Blokey Flowers From Electrical Tape for Valentine's Day

Valentine's was fast approaching and I needed to do something special. What would adequately express my feelings yet be uniquely me? Wanted to show my sensitive side but not be too feminine... so I decided to make some 'blokey' flowers out of electrical tape! It was a hit!

It was also a good way to transform common electrical tape into something way cooler!

Take a long strip of electrical tape in the colour of your choice. The colour you choose will determine the colour of the resulting flower. I originally doubled the electrical tape back on itself (sticky side inwards) to make it easier to handle. However, bear in mind that doing this will increase the thickness of the petals. In the end, I decided to skip this step and opted for thinner petals. It also makes it a little easier to make as the stickiness will help to hold the flower shape as you fold in your later steps. My advice is to experiment and find what you prefer.

To start the core of the flower start a little in from one end of the strio and twist about 1 cm of the tape tightly.

Bend the strip outwards (away from you) so that it runs parrallel to the core. Wrap the resulting folded section around the core. Repeat this process changing the angle of the bend each time to slowly open up the flower. The pictures probably explain the process better than my words.... experiment a little, there's no right or wrong. Continue until you have a nice looking rose head.

At this stage you can cut the excess tape off and stick another strip of green electrical tape to the end to make a stem. Simply wrap the green electrical tape downwards progressively. You can see from the picture different flowers made in this manner. The pastel colours were made by wedgeing a coloured strip between two white ones.However, you end up with a much thicker head. The dark blue one is made from a singe strip and the yellow is made using two strips stuck together as per step one. Electrcal tape is really forgiving so play around until you find something that suits.

Here I have some made from red electrical tape. There are all single strips as I think they look more realistic with thinner petals. The one on the very left was made by increasing the width of the electrical tape by taping two strips side by side with the edge slightly overlapping so that they would stick. Eight roses to symbolise eternity (the figure '8' on its side is the symbol for eternity)

To make leaves for the flower heads, take a small strip of green tape and fold on itself leaving a small raised section in the middle. This is achieved by sticking the edges of the folded section slightly inwards of the main strip (see picture). This creates the effect of a curved spine for the leaf.

Cut out your leaf shape. Leaving folded section slightly longer than the original so that you can stick it to the flower head.

Attach the leaf to the head and use a little more green tape to hold in place.

If using only a single strip to make the rose heads they will be sticky and attract dust on the exposed adhesive sides. To get around this and preserve the look of the flowers I coated them with spray varnish. Krylon brand is what I used (I think)

Then plan your arrangement. I used the big one in the middle surrounded by the others.

Make some bigger leaves by taping two strips side by side. Trim with scissors to the desired shape. Don't forget the technique to make the crease in the middle.

Glue all the flower heads together and attach the larger leaves afterwards.

This pic shows the heads all glued together. I had to buch them up a bit for a better look. and tape that with some more green tape to hold it in that shape.

Cut a little frame from wood to hold the flowers. I used two retangular pieces, one with a hole cut in it. Then stain to your desired colour.

Create a stencil to engrave your frame with.

Using a rotary tool, engrave your message. Apply a coat of clear varnish to provide contrast between the engraving and the stained wood. Attach the flowers with lots of super glue. (Notice I rounded the larger leaves for a better effect). Then add some of your favorite perfume to ensure your flowers smell nice.

And there you have it! Blokey flowers for Valentine's. It's the effort that one puts into a present that makes it special!