Homemade confetti tutorial

I love a wedding.

I have had the pleasure of being involved in many weddings this year through the handcrafted bespoke gifts in my Etsy shop.

Some have been made for strangers who have found my personalised items though Google or Etsy searches and some have been for friends of friends. I like this type of order as I get to hear some of the feedback.

Last week I made two frames for a colleague and after returning from one of the weddings this week he volunteered the following feedback from the groom: "Mate, I f***ing love what you gave me, it's brilliant. Better than all the other c**p we got!".

I think roughly translated that means he liked it! Praise indeed.

I think whenever you give a wedding gift it should show the couple how much you care about them. It should be something that's chosen with love, and if it's handmade with a personal touch, specifically for the happy couple, then even better.

I've been to one wedding this summer and of course, I made a map frame for the bride and groom, with a map showing the location of the church and reception venue. But with by brain on 'handmade' overdrive I started thinking about other ways I could bring something individual, made with love and care, to this special day.

I am also incapable of throwing anything away, so this project was just perfect. I was recently ill and off work and my colleagues sent a huge bunch of gorgeous peonies and roses. I was really disappointed when they started to go over, past their best but just in time I found inspiration to make something with them. We also had a few rain damaged roses which, once they'd spent a day in the sunshine drying out, were ideal for this project.  Never again will I think in despair "what can I do with dying flowers?".

An added advantage of this wonderful confetti - as if it could't get any better - is that it is completely biodegradable.

I am off to a wedding again on Friday and my homemade confetti will be coming with me!

Homemade confetti tutorial 

Step 1 - Choose your flowers. I use roses and peonies as the petals seem to dry to a nice crisp finish and they don't take too long. I tried it with purple Lisianthus but the petals were just too waxy and they didn't dry out at all. Even if your blooms are on the turn, they'll still be fine for homemade confetti, as long as they haven't completely shrivelled up.

Step 2 - Line a few baking trays or cardboard boxes / lids with kitchen roll. Gently remove the petals one by one from the flower head. Lay out each petal on the kitchen towel making sure that the petals do not touch. If they do they will dry together. It will take up quite a bit of kitchen roll to keep them spaced out properly but they can be condensed in the next step.

Step 3 - Leave the petals to dry in a cool and shady place, away from direct sunlight. After a couple of days, the petals will have started to dry out and will have reduced in size. At this stage you can condense down the number of trays you need as the petals can be moved closer together. Repeat this step every four or five days. As you remove the kitchen towel you can fold it and keep it for the next confetti project. Waste not, want not! 

Step 4 - Once the petals have completely dried - around three weeks - they can be gathered up and stored. I have kept some in jars and some in paper bags. If you use jars, leave the lid off or make sure it isn't sealed as this can make the petals soften again and sometimes they will start to smell. I took my confetti to the wedding in a handmade paper bag by following this tutorial by Hello Sandwich. I omitted the handles and instead folded the top over and secured with washi tape.  

Make it May gallery

Every day in May, I'll be joining forces with my Cricut Explore to make a new greetings card.

During the project 10% of all sales in my Etsy shop will be donated to Parkinson's UK.

If you have a personalised card you'd like me to make in May, please get in touch on Twitter, Facebook or by email mummypuddleduck [at] gmail.com

Read about my #MakeitMay challenge here.

May 21- Washi tape bunting square card

May 20 - Geometric block shape handmade card inspired by the Marks & Spencer garden at RHS Chelsea 2015

May 19 - Handmade papercut balloon card

May 18 - Gardening squares handmade papercut card

May 17 - Happy Birthday banner handmade card

May 16 - Handmade age 4 card with Washi tape

May 15 - You are my sunshine handmade card

May 14 - Good things come to those who bake 

May 13 - Dad's 70th birthday card

May 12 - Handmade Washi tape bow card

May 11 - Rainy Days and Mondays Always Get Me Down

May 10 - International Mothers Day - Mums are like buttons holding everything together

May 9 - Bloom and grow gardening inspired card

May 8 - Teapot card - You're my cup of tea

May 7 - Handmade penguin cards with optional sentiments

May 6 - Bespoke aeroplane map travel themed handmade birthday card 

May 5 - New home card - Home Sweet Home 

May 4 - 21st pinwheel birthday card

May 3 - traditional London telephone box birthday card with lady inside (glitter dress)

May 2 - Anniversary card with map of wedding venue (Jamaica)

May 1 - Goddaughter card for fashion lover #glitter #dress #fashion #card 

Mayke it May!

Ma'y'ke it May! #MakeitMay

New baby handmade card with pinwheels and buttons

As if I don't have enough to challenge my time with a career, two young children and a craft business, I've set myself a new project!

So here it is. It's May soon, and May sounds a bit like Make so I think May should be a month of making and that's what I'm going to do. 

Handmade papercut card - umbrellas

Every day in May I'm going to design a new greetings card. I will be using papers, embellishments, pens, buttons, bows and tapes and, of course, my absolutely indispensable Cricut Explore machine. 

Candle card -handmade - listed on Etsy

I am looking forward to being inspired to create new designs and sharing them here, on Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook and twittter.  

Card for men clothes line with pegs

Please let me know what you think, choose a favourite or let me know what occasion you'd like me to create a card for. 

Handmade birthday cards

My existing designs consist of: 

Wedding card

Engagement card 

Birthday card dress 

New baby card - pinwheels 

Birthday card - candles 

Children's age birthday card 
Wedding card 

Crafty Christmas

This Christmas we were once again invited to spend the special day with my Aunty and Uncle, my cousin, her daughter and my mom and dad.

