What are Flowers made of?

Sugar and spice and everything nice? Snips and snails and puppy dogs' tails?

Quite possibly. There are some crafters who are quite clever at making flowers out of "found" or very inexpensive materials.

These ones are made of crepe paper











And these roses are constructed of wooden petals.











And these ones are made of natural "found" material such as weeds and leaves.








These ones are made mostly of wheat stalks. They are huge, and I don't think you need me to point out that they've been brightly dyed!




But I've saved the best for last! These flowers are also made of wood, but very thin shavings of wood that have been soaked in water, then cut into shapes, and formed into flowers and leaves. They are then dyed in various colors, and they are my very favorite. I have no idea how much such hand-crafted wooden flowers might command in the states, but these ones are all between $1-2, depending on the height of the stalks. (In fact, I think all of the flowers here cost under $3--even the little crepe-paper bouquets.)

I purchased three very tall stalks, and nothing I had at home was tall enough to accommodate them. That's why I needed the tall pot/vase/bottle that I showed a few days ago. This looks fantastic in my living room.



I love the colors! These pictures don't do them justice--the leaves are much greener than they appear here. I have a bouquet of this kind of flowers that I bought years ago, and over time the dyes have faded so that the flowers are nearly back to looking like plain wood (not quite!). Nevertheless, they do fade, and I think they become more beautiful over time. Unfortunately, they also become brittle, and the wood shavings may split, so that the flowers look a little ragged. I still like them!

When I told the seller how old my "old" flowers were, she was appalled and agreed with me that it was time to get some new ones. But I don't think I can bear to throw the old ones away. I wonder if I can find a home for them somewhere else in the house?