Here are the bridesmaid bouquets that I made...
Supplies needed per bouquet:
3 stems of blue real touch hydrangeas purchased fromHobby Lobby
2 stems of green hydrangeas purchased from Michaels
wire cutters
green floral tape
1 inch wide & 1/2 inch wide ribbon for stems
floral pins
How to make the bouquets:
1. Cut blue hydrangea stems to about 9 inches long
2. Cut green hydrangea bunch off of stem (these stems will be about 6 inches)
3. Start assembling bouquet & playing around with the design. I first held the blue hydrangeas and then tried to evenly space the smaller gren hydrangeas amongst them.
4.I wanted the stems to be a little thicker, so I re-used the stems that were cut in the first step. If you desire a very thick stem you can cover the stem with a paper towel roll.
5. Once you are satisfied with the design, tightly wrap the stems with the floral tape. I went over the stems a few times to make sure it was very secure.
6. Attach leaves below the head of the bouquet with floral tape if desired. I used 4 leaves for each bouquet and though the leaves made it look more natural.
7. You may need to bend the stems of some of the flowers to give it a more rounded shape.
8. Starting at the end of the stem secure an end of the wide ribbon to the stem with a dot of hot glue from your trusty hot glue gun.
9. Wrap the wide ribbon up the rest of the stem and secure the top with another dot of hot glue.
10. Here is a link to the youtube video I used explaing how to create the "french braid" ribbon:
Using the thinner ribbon starting at the end of the stem and work your way up. You will need a good bit of ribbon for this and it may take a few tries to make the knots line up. Once you are at the top of the stem tie a knot and use a pearl tipped floral pin to push the end of the ribbon down into the bouquet so that it isn't visible & secure the pin. Be careful to not let the pin come out of the other side.
close-up of stem
