Nostalgia and Fabric Flowers

I have been doing a lot of thinking about how things in my childhood and in my family helped to shape my love and dedication to needlework as an adult.  I can look back and connect some dots now, that I didn't even know were being created as a child.

I remember when I was about 6-8 years old, we attended a church where the ladies put together a weekly fabric service project of sorts.  We would meet in one of the large classrooms on Saturdays to make fabric bouquets for any new names that had been put on the sick list that week.  My memory is foggy on how we made these flowers, but I think I remember enough that I could recreate it.  I have *never* seen this craft done anywhere else and have no idea who came up with it.

 

All the ladies donated materials in all colors and patterns.  So we would choose a color or print theme for each individual bouquet and lay out that material.  Then we would take pipe cleaners in a matching or coordinating color and cut them into thirds or in half, depending on how big we wanted the flowers.  Then we would bend them into a teardrop/flower petal shape.  Using fabric glue, we would glue them onto the material.  At this point, we would usually stop for a potluck lunch while the glue dried.  :0)  After that we would cut out each flower petal.  Then using yellow, orange, or gold pipe cleaners cut to size, we would bend one end down into a small spiral to be used as the stamen and pistil part of the flower.  We would take about 5 or 6 petals with the stamens/pistils placed in the center and start wrapping the base in green floral tape.  We would also attach green floral sticks under this with the wrapped tape, adding on a few leaves here and there.  (Green material with green pipe cleaners, made like the petals but in more of a leaf shape.)  Once all the flowers were done we would gather them into a bouquet and place them in inexpensive green glass vases and deliver them to their recipients. 

Even in describing this project, I can clearly see how these fabric bouquets had to have screamed, "1980s!!!!"  But even so, I'm tempted to try and recreate one or two bouquets for nostalgia's sake.  :0)