I’m finding it difficult to choose the right words to open this blog post. My mind is so consumed by the virus sweeping across our world, that it seems trivial to say “hi – lets talk about crafts!” But the truth is… for those of us that have survived the virus, or have managed to avoid it… sometimes we need something light and simple to focus on. I see so many people out there trying to do or say positive and uplifting things to help everyone get through such an incredibly strange and difficult time. So I am hopeful that this tutorial can not only offer something fun to pass the time, but also something beautiful to look at. With that said… this week, after a bit of a hiatus, I am finally bringing the Goth-it-Yourself tutorials back with this DIY Gothic Black Floral Lighted Garland.
This string of floral lights seemed fitting right now for so many reasons. For one… it is Spring. I cannot help but think of flowers when I think of Spring. This is usually a time when I’m selecting flowers for all of my pots, and planting my garden. While I was lucky enough to snag a few plants for my garden before all hell broke loose, I wasn’t so lucky with the flowers. I may not be able to plant flowers, but I can certainly make them! I love DIY flowers. There are so many amazing ways to create flowers. Around this exact same time last spring, I used a burning technique to make these Layered Fabric Flowers attached to Fabric Wrapped Hangers. This time I am going for an unconventional material… Egg Cartons!! More on that in a minute.
Something else Spring brings to mind… weddings. For those of you who did actually have a spring wedding planned, and have had to postpone… I am so deeply sorry. I know how much work, and planning, and excitement, and anticipation goes into an event like that. Here’s one very small piece of good news…. you now have bonus time to attempt all of those DIY projects you wanted to do but had to move to the bottom of the priority list because you didn’t have the time. It’s a time to add some special details, and I am a firm believer that the little details make all of the difference! For those brides planning a Fall wedding…. this is a simple DIY to do while you’re in quarantine! You have the time, and this project has a short, easy to access, and inexpensive supply list! I love the idea of this garland as wedding decor. It’s unexpected, yet beautiful. It’s a way to bring black flowers (which is not the easiest task) into a Gothic or Halloween wedding reception. It is also so easy to create any color combination you want. I made both a solid black strand, as well as a Black and Purple strand (because those happened to be the colors of my own wedding). You can paint the flowers any color combination you’d like.
So you’re not planning a wedding…. this garland is obviously not just wedding decor. I think it would be perfect across a fireplace mantel, strung outside, or even just an added detail on a decorated table. So many of us across the world are currently in some form of quarantine or isolation. I hear a lot of people complaining of boredom. That is a huge pet peeve of mine. I’ll have to give people a pass on this one, because it is extenuating circumstances… but the next time you feel like you don’t know what to do next to pass the time… don’t be bored… try this DIY garland! Try any DIY for that matter… I have an entire blog full of them!
OK… so onto the garland… Egg Carton Flowers are far from a new idea. I have this ridiculously large Pinterest board full of DIY flower ideas, and I can’t count how many times I’ve pinned an egg carton flower. But here’s the thing…. you won’t find a single black one. Of course not. People obviously don’t think black is as beautiful as I do… but I know you do! So, here I am again… taking a project that is anything but dark, and bringing a gothic touch to these pretty little flowers. Hopefully all of you that may have passed by the idea of brightly colored floral garland will take a second look at this dramatically dark black one!
Luckily egg cartons are not that difficult to come by. Well, at least they didn’t use to be, before an apocalypse fell upon our grocery stores and wiped out the shelves! You want the cartons that are made of the pressed paper and pulp… not plastic or Styrofoam. If you’re lucky, you have some in your refrigerator. If not.. you have 2 choices… start saving your cartons every time you buy eggs, or simply order the cartons online. I ordered mine. You can buy actual 12 egg cartons like you’d find in a store, but since you’ll be cutting them up anyway, it makes more sense to buy the flats. A flat holds 30 eggs. Depending on how many flowers you plan on making… you can buy packs of 12 Flats, which gives you 360 cups, and 120 to 180 flowers, 15 Flats which gives you 450 cups, and 150 to 225 flowers, or 18 Flats which gives you 540 cups, and 180-270 flowers. Even if you don’t need near that many flowers, the flats are a much better deal. Who knows… maybe I’ll come up with another egg carton project, and you’ll be happy you have so many!
Now let’s get down to business…..
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What you will need:
- Pressed Paper Egg Cartons: 12 Flats , 15 Flats , 18 Flats
- Sturdy Scissors
- Acrylic Paints: Black Paint and Purple Paint
- Paintbrushes
- Awl
- String of Lights with a Black Cord
- E6000 Glue – I prefer black
The 1st step of this process is the biggest pain in the rear and then I promise it gets easier! You have to cut apart the egg cartons and then cut out each egg cup. Do not worry about cutting evenly.. you will be reshaping the cups later. Depending on how many of these flowers you plan on making, you may want to make them in batches, to give your hand a bit of rest.
Once you have a pile to work with… now it’s time to get creative. There are so many different ways you can cut these egg cups. For me, I wasn’t too worried about having an identical flower on each light, so I just jumped in and started cutting. I planned on using 2-3 cups per flower so I cut a variety of small and large shapes. Once I had a variety, I painted a few of them just to test which pairings I liked. I did not want to cut them all only to find later that I wished I had more of one shape or another!
For the larger outer flower, I typically cut 4 slits into the cup, leaving the tallest points for the petals. Then I just began shaping each petal and cutting down to meet the slit. With my finger I gently bent each petal back to open up the flower. Some petals were rounded and some pointed, but for the most part I was limited to this shape because of the shape of my cup. If you have a variety of egg cartons, you may be able to experiment with different shapes. For the smaller flowers, I used a similar technique… sometimes cutting 4 slits, sometimes 3, and then rounding out smaller petals. I also cut a few simply in a circle with a slight jagged edge.
Using the awl, press a hole into the bottom center of each cup
Paint each egg cup according to what color petals you choose. I created an all black strand, as well as a purple and black strand (with black as the outside petals, and purple as the inside petals)
To secure the cups to the light strand, run a line of E6000 around the base of the light bulb (on the plastic, not the bulb itself) and slide the largest petals on first until it sets on the glue line. To secure the next layers, you have two choices…. 1 – run a line of glue inside the large cup around the bulb base, or 2 – add glue to the bottom base of the inner cup, and slide over the bulb. If you choose the latter, just make sure to have a wipe on hand, as the glue may get on the bulb.
E6000 takes 24 hours to completely dry.
The number of flowers you need will obviously depend on the number of light bulbs on your strand of lights, but also how often you want a flower placed… on every light? on every other light? Randomly? What I thought I wanted changed once I started slipping the finished flowers onto the lights, so be sure to test a few before you glue them down.
Hope this project has brought a small amount of light to your day! Stay Safe!
Gorgeous…love them..purple and green garland will look fabulous on my big gothic bed 😁 cheers and thanku. Please stay safe and we will get thru this awful time together. Thanku so much for caring and yes I’m still going to come from Oz for one of your infamous Halloween dinners lol…one day 😉 xx
Hi Kaz! Purple and Green would be beautiful! Send me a pic if you ever make it! Thank you for the sweet note! Stay safe & healthy!
This is beautiful and brings me right back to crafting with my mom as a child – thank you
Hi Beverly! I love that! Me too! My mom’s responsible for every creative bone in my body!! I tried to get my daughter to participate in this project with me… but she’s 4, so the attention span only lasted through 3 or 4 egg cups! One day! 🙂