Christmas is a very special time for us with many traditions that have established themselves into our day, such as the youngest member of the family placing baby Jesus in the nativity officially signalling the start of the festivities, a glass of champagne being handed to guests the minute they walk over the threshold and Santa's jingle bells making a second appearance after lunch. 

Washi tape bows

It's these little routines that make for such a special day and hopefully will make my children look back with the same warmth and fondness that I now do about my childhood Christmasses.

But the pressure to make Christmas special can be hard to manage. It's important to take a step away from it all and remember to enjoy the preparation, planning and the day itself. Whilst I have been lucky enough to never have had to cook a Christmas dinner yet, I do like to be involved in making the day go with a swing.

Monogram chair back decorations, created using Cricut Explore

This year I very much enjoyed the planning and preparation which involved making sweet treats such as fudge, marshmallow, gingerbread (Biscuiteers book of Biscuits recipe), Nigella's honeycomb, and not forgetting a dairy-free chocolate sponge with 'buttercream' filling (c/o Jamie Oliver) as well as the table settings and of course the wrapping. Gift tags, names and initials were designed and cut on the Cricut Explore with glitter card, and I made washi tape bows as well (via tutorial by NoBiggie who has a Washi Tape Christmas book - which is definitely on my wish list for next year!). 

They were all extremely simple, with time being a critical factor i.e. I never have enough of it but in my mind, very effective. Let me know what you think...

Cricut vinyl name monikers atop simple Christmas crackers 

Homemade marshmallow, chocolate fudge and honeycomb

Crafting matters

Whilst I count my nearest and dearest as supportive people I am not sure they are on my wavelength when it comes to making, baking and craft.

My husband doesn’t understand it (and often despairs at it). My friends share positive comments but would freely admit that they struggle to grasp why I would work into the small hours to finish a project when I have a career and family to keep me busy enough.

Colleagues at my real-world PR job smile encouragingly but similarly can't see the sense or understand the enjoyment I get from taking a pile of raw materials or ingredients and turning them into a 'make'.

I asked my five year old daughter why she thinks mummy likes to craft and she said: “because you like selling to people”. I think she’s half right. I enjoy giving to people. I enjoy the feeling of handing over, or posting if it's purchased online, something that I have made and receiving the feedback.

The sense of accomplishment when something I'd imagined would be beautiful when finished actually is a thing of beauty (in my humble opinion) will never grow tiresome. And that's multiplied when I make something that somebody else has parted with their hard earned cash to enjoy.

I’m probably a psychologist’s dream when it comes to putting a finger on what that really says about me, but I think a little part of me feels good about knowing somebody likes something I made. There’s a piece of me going out with each and every item I make and that leads to a lovely warm cosy feeling that I am doing something right.

And actually, I don’t think I'm alone. I believe that the digital age we live in, filled with social media channels galore, is feeding this sensation for personal gratification. We’re hungry for thumbs up, favourites and hearts on our Facebook, Twitter and Instagram posts. We want more people repining our favourite things. We seek reassurance from others through our pictures and posts, rants and ravings.  

It's no different when it comes to the big brands, who are ravenous for interactions, engagement and commendation of their products. The only difference is that when it’s something I’ve made it's personal. That 'like' or 'share' means someone has appreciated the time, effort and creativity that has been lovingly injected into each make, whether it be a cake, word art, gift, card or anything else I've designed and made. I want my friends, family, colleagues and followers to love it as much as I do. 

Why I am championing homemade and handmade

I have been wracking my brain to put into words why I feel so strongly about handmade and homemade crafts, bakes and makes. I have always liked individual and bespoke items. From the fimo jewellery of my youth and salt dough models during my teens to the button art, papercuts and map art of today, I am naturally attracted to objects that have been made with love and care.

After moving into a new (bigger) home a year ago, I started surrounding myself with these items at a rapid rate and I think I have hit on the reason why.

I need beautiful things. Beautiful things that brighten my day and make me smile. It’s a necessity, not just a desire to fill my life with pretty, crafty or intricate handmade items. Things that I can look at and know someone has crafted an item so that I may enjoy it as much as they do. Maybe they were up until the small hours of the morning just to finish a new design. Maybe that was after a full day at work and putting two kids to bed, getting their kit ready for the next day, but still finding time to fit in an hour of craft in between cooking tea and catching up with Bake Off. A need to glance across the room at a wall hanging or tuck into a flavoursome cake, and know that someone put a little bit of their own soul in there to make me happy.

The ‘need’ has made me look at the things I buy very differently. Now before whipping out the debit card to buy a bag, a purse, a scarf, a photo frame, even a loaf of bread, there is a little voice inside my head asking “could you buy this handmade?”. The answer is often yes. In fact more often than I thought it would be, the answer is yes. For instance, I have refrained from buying myself a much needed new wallet after mine is fraying at the seams, and instead commissioned a designer I met at a craft fair to make me one. And she will make me one that is the colour I want, has the features I want and will be made to make me, her customer, happy. Last week, I did not hop on over to the John Lewis website to buy the, admittedly very attractive, doorstop that I saw in a home magazine, but instead looked through the crafters commenting on the Handmade in the UK Facebook page I follow and ordered one that matched my colour scheme and used the fabrics I chose from a selection the maker offered to me.

It couldn't be simpler really. When I need something for the house, an accessory, an item of clothing, a foodstuff, the little head voice just repeats its simple question. “Could you buy this homemade?” And when the answer is yes, I go and buy myself a little bit of the love, happiness and soul that will be crafted into my completely unique purchase.