Silk Flower Unicorn Wreath

My sis-in-law gave me this great FloraCraft styrofoam unicorn horn that she picked up at a trade show recently. Suggested projects were a bunch of unicorn horn headbands for kids and pets. I've seen plenty of those and didn't want to make another existing project. Then I thought, what if I attach it to an actual horse head? I scoured the Internet for a wire horse head form and found this stylized one that I liked.

Craft Outlet 24" Horse Head Tinsel Work Form

I spent a good chunk of time taking off the pipe cleaner tinsel and the metal bands holding it on to get it down to just the wire form. Sore hands and blisters are optional.

The rest of the supplies include:

FloraCraft Styrofoam Blocks and the unicorn horn (available at Hobby Lobby in July)

A big mess of silk flowers and picks that you like for your project.

Crafting wire to attach the blocks to your frame.

16 gauge floral stem wire for your unicorn horn

Peacock Feather picks for the eyelashes

Martha Stewart Pearl Craft Paint (I used the Gold Mother of Pearl Color)

Mod Podge Extreme Glitter

Wire Cutters

hot glue gun

Ribbon to hang it up.

I used a long serrated knife to trim down my styrofoam block to fit in between the wires on my form to have a place to attach my flowers and stems. Then, I wrapped the craft wire around them and the frame to keep them in place.

I took apart about 4 large picks of white hydrangeas to start hot gluing them all over the front and the sides of the styrofoam and the the frame, leaving the side of the mane open for later. Watch out for hot glue burns!

You want to make sure that you can't see the styrofoam or the frame through the flowers. Choose a small flower as the nostril if you prefer. Next get the picks you chose for your mane and start stabbing them in the foam down the side. These long picks of colored foam balls are perfect as a mane. I pushed the parts of the pick closer together up the stem to make a fuller bunch and layered them in a rainbow color. Hot glue them to the foam so they stay where you want them.

I added a row of big roses to cover the back of the mane, or if you have enough mane picks add more to the side.

I pushed the horn on the floral stem wire and added a few coats of pearl paint and a final top coat of the Mod Podge Extreme Glitter. It's glittery and pearlized.

Trim the wire down and insert the horn in its proper place with more hot glue. Add some more flowers around the base to cover seams and give your unicorn a flower crown. Cut a piece of peacock feather off the tip and sparingly hot glue it in the correct spot as the eyelashes. On mine, you're actually looking at the back of the feather, which is black.

Thread some ribbon through the wires on the back and hang it up on your door wreath hook.

She looks so pretty!

#FloraCraft #ModPodge #Plaidcrafts #PaperPoniesCrafts

Gilded Gold Foil Glass Ball Ornaments

This post has been sponsored by Plaid. I have received product from Plaid, but all opinions are my own. For more information, please see my Disclosure Policy, #ad#plaidcrafts

It's been 20 plus years since the last time I've made these ornaments, and Plaid Mod Podge has been around since then. The classic look of gilded gold balls may withstand another 20 years and still look great on your Christmas tree.

I've used some of my own supplies that I had laying around, but they are still available in a new form. You can take breaks in between drying times and come back later to move on to the next step.

Supplies you'll need (where to buy links included):

Glass Ball Ornaments

Gold Tissue Paper (not plastic gold tissue)

Gold Transfer Foil (Deco Foil)

Gold Ribbon

Mod Podge

Foiling Glue (Aleene's doesn't make it anymore)

Foam brushes

You can use Deco Foil sheets and Deco Foil Liquid adhesive for this project. The ornaments should be glass because you'll need to take the caps off the balls and some plastic ones are not removable. I used my own supplies that were still good after all these years and the lifetime supply of gold tissue paper that I saved from the trash at my work place in the 1990's.

Remove all the caps from your glass ball ornaments. I got my ornaments from At Home, and they were cheaper than the ones at the craft stores. I like these ones because the glass under the cap is rolled and melted at the edge instead of cut. (great for safety purposes)

Prepare your gold tissue paper by cutting or tearing it into approximately 1 inch pieces. Torn edges smooth down better when applying. I cut mine into strips and then tore them.

Start by painting a patch of Mod Podge and lay some pieces of paper on it.

Then paint some more Mod Podge on top of the paper smoothing down the edges of the paper while painting. A few wrinkles in the paper are fine, and the foil will highlight them.

Keep adding pieces of paper all the way around the ball and smoothing the edges down as you go. Your fingers will get a little messy while holding on to the ball at the neck. Don't bother applying paper all the way up the neck of the ball. The cap and ribbon will cover most of it. Check for blank spots.

Invert the ball on a chopstick or skewer and stand it up inside a tall glass or push into a foam block. Don't let them touch as they dry. Allow 10-15 minutes to let the Mod Podge dry. By the time you get to your last ball, the first few will already be dry.

Using a separate foam brush and tray, squirt out a small puddle of foiling glue. The purpose of this glue is to remain tacky after it dries. Very lightly add a very thin layer of the foiling glue to the ball. You do not have to cover the entire ball with glue, some missed spots are perfectly fine. You don't want to completely cover the tissue paper layer underneath.

When the foiling glue is dry and no longer white, you're ready to foil. The thin layer of glue will dry faster than what it says on the bottle. Dry time is about 10-15 minutes. It will remain tacky to the touch. Try not to handle the ball too much and take off some of the tackiness with the oils in your hands.

Cut a section of transfer foil off and rub it down, shiny side up, on the surface of your ball. You can use your fingers or the back of a spoon to really burnish the foil on to the surface. Keep using the same piece of foil on the entire surface of the ball to your satisfaction or until all of the foil is used up on your cut piece. It will look like a clear piece of plastic when used up.

Now you have gold on gold texture on your ornament! Time to add the ribbon. Use a ribbon that is approximately the same width as the neck of your ornament ball to cover up the cap and gaps in the tissue paper layer. I cut my ribbon to 8 inches long, tied in a double knot and trimmed the ends. Feel free to use a longer piece to tie a bow.

Thread some gold twine or an ornament hook through the end and hang on your tree. Pink and gold are a very fancy color combination.

I'm making more of these for my neighbors for Christmas! My husband is helping me with the rest of them.

This project is all my own and associated text included. This post is sponsored by #plaidcrafts. Links to other sites are for your convenience. I am not compensated if you click through to them.

About Plaid

Plaid offers so many amazing products and includes lines from lots of well known names including:

• Apple Barrel
• Delta
• Folk Art
• Martha Stewart
• Mod Podge
• Waverly

...and many more. Check out Plaid's collection of DIY craft projects for more inspiration!

More Homemade Christmas Ideas

1. Marble Christmas Ornaments
2. Clothespin Reindeer Ornament
3. Snowman Mason Jar Gift
4. Holiday Cricut Projects
5. DIY Ribbon Ornaments