August 03, 2016
7 Simple Ways to Design a Fabulous Flower Crown
A girl feels like a princess when pretty flowers encircle her head. This is why brides are falling in love with flower crowns this season. You can add floral flair to your wedding collection by offering this popular hair accessory.
The flower crown craze
Flower Crown. Flower Halo. Floral Headpiece. The name for this popular 'lush band of flowers worn in the hair' has changed over time, but the magical feeling of wearing one remains the same.
This trendy idea can be traced to ancient Greece. Through the ages and around the world—from Greeks to hippies—people have worn flowers in their hair to symbolize love, honor, fertility and celebration.
It’s fun to discover and share ideas for recreating this design from the past for a new look.
A picture perfect idea
Nicole Reisen, a Hy-Vee designer in Iowa City, Iowa, recently shared with me the photo of a flower crown she created for a New Year’s Eve wedding. The bride and groom wanted something special to honor the bride’s twin sister, who was also the maid of honor. Nicole began by braiding together three pieces of curly willow tips. She used a wire like an OASIS Metallic Wire to strengthen the shape of the headpiece, creating the base of the design. She then used OASIS Floral Adhesive to glue the Ecuadorian red heart roses, blush David Austin garden roses, Tibet roses and touches of hypericum berries and spiral eucalyptus onto this base. “I used OASIS cold glue, it’s my best friend some days,” said Nicole, explaining how she secured the flowers. “I knew it could withstand the cold, winter temperatures of Iowa.” While lots of flowers look great in a flower crown, using a variety of flower sizes and textures looks especially pretty. Wire or glue your larger flowers in place and then glue in the smaller additions. For a personal touch, add accents of OASIS Decorative Wire, a ribbon bow or piece of jewelry.Experiment with these 7 techniques and ideas
- Use a wire armature – One of the easiest ways to make a flower crown is to start with an OASIS Wire Armature. Shape it into a circle; use OASIS Floral Adhesive to glue in the flowers.
- Hand-wire a circlet – Form a circlet by wiring small individual clusters of delicate flowers or foliages into a petite garland using OASIS™ Metallic Wire. Use filler flowers such as gypsophila (baby’s breath), wax flower, and limonium or foliages like plumosia, tree fern or seeded eucalyptus. Trim away excess material with scissors to shape the form.
- Use foliage or vine as a base – Measure and cut a necessary length of foliage like Italian ruscus or ivy or a flexible vine. Lace OASIS™ Metallic Wire up the stem for added strength. Bend into a circle and use the wire ends to bind the form together. Glue the flowers in.
- Wire a row of flowers - Run a stiff florist wire through the sides of flower heads such as spray roses or daisies wiring them side-by-side in a circular form. Glue bits of baby’s breath or other small filler flower or leaves between the blooms for a softer look.
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Use OASIS Decorative Wire - I especially like working with the thin diameter of OASIS Etched Wire. Measure the length of wire needed for a finished crown. Cut a piece of wire triple that length. Bend it in half into a U shape. Starting at the curve bend the wire back and forth across itself making the shape of an eight repeatedly until you reach the end. Bend the form into a circle. Leave enough wire to secure the wire around itself leaving a hook on one end. The first hole of the first eight will be the 'eye' that the 'hook' goes into as a fastener. Glue small pieces of foliage to this base. Finish by gluing flowers to the form.
- Attach a veil - For a more casual look, brides may choose to have their wedding veil attached to a flower crown. Design a circular floral headpiece and add wisp of veil flowing from the back.
- Add life to the party - Provide flower crowns for both girls and guys in the pop-up photo booth. Set up a flower crown station for wedding guests to make their own designs. Suggest wearing a flower crown to the prom or homecoming dance.