Kanzashi Blooms!

I found a really cute book lask year on making a Japanese style fabric flower, 'Kanzashi in Bloom,' by Diane Gilleland.  Three types of petal instructions are given (round, pointed, and pleated), and the book has many projects for using the blossoms for jewelry, hair ornaments, fashion accessories, and even home decor items such as drawer knobs and a tea cozy.

Diane also has a very colorful craft blog, called CraftyPod (click here to go to CraftyPod), which has lots of craft tutorials, inspiration to get your crafty going, and information about the book, Kanzashi in Bloom.

I gave a demonstration on making Kanzashi blooms to my EGA chapter last week, and here is a picture of the pins we made.  They are very colorful!  See the cute lady bug pin on Susan's green flower?  She sewed the button on in a way that gave the lady bug antennae.   Please note the tiny bloom on the right, it's actually a ring to go with my pin.  Tiny blooms are a challenge to make.  Cotton is the best fabric to work with, as you can finger press the folds and the shape will hold well.