Crazy Craft: DIY Gilded Flowers
I'm labeling this little hare-brained DIY a "Crazy Craft"...which basically means that you can most definitely do this yourself, but you should be forewarned that you might get a few odd looks from concerned friends and family who fear that you've taken one step too many off the Pier of Crazy. Behold...DIY Gilded Flowers!!!
A few years ago I decided to play Mother Nature and painted some wild apples in a bright shade of fuchsia. It's still one of my favorite projects ever (not functional, but just really fun). So after picking up three bunches of fresh zinnias from our local Farmer's Market this morning I decided to bust out some gold acrylic paint and gave a few of them the Midas Touch.
To create: Start with flowers with firm and distinct petals such as zinnias, daises, or open roses. Using a small paintbrush and gold acrylic paint (of course you could use any other color you'd like) paint a random number of petals on your flower. Since you are only painting a handful of petals on each, this is actually a pretty fast project. Paint all the flowers in your arrangement, or just a few. It's up to you. I'm not sure how long they will last painted in this fashion, but they sure do look pretty sitting on my desk right now.
If you have a bit of extra time on your hands, these would make a really great accent to a party centerpiece...and will definitely be one of those elements that makes your guests take a second look. For something a little bit different you can also paint the petals with craft glue and then dust them in glitter for a fun effect (perfectly suited for a girl's birthday party or baby shower). What do you think? Is painting flower petals completely bonkers or something you might actually try? xo Ez
Credits: Acrylic paint found at my local Michael's | Martha Stewart Glitter in Kunzite - part of a set purchased at Michael's | Bangles by Fail Jewelry. All photos by Ez Pudewa (me).
19 Lovely Comments | Email Article | found in D.I.Y. + Projects, Tutorials, Weddings + Events Print Article | Share This | 
| by Ez Thursday, July 28, 2011 
Reader Comments (19)
Love this! It's a little of both... bonkers and incredible! And your right, it would surprise the heck out of people!
So fabulous! I think these would look great in a wedding bouquet :)
So pretty! I especially love the pink glitter. :)
This is such a great idea! I bet sparkly nail polish would do the trick too. Thanks for the inspiration, Ez!
I LOVE this idea, so pretty!
I love love this idea! I think it's genius. I am throwing a glitz and glam bachelorette party and this a perfect added touch!
you crazy cat you! I love it and would definitely hop on the crazy train with you on this one!
it's like alice in wonderland when alice paints the roses red :)
Love this! Genius!
This is absolutely something I would do! I love it and can't wait to give it a go. x
i love the one with pink glitter!! so pretty :)
I'd be curious to know what the petals look like a few days after. Have they bruised or have the flowers spoiled earlier? Keep us updated.
Such a fun idea and so pretty!
At first I was skeptical... but I kind of love it. Nice DIY
xoxo
http://www.thewrittenrunway.com
Never thought you could make petals look even more pretty! Even nature sometimes needs a helping hand ;-)
que lindas quedan :D
Hey this is great, it looks nice but it doesn't look like it's artificial. Doing this kind of delicate job requires lots of patience and skill and I admire yours. It's a great art. Be sure to check out my site about DIY glass decoupage. Anyway keep up the good work!
This will add twist to my regular flower. Nice idea!
Haha, now that's really different. I like how the pink glitters came out. It's definitely very creative :)