this  at Joann’s and had to have it for something. It contains all kinds of embellishments, including [...]]]>

Are you decorating for spring yet?  Whatever your style or theme, scrapbooking supplies can be used to add detail and interest to your decor. Use ribbon, lace, twine and paper embellishments to capture a lovely feel.

I spied this K&Company Ephemera Pack at Joann’s and had to have it for something.

It contains all kinds of embellishments, including little pockets, feathers, bird paper species cards, ticket stubs, flowers and more.  I wasn’t sure what I would do with it until I was placing these upcycled tin cans around my living room. They really needed dressed up and I thought of my ephemera pack.  I also had a random birdcage I wanted to incorporate, and this bird themed pack helped bring it all together.  PERFECT!

Grab glass containers & candles of all sizes from Goodwill, and use empty jars and cans from your kitchen to fill and accessorize.  You can tie things together with the oh so popular baker’s twine, ribbon, and lace.  Use clothespins to clip embellishments here and there.  Throw in some old books to vary height and interest.

Recognize the top rose from this paper rose tutorial?  The other rose I haven’t shown you yet, but stay tuned.

Here, I filled a mason jar with sand and placed a die cut paper flower.  Vintage buttons and velvet ribbonas table scatter.  So simple, and I love it!

For more mason jar ideas, check out my 50+ post!

Now  I am working on some printables to replace

the winter ones.  The mantel is almost finished too.

What are your spring decor favorites?

This week’s 50+ round-up will give you some ways to recycle those shirts you never wear into lovely home decor, jewelry, ruffled tops and much more.  Don’t have any?  Hit the thrift stores and garage sales to snatch up shirts for next to nothing, in the color palate  perfect for you project.  Enjoy!

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LINKY STUFF:

How it Works: No giveaways, shop or links to your main blog, please. That way we know when we come to Thrifty Thursday, we will only encounter DIY projects and not end up sifting through a bunch of other links. Entries not related, or to main blog pages/shops/giveaways will be deleted.
Other stuff:
*Please add a text link or my button to your post!
*2 projects from the previous week’s linky will be spotlighted, so let them know they ROCK!
*Please visit the at least the 2 blogs above you and shower them with comment love.
*Leave me a comment and let me know you were here. I love hearing from you.
*Have fun and be inspired!
*My friend Nikki knows how to throw a great party too. Be there…

FEATURES:

How precious is this boutique flower headband from Shabby

Beach Nest?  There is a great step by step there.  I am crushing

on handmade flowers in a big way right now, and this is

on my to do list for sure!

When her doorbell broke, Holly at Life as a Thrifter got creative and made this burlap

framed sign as an alternative.  The best thing about it, besides that it

looks great, is that  her napping girl  doesn’t get awakened everytime

there is a visitor!

Cameron Homemade walks us through the making of

a lovely mantle with revamped Goodwill art.  I love

the framed glittered key, and the red and aqua!

PARTY!

As promised, here is the paper rose tutorial I teased you with at the end of

Monday’s rose embellished frame tutorial.  You can use any decorative scrapbook paper you want,

but it should have print on both sides.  I like to ink the edges of the petals and

leaves with distress ink pads.  The possibilities are endless, so raid those scrapbooking

supplies and lets make some gorgeous roses!

SUPPLIES:

SCRAPBOOK PAPER (double sided)

CRAFT GLUE

FLORAL WIRE

FLORAL TAPE

PETAL & LEAF TEMPLATE (PRINT AND CUT OUT)

SCISSORS

BAMBOO SKEWER

WHEN YOU ROLL THE PETALS, DO 3 AT A TIME BY STACKING THEM

AND ROLLING THEM TOGETHER.  SLIDE THE BAMBOO STICK OUT,

LEAVING A “TUBE” OF ROLLED UP PETALS.

STRAIGHTEN THEM OUT TO GLUE BASE AND FOLD

AROUND FLORAL WIRE IN NEXT STEP.

ADD LEAVES IN DESIRED POSITION

DOWN STEM WITH FLORAL TAPE

Aren’t they FABULOUS?

Mother’s Day gift… check.

PURPLE? 

Absolutely.

Best part… they live forever!

Head on over to Suzy’s Artsy Craftsy Sitcom

for SBLC’s up close and personal interview.

Join the international creative hop while

you are there, and look around at

Suzy’s amazing creations.

While taking in your favorite projects from your fellow craft bloggers, do you sometimes feel like the photos you see are above and beyond what you are capable of with your current camera and lens?  I have felt that way for awhile.  With the massive amount of photos I see daily as pins, I decided it was time to take action.  But what kind?

