Making Flower Crowns with Real Flowers
For centuries, flower crowns of all styles and fashions have conveyed meaningful messages and been an honored tradition worldwide.
They have been an essential part of special ceremonies such as weddings, festivals, and rituals.
In fact, flower crowns are still an important part of the Midsummer celebration in Sweden.
There’s something a little bit magical about them, and we find them irresistible to this day.
Flower crowns are worn at weddings, bridal showers, birthdays, anniversaries, and festivals, on May Day, or to welcome the first day of spring.
They are simple to craft and, once you’ve created a few for yourself, will make excellent gifts for friends. They are a special and unique pick-me-up!
Flower Crown DIY Materials
Before assembling your flower crown, have everything you need set out on a crafting table.
Plug in the glue gun so that it’s warmed up and ready to go.
- Measuring tape
- Thick aluminum wire (12 gauge or thicker)
- Thin green floral wire
- Green floral tape
- Floral snips or shears
- Wire cutters
- Scissors
- Hot glue gun
- Flowers: Check out the list below for “statement flower” and “filler flower” ideas. The stems should be two to three inches long and the leaves should be stripped off
- Fillers: Greenery, smaller flowers, or branches with berries, etc., to fill out the crown
- Extra goodies: Ribbon, pearls, feathers
- Gloves
Statement Flowers
I refer to flowers that stand out and call attention to themselves as “statement” flowers. They are often bigger and bolder than “filler” flowers.
One of the basic crown techniques is to choose an odd number of flowers that will be the focal point of the crown (hence, statement flowers).
That said, crowns made from only statement flowers or only filler flowers can be just as lovely.
Make your flower crowns uniquely yours. Nice statement flower examples include the following:
- Roses
- Dahlia
- Ranunculus
- Daisies
- Freesias
- Gladiolas
- Carnations
- Wisteria
- Peonies
- Gerbera daisies
- Stocks
- Sea holly
- Lisianthus
Filler Flowers
Filler flowers are typically smaller and subtler than statement flowers.
They might grow on a single stem or as a spray. Filler flowers add color,
texture, fullness, and charm. Good filler flower examples are these:
- Baby’s Breath
- Cornflower
- Statice
- Small daisies
- Gomphrena
- Clematis
- Lamb’s ears
- Periwinkle
- Lavender
- Rosemary
- Goldenrod
- Dandelions
- Aster
Adding Greenery
Like the filler flowers, greenery fills things in, adds texture, and generally pulls everything together. Good greenery examples include the following:
- Ivy
- Artemisia
- Jasmine
- Hops
- Olive branches
- Mock orange
- Other softwood cuttings from shrubs
How to Assemble a Flower Crown
Flower crowns look fancy and technical, but they’re surprisingly easy to assemble.
It’s all about simple winding (using thin floral wire or florist’s tape) and placing flowers,
greenery, filler, and other goodies closely together to produce a gorgeous presentation.
Step 1: Start by taking the measuring tape and wrapping it around your head. Place the tape exactly where you’d like the crown to sit on your head.
You can place it to sit perfectly centered on top of the head – in this case, the front part of the crown comes across the forehead.
You could also have it sit back encircling the base of the head, in which case the front of
the crown comes across the top of your head and the back scoops low at the base of the scalp.
Step 2: Pinch or mark the tape where the ends meet and lay it next to the thick, aluminum wire that will be the base of your crown.
Add two inches to your measurement. Use this number to cut the heavy wire with the floral snips.
The extra two inches will be bent to hook the crown together. Hook those two ends together now.
Step 3: Choose an odd number of statement flowers. These will be your focal points. Set them aside for the moment.
Using some greenery or filler flowers, start at one end of the crown and begin wrapping these elements onto the wire.
Typically, these are wrapped using thin floral wire because you want to be able to see the greenery
(it covers the wire as well as the wrapped statement flower stems). Make sure all the flowers are facing the same way as you add them.
Step 4: Continue adding greenery, filler flowers, and your other goodies, adding the statement flowers evenly at regular intervals.
Wrap flowers that have stems onto the wire using the green floral tape. This hides the wire while keeping the stem green.
To create a crown with a thinner appearance, attach one or two flowers, one directly behind the other, along the crown wire.
If you’d like a fuller crown, don’t add flowers individually to the wire. Instead, secure small
“bundles” of flowers together and then place those bundles along the crown.
Step 5: After you’ve completed the crown, hold it back and take another look. Does it need some more elements added?
Does it need more flowers? More color? Less color? Add, subtract, and otherwise adjust your crown until you are happy.
Remember the thin floral wire is flexible and unnoticeable, so don’t be afraid to add to your creation.
Step 6: Your flower crown can be finished in various ways. You can wrap the rest of the wire in green floral tape and then simply hook the ends together.
You could hot glue a pair of statement flowers near the ends or two short pieces of ribbon to tie into a bow.
Long ribbons hot glued to the ends are always the perfect touch to a traditional flower crown.
Thoughts on Finding Flowers
When deciding which flowers to use, your best bet is to start with those that are blooming naturally this season. Of course,
it’s possible to use any flowers found at a florist as tons of varieties are flown in from all over the world. However,
if you choose seasonal flowers grown in your area, you will have fresh, unlimited blossoms, spend less, and support a local flower grower.
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