Tutorial - Tim Holtz Tissue Tape Flowers

Hello ladies, this is Frea with a tutorial just for you.  I think this is a first for Little Miss Muffet Challenges, and a first for me too, so please bear with me. I got my inspiration from the Internet and gave making flowers with fabric and tissue tape a try and since I was quite happy with the result I wanted to share it with you all. Here's a peak of some of the flowers I did before.

For starters here’s a picture of everything you need; Tim Holtz tissue tape or other decorated tape like 7 Gypsies gaffer tape or the tapes that are around now for smashbooking. Tissue tape does work well since it’s thin and there’s not a lot of glue so your needle will go through smoothly. Then you need fabric, which can be thin calico, satin, organza and tule, needle and thread, beads, pearl strings and stamens or maybe small flowers for the centre, Glimmer Mist (optional) and a glue gun

We will be making these two flowers.

To begin you will need 2 strips of fabric 5 cm. x 30 cm. It will give you a flower of about 6 cm. diameter. If you want your flower to be smaller you will need a strip that is less wide and you will have to stick the tape a little over the edge of the fabric and cute off the surplus. For the left flower you stick the tape slightly away from the edge of the fabric and for the other flower you stick the tape exactly on the edge of the strip.

Now you take a needle and a double thread. For the top flower you fold the fabric in half and start a running stitch along the folded side of the fabric. For the bottom flower you also fold the fabric in half and do a running stitch along the open side of the fabric.

For the flower that has the running stitch on the folded side you pull the thread tight and make a double stitch so the pleats stay put. Then you stitch the ends together in order to form a pleated ring. For the other flower that has the running stitch on the open side you first make cuts to about a quarter cm. from the open end like on the picture.

If you like you can now spray the flowers with Glimmer Mist. I used self-made Glimmer Mist here that I made using a couple of drops Distress Ink Scattered Straw and some Perfect Pearls in the color Perfect Gold. Make sure you let this dry completely.

In meanwhile you can make an extra rosette with a different color to put behind the flower with ‘the loops’. To do so you will need a strip of 5cm. x 35 cm.; you fold this strip in half too en make a running stitch along the open side of the strip. Pull on the stitching but not so tight as the first one so the rosette stays a little larger than the rosette with the loops you made.

When this is ready you can make the decoration for the middle of the flower. You can use all sorts of things. For the 1st flower I’m using beads and a glue gun. Attach the 1st bead with a dot of glue to the craft sheet so it will remain steady when you’re working. On the opening of the 2nd glue you put a drop of glue and attach it to the 1st bead. Use a total of 5 beads to make a circle of beads. Then take 5 strands of some sort of pearl string (I used gold in this case). Using glue attach the ends to the middle, fold around to the back and also attach with glue. Finally put a rhinestone in the middle.

The flowers are nearly finished now. The flower with the running stitch on the open side was finished with some gold beadstring attached to the middle of the rosette leaving the ends loose and finally I added a paper flower in the middle. You add the bottom layer to flower with the 'loops' and the bead decoration in the middle. On the back of both flowers you attach a cardstock circle in order to attach your flower to a project.

By pulling the layers apart from the flower with the running stitch on the closed side you can create more body to your flower. Depending on the material you use you can achieve so many different effects. Tule makes the flower very romantic and organza gives a love of body to a flower. I hope you liked the tutorial. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me and if you would like to share your creations I would love to see them, you can find my mail on my profile.

Hugs, Frea