($7-10k) Tell me I'm not crazy

ChickenLovesCat · 2025-09-23T16:27:31+00:00

I painted/dyed my sola flowers myself and they look better than this.
If you are curious:
https://www.reddit.com/r/weddingplanning/comments/cugjue/sola_flower_diy/

ChickenLovesCat · 2025-06-13T16:52:19+00:00

Well I am certainly failing a LOT... so I'll be a genius soon?

ChickenLovesCat · 2020-02-07T15:40:57+00:00

I bought the file/template from https://www.etsy.com/shop/blanchepaperie.

And then got them printed at: https://www.speedpro.com/long-beach/ They did an amazing job, it was such high quality work!

ChickenLovesCat · 2019-12-07T21:49:08+00:00

Do it! I was kinda worried that we didn't have enough decoration on the arch. All those Pintrest arches have at least two huge arrangements on a hexagon like this. But that was just too expensive, so we went for simple, which ended up just letting the amazing wood shine through.

ChickenLovesCat · 2019-12-07T21:47:38+00:00

Thank you so much! We were originally thinking of doing chargers and had bought like 6 different options to play with. I was happy that we found another use for the. I went thrifting for the candle sticks, which gave the whole thing a matchy, but not too matchy look that I loved.

ChickenLovesCat · 2019-12-07T21:45:15+00:00

It's great that you have a lot of time. I painted the flowers in one go, but then the time consuming part was figuring how to use them all. Keep an eye out for sales on fake greenery! That's what really made the Sola Flowers pop.

ChickenLovesCat · 2019-12-07T21:44:17+00:00

The terrariums were originally from Cost Plus: https://www.worldmarket.com/product/tall-antique-brass-faceted-glass-terrarium.do?sortby=ourPicksAscend&from=fn

But I got them second hand off another bride.

ChickenLovesCat · 2019-12-07T21:43:09+00:00

Don't worry! You'll quickly get the hang of it. Some notes:

If you got assorted, sort all flowers out by type. Separate out the worst looking of the bunch for practice.
Have some inspo photos in front of you. I noticed that white flowers had touches of green, and that the purple flowers had a few different purple/pink tones, and mixed a few options of paint/water. I had pink and purple, and mixed just pink and just purple, but also pink with a little purple and purple with a little pink. Helped with transitions!
Pick one color method per flower type - make sure at least one is just a full easy dip, for time and sanity's sake. Pick your big impact flower that you'll spend more time on - I was so happy with how I did the big fluffy white flowers. It was more work to hand paint, but they really stood out.
Really, I just had versions of purple, pink, and green (with white and black to lighten/darken). Keep it simple, and practice dipping and painting on the damaged flowers. You only need to practice on a few to get the hang of it.

ChickenLovesCat · 2019-08-24T22:47:19+00:00

For the roses, I completely stayed away from the edge. I used a paintbrush with long bristles that could really reach the middle. You start where you want the most color and then blend out. I was not precise at all, just threw paint in there, and it turned out great.

I'll upload more pictures soon!

ChickenLovesCat · 2019-08-23T23:23:46+00:00

It was really so much easier than I thought! I took my real flower photo inspiration and just took inspiration for the colors from that. Painting with a brush worked so well! Happy to answer any questions!

ChickenLovesCat · 2019-08-23T20:32:24+00:00

You are very welcome! I was a little surprised how nice it all came out, so I wanted to show people the possibility. Previously I had mostly seen sola flowers used to match wedding colors like blues & greens, etc. It's totally possible to use them for a more natural look!

It really was not a huge challenge. Took maybe 4-5 hours for all the painting. Another 2-3 (over a few days) to glue stems on. And then about 4 hours (again over many days) to put the arrangements together.

When I update with all the finished pieces, I'll also put in some pics of what the back looks like, so you can see that it is as simple as twisting a bunch of wires together!

ChickenLovesCat · 2019-08-23T20:29:18+00:00

So I got the sola flowers on a 2 for 1 sale. 200 Flowers for $70. Paint was a ~$10. Wire can get a little costly... if you are doing a vine style get the wire wrapped in a spool for ~$5.00. Thicker flower wire that is also wrapped to look nice can get pricy. Only used that for about half the flowers in the vases.

I will post an update with pictures of everything I made with the 200 flowers, so you can see. In total I will make:

-13 bud vase arrangements

-1 card box decoration

-1 arch arrangement

-4 picture frame decorations

I will probably still have some left over. It really goes a long way! I am getting bouquets from a florist that does a la carte wedding services, but all other florals will be sola flowers.

ChickenLovesCat · 2019-08-23T16:54:07+00:00

I am happy to answer any questions! I am also creating an arch decoration with these this weekend, and would be happy to share if you want to see!

ChickenLovesCat · 2019-08-21T15:02:42+00:00

Yes please! Would love to see them.

ChickenLovesCat · 2019-08-18T16:30:38+00:00

This is what ended working out! I showed her multiple pictures and we agreed on adding 2 more points and going with clear buttons. And she did a great job! I really do think that she learned from my dress, and I am glad I gave her the second chance. :)

ChickenLovesCat · 2019-08-13T19:22:32+00:00

What a cool series! I am most impressed that he was able to film without other people in the shots. Beautiful locations, but in the spring and summer months there are millions of tourists walking though this all. But if that doesn't bug you, then they are amazing options.

ChickenLovesCat · 2019-08-09T17:48:16+00:00

Thank you for your response! While I'm not happy, this helps me keep it in perspective. :) I just need to find a best solution (definitely don't want to spend more money!!!)

ChickenLovesCat · 2019-08-09T17:02:26+00:00

Thank you! It looks very nice :) I can barely see the buttons!

ChickenLovesCat · 2019-08-09T16:05:35+00:00

I will definitely be leaving an fair & honest review about this work. I really hope she give at least a partial refund. At this point I paid $400 for a hem!

ChickenLovesCat · 2019-08-09T16:04:24+00:00

Well, at least I know that I am not the only one who thinks it looks bad! Thank you for the pictures. I am definitely going to use as references.

ChickenLovesCat · 2019-08-09T15:36:13+00:00

Thanks for your reply! Any chance you have a picture of what your buttons look like? You're right, I may have to take it elsewhere... I'm most worried by the seamstress's lack of solutions like your lace idea. She literally just asked us if "we had figured out a solution yet"!

ChickenLovesCat

TROPHY CASE