May 27, 2011

A Topiary

My sweet nephew is expecting his first child and I will be helping my sister with the decorations for the upcoming baby shower.

The mom-to-be has chosen Winnie-the-Pooh as her theme and though I am a huge fan of the cuddly bear myself, I was not so in love with the color scheme of the more current Pooh. So instead of opting for that bright orange bear in his micro mini red shirt, I decided to go for the original more classic Pooh with a color palette of sage green, cream and pale yellow.

I knew that I wanted some height to my table decor so I decided that would be the first order of business. Now what to create? On a trip to Michaels for craft supplies (one of my favorite places in the world...hehe), I walked past a topiary and began thinking that would make a great piece for the table. So I set to work on my own version for the shower. Check it out!


The materials I started with - styrofaom ball, pearlized pins, sage green acrylic paint, and fabric flowers





Time to paint the styrofoam ball and begin assembling flowers all around.



Now that the top is finished, I need to begin work on the stem. I used a wooden dowel that I had on hand. I originally thought I would do the stem like a traditional topiary using ivy but after purchasing some (dollar store find) and placing it around, I realized that it wasn't the right look. So back to square one I went. After a couple days of thinking about it, it came to me while cleaning (that's when my best ideas happen) that I should stick with the style on the top and that was...pearls! Why didn't I think of that earlier (hehe). So a trip back to Michaels garnered me the necessary supplies: jewelry wire, pearl beads and some beautiful transparent pale yellow ribbon (to be used as an accent). The stem is looking good!




Wow, this is beginning to come together well. Now to get this baby finished - time to paint the pot. I used a terracotta pot that I painted with sage green and pale yellow acrylic paint and finished off with a clear acrylic spray.





Now time to assemble and put on the finishing touches. I stuffed the bottom of the pot with newspaper to keep the stem from going all the way down. Used the half styrofoam ball (from the St. Patty's Day centerpiece) and cut off a portion to fit inside the pot. Carefully, stuck the topiary through the styrofoam and glued on some spanish moss to cover it. Took that beautiful pale yellow ribbon and glued it around the top of the pot then used it to make a flower (sewn together), took a button that I had around to create the center and then glued that on top of the ribbon.





Voila, my version of a topiary!



I can't wait to put this table together. I'm working on the plaque for the blessing board and the banner to either go over or on the table (not sure just yet...teehee). I promise to post pics of those soon!

~ Happy Crafting!

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