Christmas Kusudama Ball Ornaments

It's a little early to be thinking about Christmas, but with summer coming to an end and autumn just around the corner, I felt an urge to get a jump on holiday decorating. 

When I found these pretty red and green patterned paper, I couldn't resist making some Christmas ornaments.  These flower balls are called Kusudama (medicine) balls, traditionally made in Japan.  They were made with herbs and hung in rooms to prevent illness.  Today, these balls are made from 12 individual origami flowers, attached to each other to create this beautiful ornament.

Close up shots....

 

 

 

www.KatherinaKrafts.etsy.com

Victoria's Secret Upcycled Flowers

I was cleaning out my closets and came upon these Victoria's Secret bags, and was suddenly curious to see how they would look as upcycled origami flowers.  I loved the bright pink colors and the stripes looked like they would add a fun pattern to the flowers. 

So I set about carefully taking apart the bags.  After removing the handles and cutting the bags into little square sheets, I folded each petal and assembled them into flowers.  Here are the results of my recycled paper bag project!



These make a lovely bunch of Victoria's Secret origami flowers!

Stars and Stripes - Fourth of July Decorations

July 4th is coming up soon!  With picnics and barbeques and fireworks around the corner, it's time to celebrate with red, white and blue! 

Here are some stars ...

and some stripes!

HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY!

Baby Boy Flowers

Right after I made the pink baby girl flowers, I've been wanting to make blue baby boy flowers. And finally, here they are!

I was able to find some pretty blue paper as well as a cute blue and brown stripe paper. The combination of blue with a bit of brown is sweet, yet not too saccharine.  And when the baby boy is not so "baby" anymore, the "It's a Boy!" flowers can easily be removed, and the remainder of the bouquet would brighten up any room in the house.  Feels kind of beachy, too.

I also took pictures of the flowers before I added the rhinestone centers.  Can't decide which one I like better...

If you would like to send these flowers to proud new parents of a baby boy, please visit my shop:
www.KatherinaKrafts.etsy.com

Recycled Gift Bag Flowers

The minute I laid eyes on this beautiful red, green, blue and silver striped paper bag from Paper Source, I knew I would never be able to bring myself to throw it into the recycle bin.

Instead, I cut the paper into small squares, and hand folded each square into a petal.  After I assembled them into flowers, I found a cute blue glass vase which was perfect for these adorable paper flowers.

I would never have thought to put these colors together, but the color combination turned out quite nice!



Springtime Flowers

I usually prefer bold colors, but this bouquet of origami flowers in pastels is just too cute! 

These sweet colors just make me excited that spring is just around the corner.  Can you just imagine the Easter Bunny hopping around carrying a basket of eggs with these flowers peeking out over the edge? 

Mother's Day Flowers

I absolutely love this combination of purples, creams, and tan.  The dark purple flowers are created from paper that have the words "love" and "happiness" printed on them.  The light purple flowers have beautiful quotes celebrating Mom.  I just happened to have a coordinating scarf and a vase in a pretty shade of green, and voila!  A gorgeous gift for Mother's Day!

For more flowers: http://www.etsy.com/shop/KatherinaKrafts?section_id=11075482

Valentine's Day Dessert Table

How did you celebrate Valentine's Day? 

Apparently, some of my origami flowers had a great time dressing up a couple of parties.

Here is a beautiful tablescape that was created using some of my origami flowers for a Valentine's Day dessert table.   The simple origami flowers give a clean, nonfussy feel.  It's amazing what a little bit of paper can do! 

(If you are interested in purchasing these origami flowers for your own special event, here is the listing site:  http://www.etsy.com/listing/91953506/origami-flowers-one-year-1st-anniversary)

I am also very excited to see how nicely my Valentine origami flower pencils looked in a basket for a classroom party.  The origami bouquets make an adorable flower centerpiece.  The kids were delighted to be able to take home a flower!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Upcycled Origami Flower Gift Bow

I am a huge believer in recycling everything I possibly can.  I'm the type of person who would rather carry around an empty soda can in my bag than throw it into a trash can.  I save up every flyer and homework paper which has a blank side and reuse them as "scratch" paper.  So you can imagine my delight when I noticed a few brilliantly colored sheets of paper in my scratch paper pile, and decided to upcycle them into an adorable gift bow for a little girl's birthday present.

Each flower is folded from one piece of scratch paper, and the curling ribbons are from my collection of gently used ribbons.   Brown paper bag wrapping completed the look, and everyone was surprised to find out that everything was recycled.

It was a so much fun to make these origami flowers.  I think they turned out pretty cute! 

Check them out here:  http://www.etsy.com/listing/92303500/gift-bow-made-from-origami-flowers-by