Today I am sharing with all of you Savvy Deets Bridal readers, a tutorial on re-purposing buttons to be used in a fun alternative bouquet idea, the button bouquet!
I have long had my eye on these cute bouquets for a long time. My inspiration for creating a button bouquet came from Cute as a Button, a U.K. based Etsy shoppe. These bouquets are so cute, and since I had a plethora of buttons already, I wanted to put together my own bouquet.
I recently shared a tutorial on creating a brooch bouquet, a great way to re-purpose collected passed down or antique shoppe jewelry pieces. Button bouquets share the same idea in creation, and are a bit easier to put together, because its all about great little buttons, instead of brooches and the like-kind of a challenge if you haven't tried yet-but worth the end result for sure!
Here is the tutorial to creating your own button bouquet:
Tools
Buttons 30-60
Floral Wire-22 gauge
Floral Tape-White
Needle Nose Pliers
Ribbon/Trim
Step 1
Start going through your button collection, and piece together buttons in a color scheme you like. For the tutorial I chose red, black and white buttons, the actual bouquet is all white hues, keeping it a bridal bouquet.
Step 2
Now that you have your buttons selected, start stacking those that can be stacked. Start with a larger button as the base, then stack with buttons, going smaller. Grab your floral wire, and string the buttons together as pictured above.
Step 3
Take your wire then loop through the top of the smallest button going back through the buttons, keeping in mind to thread through the opposite of already threaded buttons. Once the wire is fully thread, pull the wire ends together, and the buttons will gather together against the wire.
Note: Some buttons don't have the regular button holes at the top, yet a loop under the designed button, and these are fine to use as well singly, kind of adds depth in the bouquet. Simply run the wire through, then continue with the steps below.
Step 4
Now grab your needle nose pliers, pinch the wire together and hold the pliers in place. With your opposite hand, start twisting the buttons in a counter clockwise position. The more you twist against the clamped spot of the wire, the wire will tighten, and you should feel the buttons tight and secure. Continue twisting and inching your pliers' placement as you go down the wire.
Step 5
Continue and repeat this process, and you'll be seeing button "floral" stems gathering around.
Step 6
At this point, gather up your bouquet, and start placing the stems in a way that is fitting for a fully bouquet. Once you're content, twist all the wires together to form a firm stem base for the bouquet.
Step 7
Get out that floral tape, and start wrapping the base, beginning at the top of the bouquet traveling down to the bottom, and then going back up. I did this twice to get a strong base.
Step 8
Now the final touch is grabbing your ribbon or trim you want to use, and wrap up your base. I began with wrapping from the top of the stems, straight down to the base and back up to cover the floral tape, then once at the top again, I starting wrapping the trim down in a spiral pattern, and again, when at the bottom, went back up the base. I secured the top of the ribbon with a little bit of floral tape, it works as a double sided tape.
This is where you can get creative: tie on a pretty bow at the top of the stems, adorn with pretty embellishments like a brooch, or a fabric flower, its up to you. This example is pretty basic to start with.
And the final result:
Isn't she sweet?! I think so anyway!
These little button bouquets can be for the bridal party bouquet, as decor at events, at the home, or even given to someone special in lieu of actual floral bouquets-these don't wilt, and you will receive great responses from the recipients, not to mention the guests at your events!
I hope you enjoyed this tutorial, let me know if you will be making your own button bouquet, I would love to see your creations!
Have fun getting crafty for the big day, or any day!
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