I am not a photographer.  I know very little.  I bought a DSLR when I got serious about blogging, and have never manually adjusted anything.  For close ups, I turn the dial to the macro flower icon, for portraits, the face silhouette.  That was all I needed for awhile.  Now my blog is my baby, and I want to make it beautiful.  The standard lens set that comes with my particular DSLR takes great shots, but I notice blur when I zoom in using Photoshop for a close ups of my jewelry and other projects.  From my research, I deduced I needed to buy a macro lens… not cheap.  I decided to stop in my local camera shop and ask someone more knowledgeable what they recommend.  That is when I learned this about the Photoshop high pass filter.

Digital camera sensors and lenses blur the photo.  They just do.  The effect is negligible to many, but when you want that perfect shot with pristine detail to grab your reader’s eye, it is significant. You can easily resharpen using the high pass filter if you have Photoshop.

Here is an image I shot on my DLSR’s macro setting in my lightbox, before and after correcting the blur with the high pass filter.
Pretty big difference for a few simple editing steps.  According to the camera guy, this fix can be more profound than a high end lens.

It is easy as pie.  Just duplicate your background layer in Photoshop, then follow the steps below.

This works best if you shoot in RAW vs. shooting in jpg, as there is more information in the RAW file, so more detail to work with when sharpening.  Most DSLRs have the option to shoot in RAW or jpg.  Shooting RAW with take up more space on your card, and requires software capable of handling the file type (which Photoshop is).  From what I have read, even if you don’t shoot RAW, you can still see improvement with this filter.
I am impressed with the difference and no longer feel the need to invest in a new lens.  Yay!  Thank you camera guy.

What are your favorite photo editing tricks?

If you want to learn more about this filter, and other sharpening methods, check out this informative guide to image sharpening at Cambridge in Colour.

Paper can be used to create stunning roses for embellishing cards, frames, gift packages and more.  The most time consuming and tedious part of the process is cutting the petal and leaf shapes, especially if you want detailed edges.  Paper shape punches have made getting great, consistent shapes easy and quick.  Now they even come in sets of shapes needed to create a variety of flowers and layered embellishments, like the rose set used in this project.

Supplies:

• Paper for petals and leaves (card stock used in this project)
• Paper glue like Glossy Accents
• Floral Rose Paper Blossom punch set by McGill (got mine at Hobby Lobby).  At amazon (click linked text) you can get the punch for all 4 petals for $12.  The set includes 3 punches (one with the 4 petals, one with the leaf shape and one snowflake for the base) and costs $40.  Had I known this, I would have gone for just the petals since they are there are so many of them for each rose.  The leaves and base would be easy to do by hand since it is only a few shapes to have to cut.
• Stylus
• tweezers or bamboo skewers or toothpicks

Instructions:

• Cut six sets of the 4 petals, one snowflake base and 2-4 leaves per rose

• Now you will use stylus and tweezers or bamboo skewer to shape petals

Now you have gorgeous paper roses to add that special touch of spring to your projects!  I used 3 of mine to embellish a frame for my niece’s high school picture.  I love how the orange roses bring out the orange in her skirt.

Make sure you come back for Wednesday’s tutorial,

another paper rose that you don’t want to miss. 

Sneak peek…

Have you had the chance to see a yarn bomb in person?  I have been fascinated with these urban landscape upgrades since I first ran across a post about them, not only because yarn art is just beautiful, but because of the commitment involved in installing these things.  If you have knitted or crocheted, you know what I am talking about.  While it can be meditative and relaxing, lets face it, it is time consuming.  I admire the selflessness of someone willing to give themselves in this way to beautify their surroundings, fiber style.

How thrilled was I when on my visit to downtown, I parked my car next to this tree cozy on Friday?

It sits in front of a splendid local yarn store, Yarns Unlimited.  I decided to go inside, and see if I could locate those responsible for this particular yarn bomb, and wouldn’t you know it… there they were!

The central knitting table was surround by six ladies, needles moving, conversation and laughter flowing.  “Did you do that?”, I asked pointing to the stylish tree.  They explained there were several contributors, each knitting a piece that was unique to their particular style.  One loves chunky yarn, so her contributions were thick and made with huge needles, another crocheted her part, and another used multiple colors.  Together they pieced their portions around the tree, commemorating their individual uniqueness and group unity, while brightening their community.

Bravo ladies!  How I would love to have participated.  I may just have to join their cozy table and hope they plan a 2nd bombing.  If you are local or ever in town, be sure and visit this store.  There are amazing pieces of fiber art, from footstools to wreaths, even wire crocheted pendants and hanging yarn globes… a definite yarn lover’s paradise.  They offer several classes, even some for free, so go on over and treat your creative self.   You know you want to see it in person.