-- DIY Boutonnieres --

I was supposed to attempt this a few nights ago, but the time escaped me so today I got all the supplies out and sat down and did it. I purchased a few items at Michaels the other day, cleared a spot on the table this morning, poured myself a cup of coffee, and was ready to get started.

Below is the inspiration boutonniere. I always knew I had wanted to use the succulents in the boutonnieres, but I wasn't sure what else. We were going to use some berries in the bouquets, but the monkey's tail was like a light bulb going off. I'd never really though of using that before. This was a great jumping off point for me. It's from JL Designs -- Can you tell I LOVE Carissa's designs? I wish she were not so far away!

(Inspiration Source)

So here's how I made my boutonniere and my final product. Let me know what you think!

First, all the pieces I used were silk or fake flower and/or pieces. You will need a monkey's tail, 1 succulent of choice, a stem of berries, floral tape, floral wire, some sort of leather wrap, and a glue gun.

(succulent, monkey's tail, berries)

I first wired together the monkey's tail and the succulent so that the monkey's tail was just above the succulent and they were wired together in a way that movement was not an option anymore. I just wrapped the wired around the two stems so that they could not wiggle to one side or the other. I did also occasionally when wiring around the stems wire in between some of the bottom petals of the succulent for extra support.

Once these 2 were together, it was time to wire the berries onto the opposite side of the monkey's tail in the same manner. Then the wire needs to be wrapped over in the floral tape. I did this just to cover up the harshness of the wire. I also chose brown floral tape because I was covering it up with brown leather binding and I wanted it to be as close in color as possible.

(wire and floral tape)

After all the pieces were put together, I used the glue gun to start the leather binding in place, starting in the back at the top, and then just wrapped it around the stem of the boutonniere. I tried to keep the binding as close together as possible and added hot glue whenever I felt it was necessary.

Here's the final product. I still need to trim up the stem.

I'm so proud of myself that I made this number 1, but also that it's still staying together! haha. I didn't really think it would be that hard, but I think it looks really good and I also feel that boutonnieres are a great place to cut costs at your wedding! Silk flowers also take GREAT pictures so why not save some money here! The guys don't care! And I think they turned out great!

Happy Friday!