Wednesday, October 08, 2008

The Zen of Tiaras With Florals

I'm starting on Sky's tiara to go with the Sleeping Beauty gown for the play. I'm including the first picture for artist Vikki North because she gets enthused seeing creative piles of possibilities in my gathering to start a new project. I hope it gets her going on her own sewing and making adventures in addition to her art.

There really is the base of a tiara in there! If you want to make your own fairy tiara, you'll need 16 gauge wire for your base, 20 gauge wire for the scrolls and wrapping, jewelry making pliers, and an assortment of crystals, gemstones and beads that will fit on your 20 gauge wire. I'm using gold wire to match Sky's trim on the gown.

Start with a cut length of 16 gauge wire about 34". Form a circle and join the ends by bending and wrapping, snugging up the wire with a flat nose plier. Bend your circle in half so that you have a shape that vaguely looks like the outline of a taco or half moon. (Don't you just LOVE my technical terms!)


Don't worry about it being wonky at this point. You'll stabilize the entire piece with the 20 gauge wire. I started at the center front of the tiara. Determine how tall you want the finished piece to be and cut several lengths of wire this length doubled plus an inch to allow for your swirls and curls and the wrapping at top and bottom of your basic frame.


Here's where it gets fun. Start slipping your crystals or beads on bending and coiling your 20 gauge with round nose pliers ....

(note here: My computer was taken over by a Trojan ZLOB while working on this post, published it incomplete, and caused 3 hours of down time while I fixed the thing. It should make a bit more sense now.)

....until you have a piece the width of your frame height coiled. Then wrap it on your frame top and bottom. You can get an idea of what I'm talking about in the picture above. The rough sketch behind is for another costume I'm making for the play. More pix and directions on the tiara later.



Frangipani/Lei Flower/Plumeria


Blue Skies from India


I know that many of you in the temperate climates are experiencing Autumn leaves changing color and thought that you might enjoy seeing my 'Fall' here at Dogpatch. I'm enjoying my frangipani - so fragrant it just puts you in a trance! The bottom shows one of the many living arches I have here complete with weeds. It's a vine from India and has almost covered the tree tops above my house in drifts of these gorgeous yellow-throated garlands.

If you look closely, you'll see the waterway behind my home. The ghosty gray thingy hanging beside a pannacle of flowers is Spanish Moss, ubiquitous in Florida. It was once used to stuff airplane seats with. My mother pulled moss in the swamps bordering Georgia when she was a girl in the early days of the last depression.

11 comments:

Vikki North said...

Hi Dina,
This is so cool. Thank you. I love the pile picture. I'm going to incorporate these elements in the painting I just started. And yes! I'm sewing all kinds of things. May just have to make myself a tiara. I definitely need one!
Hugs,
Vikki

Vikki North said...

BTW- you've inadvertantly put a big old blank space between segments in your blog. Figured you didn't realize it.
Vikki

annette emms said...

Hi Dina, that's a great pile of goodies! I've been thinking. . I need a tiara. You know, one to wear when I'm doing menial tasks around the house. Or at work for that matter, now wouldn't that be fun?!x

Unknown said...

Vikki,
I was hoping you were keeping on with your creative lint! Send me a picture of your finished stuff and I'll post it here for you!

The tiara is really fun and easy. I'm partial to them because I have one that links me to my 'Committee' and our one member who passed this spring, Sally Jo Zdanwic.

Annie Shanahan, god love her, got all of us rhinestone tiaras so we could call ourselves, 'The sisterhood of the traveling tiara. We glitter and glow wherever we go'!

I keep the tiara next to my desk with a picture of us wearing our tiaras with Sally. It was one of the very last I have with her.

Hugs backachu!
D

Unknown said...

Vikki,
See my revised post about being possessed by ZLOB Trojan down loader. I fired my anti-virus and went back to good old AVG free edition.

It not only found the 2 copies of the dang thing, it put it in quarantine and inoculated the computer against it!!

Unknown said...

Annette!
I could actually see you wearing a fairy tiara as you teach your wonderful fiber classes!!

Oh, do make one!

Blessings,
Dina

Anonymous said...

I love the pictures, all of them! Your flowers are heavenly. I need to make myself a tiara. Thanks for the tutorial.

The pups can't wait to see you today!

Unknown said...

Marty,

Have a good and safe trip! I'm headed out the door to your house right after I finish this and take the last sip of coffee!!

I love that they don't care if I'm in an old schmata with minimum underwear, just as long as I hit the entryway closet first!

D

Vikki North said...

Hi, I came back to read the rest of the story. Your garden in gorgeous!!!

I also like the idea of a tiara for every XX chomosome person. To funny.
Vikki

Unknown said...

Vikki!

I think that there are some individuals out there with a phantom double X that deserve one as well!

D

smile said...

Hello Dina,
I was looking up mom on the web and came across your page. I hope you are having a great day before Thanksgiving. For me it is very hard not having mom here this year. Give me a call some time when you can 678-360-7586

love Sarah Dirks