T.P. Roll...as Art

Now...you know I love a cheap project...and this one is practically free! I apologize ahead of time if anyone is grossed out by the thought of collecting t.p. rolls...but seriously, this project is so fun and cool...it's totally worth it! An extra special thanks to my mom and Jenn (who blogs over here) for helping add to my stash. It was taking for.ev.er to get enough...as I talked about in this post...so the extras came in very handy.

I found the initial idea on Pinterest...double duh. There are a few pins out there...but the first one I saw was over at Modern Day Moms.

Since the holidays are over, I finally had some time and enough of these little guys to make a decent-sized piece of wall art (w/ a few paper towel rolls thrown in for good measure).

1. First things first...I had to get the realllllyyy tedious business out of the way. I folded each of the rolls, marked them off w/ a ruler, then got my Edward Scissorhands on...cutting the rolls into one inch strips.

2. Okay...this next part might have been a wee-bit tedious too...but not quite as bad. You'll need a piece of cardboard or paper (to catch any glue drips) and a lot of clips (to hold the 'petals' together while the glue dries). I used little clampy things...you could probably use paperclips if you have them handy.

I used a clear craft glue...the same stuff I used for my mason jar snowglobes (you can see them here). 

I started w/ one 'petal', put glue on one end, and attached another 'petal'. Each time I glued, I used a clip to hold the pieces together...working my way around...with a total of 7 'petals' on each flower. The best thing to do once you have a flower done is just set aside and let the glue dry really well. After making a few...I was on a roll *hahaha*...and just kept going. It's completely up to you how many flowers you create...depending on how big you want your creation to be.

*A few done...many more to go...

3. Next...it's time to be an artist...laying your flowers out in the design you want. When you're finished w/ the test run...put a little glue on the end of one petal and attach it to the end of the other petal. Continue this until your piece is just the way you like...it could be very symmetrical, or more organic (like mine).

4. Now the very tricky part...moving this little bugger outside to be painted. The first try involved both the hubs and myself attempting to balance 3 big pieces of cardboard w/ the piece on top...and then walking at the same time. Needless to say, this did not end well...had to do a little more glueing after that. Finally...I just wo-manned up, weaved my fingers into the petals at the top and on both ends, picked it up, and got 'er outside.

Painting, while extremely cold...it is January in Iowa, after all...was the easiest part. I thought I had enough left-over spray paint to finish the project (making it completely free), but I ended up having to buy a can. Still, the cost is nearly nothing...as I now have at least 1/2 a can of paint left (for my next creation)...so maybe $2.50 total.

5. Last thing to do...hanging. This took about 2 minutes to do...and that is wonderful...since most hanging projects in our house are very tense situations. I just used 4 little finishing nails in the highest petals...pounding them in at a downward angle (w/ about 3/4 of the nail still sticking out of the wall). Then, just rest the inside of the petal over the nail. Easy peasy!

And the finished product...

*Seriously fun...and filled a very bare spot on the wall!

After all of the measuring, cutting, glue drying, and painting...this cheap-o, coolio project took maybe 4 hours to complete. Not too bad, I would say. The longest part was waiting to get enough t.p. rolls to do the silly thing.

~Hilary~