Summer-Dried-Flower projects from Shusters
Summer projects
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The snowstorm has ended, leaving us with ten degree temperature, with the sun shinning on a glistening, beautiful blanket of winter snow. Where was all this in December? Oh! What a Christmas treat it would have been (except for safe traveling), with snow ball fights, making snow people, and kids lying in the snow, flapping their arms & legs, leaving snow angels. Makes me want to go back & celebrate allover again. Create Christmas type dried flower arrangements, hang up the mistletoe, make homemade gifts, wrapping presents & spending time in the kitchen, cooking the turkey & all the trimmings, & baking special cookies from an old family secret recipe. Where were you Martha Stewart when I needed you? Oops, back to reality.
Since the cross is a distinct Christian symbol I have chosen to dedicate this article to the use of dried flowers in decorating them for handmade Christmas gifts and remembering Jesus’ sacrifice for me, as he suffered & died on the cross, bringing us to another Easter season. With Elmers’ expertise at working with metal, he cut and formed metal crosses to which I added preserved arborvitae in the center, extending it up-down & across middle of the cross with glue. I opted to use the New Mexico favorite- red chili’s atop the greenery. On a second cross, I used the greenery with Austriaca pinecones on picks + red berries cut-off of the berry branch. Another option for crosses would be to use wood, either nice smooth pieces or weathered, rough wood (my choice), using the moss vine or moss mat mounted on wood, add basil colored mini yarrow & spring green ting ting flowers. Compacta buds or Banksia could be used also. Another cross base could be formed using bamboo & reeds combined, affixed in the center with raffia. Your bamboo color choices vary from natural, olive, chocolate, to basil. Reed bundles come in basil, natural, red or mixed, use a variety of dried flowers such as the combination of peach flower stem cut to desired length, with cream, burnt oak, or mango colored Chinese Peony, using 3 to five in the arrangement. Another option would be to use the Chinese Protea in burnt oak/mango or natural instead of the Peony. Either one would be very appropriate & attractive. For dried flowers needed for the above decorations, go on line, search the internet & when you find wwwschustersoftexas.com, (family owned business) web cite, you’re at the right place for an easy way to shop, where your bulk order is shipped directly to you, leaving you plenty of time for those creative ideas to begin forming.
Our last cross will be constructed from two cinnamon sticks (no longer just for kitchen use) Tie the two sticks (one a bit shorter) together in the center with natural raffia. Place on an upside down terra cotta pot (small size, 2 incher worked good for me). Add to the center a few golden buttons, choosing from a selection of colors….basil, chocolate, mango or natural. At the base of the cross & top part of pot, glue small pebbles & some of the same colored buttons, add a bible verse to the pot, giving to GOD all the praise and glory.
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