How to Make Metal Flowers
Flowers inspire all forms of art. Flowers appear in sculptures, photography, illustration, paintings and graphic design. Endlessly enchanting with their dynamic sizes and shapes, flowers also lend themselves well to replication in metal. Metal smiths, both professional and amateur, have long found inspiration for their work in the world of flowers. Because of its pliability, durability and accessibility, metal is an ideal medium with which to create beautiful, artistic blooms.
Things You'll Need
- Sheet metal
- Scissors
- Tin snips
- Metal wire
- Sandpaper
- Hammer
- Nails
- Pencil
- Embellishments such as beads, buttons or found objects (optional)
Instructions
-
-
1
Purchase flat, smooth sheets of metal from a jewelry supply company, hardware store or home improvement store.
-
2
Collect pictures or actual specimens of flowers that appeal to you, and that you would like to replicate in metal.
-
-
3
Draw an outline of a flower on the metal sheet. Or, draw a fanciful flower from your imagination if you do not wish to replicate one from nature.
-
4
Use either tin snips or scissors, depending on the thickness of the sheet metal you buy, to cut around the outline of the flower.
-
5
Use sandpaper to soften any sharp edges after you have finished cutting. Shift from a medium-weight to a fine sandpaper to make the edges as smooth as possible.
-
6
Instead of cutting flowers out in one piece, cut out petals, centers, stems and leaves separately to make more interesting, complicated flowers.
-
7
Hammer a nail into the metal and then remove it to form holes in each of the separate flower components. Sand in and around the holes to make them smooth.
-
8
Connect the different flower components using metal wire, which is available at jewelry suppliers, craft stores, hardware stores, and home improvement stores. You can form loose connections, so that the leaves and petals are movable, or tight ones, so that the flower remains fairly rigid. Use your own judgment, taste and imagination.
-
9
Combine several different metal flowers to form a bouquet. Place the shiny metal bouquet in a vase. Wire the bouquet of flowers together and create an eye-catching decoration to hang on the wall, or hang each bloom up separately.
-
10
Embellish your flowers with the metal wire, which can be used to suggest pistils, thorns, roots and other elements. Add colorful beads, found objects, pieces of antique jewelry, or whatever else strikes your fancy to make truly one-of-a-kind flowers, as breathtaking as any found in nature.
-
1
Tips & Warnings
Sterling silver sheet metal is more costly than brass, aluminum or tin.
In lieu of purchasing sheet metal, use the metal from empty cans. Remove the top and bottom from a can, cut vertically down the can's side, and bend the metal back until it lays flat.
Use metal from unused coffee, cookie or biscuit tins that have interesting colors and motifs.
Found objects, such as bottle caps or pretty bits of broken glass, can add interest and charm to your metal flowers.
Sheet metal and metal wire both come in different gauges. Remember, the higher the gauge, the thinner the product. This means 16-gauge sheet or wire will be thicker than 22-gauge.
Always thoroughly sweep or vacuum your work area after cutting metal to avoid stepping on sharp pieces later.
