Denim Flowers: sustainable to make and fun to wear!
At PresentPerfect Creations studio experiments never stop. I try and test different fabrics, colours, shaping and assembly methods to create unusual yet wearable designs.
One of the less traditional fabrics for flower making that has always attracted me (and my customers!) is cotton denim.
Robust enough for everyday wear, so familiar and loved by many it lends itself well to a variety of flower shapes, simplistic and more intricate alike. Add skilful shaping with tools, backing with metallic fabrics and you will receive a beautiful flower accessory perfectly suitable for casual wear and beyond.
Feel free to upcycle your old garments for making any of these designs.
📌📌📌For all my textile creations I use stiffened fabrics. You can stiffen your own fabrics easily following some basic process. I am explaining how to do it in this post and video
Perhaps, knowing my love for this material you are not surprised to learn that I have a whole 7 day step-by-step video course devoted to a denim rosebud (pictured above) which is recommended as your beginner fabric rose course.
The denim rosebud can make a perfect groom’s buttonhole. Complemented with other flowers it effortlessly becomes a more sophisticated corsage or a hat trim. Small hydrangea flowers work particularly well here together with the rose. They can also be used on their own and turned into a casual yet sweet everyday brooch. Use the step-by-step Fabric Hydrangea Tutorial when making your own denim hydrangea flowers.
However more elaborate roses can be easily achieved with denim. The rose pictured on the right is based on my popular Silk Cropped Petal Rose Tutorial.
The contemporary design of straight cropped petals together with the recognisable look of classic blue denim make this rose unusually modern and visually attractive.
The tutorial onSilk Cropped Petal Rose is aimed at artists with previous experience in flower making. You will deepen your knowledge further and learn to
use a soft pad for shaping petals, learn to make complex rose leaves and an unusual beaded centre for your roses.
The denim theme in weddings has been going on for a while now. Over the years I have created groom’s boutonnieres, bridal hair pieces and corsages using a range of different flower templates.
Because of the nature of denim and its thickness flowers with a smaller number of petals work best. Camellias are one of those flowers that can be easily recreated with denim.
You can simply follow myVelvet Camellia Tutorialto make your own denim version of this classic Chanel inspired flower.
Some of my tutorials on leather flowers can be adapted to be used with denim. Both dahlias and gerberas are a good example.
DENIM POPPY FLOWER
Poppies have always been a very popular flower. Made of leather, velvet, silk, cotton, organza or other medium, they always look attractive and often carry a special meaning as well (think Remembrance poppies).
Guess what, these flowers can also be made out of denim. In my live online demonstration on the Wild Velvet Poppies I have explained the process of creating a simple (not so simple 🙂 ) wild poppy with only 4 petals using backed petals that are sculpted in an attractive way. Plus you learn how to make a very recognisable seed box for the centre of your poppy. To learn more about this video demo and purchase you access to it visit the Wild Velvet Poppies Online Demonstration page.
Use some upcycled denim from your favourite (or not so favourite) garments and create one of these upcycled denim sunflower brooches.
The instructions can be found inside my Fabric Sunflower demonstration recording which you can find here. You will need a couple of tools for shaping your petals. Luckily, the Essential Leaf Shaping Set is all the tools you need here.
Denim Lily Flower
To make sure the shape stays sharp and the flowers and butterflies are wearable, I do back denim flower parts with another fabric (as it is shown in the
For this job you are free to use either some plain silks like pongee, organza, lightweight habutai. Or you can throw in a touch of sparkle with metallic fabrics if you fancy it.
Both lightweight and medium weight metallic fabrics work well with denim. Furthermore you can dye them in the right shade of blue to match your denim completely should you wish.
Recently I have added another denim flower to my collection, this time a flower that can be made without specialist tools. Meet my denim lily, a perfect project for a beginner in flower making.
You can learn how to make this flower by purchasing the access to a recording of the live demonstration I held last winter For more information click HERE.
More complex, yet still recognosable shapes like this Denim Thistle can also be achieved. Use a combination of denim fabrics in a variety of shades. The petals can be made with lighter weight denim, upcyced if you’ve got it.
To create your Denim Thistles follow the instructions I have shared in the Witch’s Herbarium Video Demonstration. You can find the recording of the Witch’s Herbarium Video Demonstration here
One more flower perfect for those students who have not got any flower shaping tools is the No Tool Chrysanthemum. This type of Chrysanthemum has originally been featured during one of my live demostrations where I has shown how to make it out of genuine leather. Denim works for this design just as well. Feel free to try it out and create your own edgy denim chrysanthemum without the use of any specialst tools. You can find the recording of the No Tool Leather Chrysanthemum here
A rose that I have revisited lately is my Velvet Sweet Briar Rose (here pictured in black denim version).
A striking design, the velvet Sweet Briar Rose with its plush hand sculpted petals is stunning and indeed very sweet.
DENIM LUNA MOTH
Do not underestimate this misleadingly simple rose. With so few petals, there is nowhere to hide imperfections. You will learn how to create impeccable velvet petals that look so live and moving when in fact they are rock solid hard and very sturdy. The tutorial is aimed at brave beginner and improver flower makers with a set of flower tools.
Denim is a popular and affordable fabric. I am quite sure you probably have some of it in your stash right now. Why not use it to create something beautiful to give as a little gift, to wear yourself or to offer to your customers?
COTTON DENIM DANDELION
I have even made my signature butterflies and dandelion in denim!
Themed weddings are becoming more and more popular every year as couples do their best to create a special and unique day, memorable for themselves, their families and friends.
A denim themed wedding creates a relaxed atmosphere as the guests are expected to wear either denim skirts or jeans for the celebration. With the bride and groom wearing traditional outfits makes them stand out but at the same time calls for the appropriate denim accessories to complete the theme.
One can be very original and inventive when it comes to denim accessories. Thanks to its nature, denim fabric can be used for making flowers employing the same techniques as those used for the silk ones. The denim fabric is denser than silk but once treated it holds the shape well. I find it ideal for simple flowers with clean lines like these camellias of geometric dahlias
Brooches and pins can be used to decorate a groom’s lapel or a bridal dress. For the hairdo floral hair clips and pieces can be created using denim. And with a little bit of effort and lots of imagination some stunning denim fascinators can be crafted for the bridal party ☺
Have you tried making flowers with denim? If not, give it a go and you’ll be pleased how great they look. Wear one and get all the compliments!
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Use some upcycled denim from your favourite (or not so favourite) garments and create one of these upcycled denim sunflower brooches.
