Turn Extra Cardboard Into An Upcycled, Decorative Flower

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Look around you: Couldn't the room you're in use something fresh and bold to perk it up? Those boxes you've been saving can finally come in handy to create an oversized floral accent for your wall. With curved petals at around a foot long and graceful stamens at the center, a giant handmade flower is a surprising and fun way to turn old cardboard into chic decor. Add it to a gallery wall or use it as a standalone statement piece.

To make your own flower, you'll need several large sheets of corrugated cardboard, floral wire, clear packing tape, masking tape, paint, white glitter, a can of spray adhesive, and colorful cloth. For the stamens, pick paint that complements your fabric. You can also swap out the glitter for white flocking powder if the sparkly stuff doesn't appeal to you. As for tools, you'll need scissors, wire cutters, a glue gun, craft glue, and a paintbrush. Each petal holds an organic curve thanks to strips of floral wire. Smart tip: Pizza boxes are something you actually shouldn't put in your recycling, but you can save grease-free box tops for this purpose after you toss the messy bottom half.

If you're covering the petals with thicker cloth like velvet, a fray-fighting product like Aleene's Stop Fraying can be helpful. In this case, you'll paint the undersides of the petals to mask any hints of cardboard, too. If you're using thinner fabric, you can get a finished edge on your petals by folding and gluing a fabric margin to the underside of the petals.

Draw a pencil line that runs perpendicular to the corrugations on a piece of cardboard. Leave about 4 or 5 inches of cardboard on each side of the line. Using the line as a base, sketch a petal shape around it with pointed tips at each end. Once you are happy with the shape, cut it out and trace it five times onto the remaining cardboard pieces. Trace it so that the corrugations span the width of each petal, and cut them out. Also use the petal shape as a pattern for your fabric pieces. Thick material can be the same size as the petals, but for thinner cloth, add about 1½ inch of extra margin around the cardboard.

To help each petal curve into a "natural" shape, carefully bend them along the corrugations to make the pieces flexible. For each petal, cut three pieces of floral wire. Make one slightly shorter than the petal itself, and two about 2 inches shorter than the petal. Using packing tape, attach the longest one lengthwise down the middle of the petal, and attach the two shorter pieces on each side of the first wire. If you're using thick fabric, paint the wire side of the petal at this time and let it dry.

Bend the petal wire side-down into a slight arch with an upward curve at each tip. Spray the wireless side of each petal with adhesive, and smooth the cloth over it. For thinner fabric, fold the excess over the petals' edges and secure them with hot glue. For thick fabric, give the raw edges a coating of fray prevention.

Cut a 6-inch-by-6-inch cardboard square. Along one edge, poke a couple of holes between 1 and 2 inches apart that you can use to hang the finished flower with the help of a twisted loop of wire. Using a generous amount of hot glue, attach the underside tips of three petals to the base's center so that they radiate outward. Glue the remaining three petals to the base, filling the gaps between the first three petals. If you doubt the long-term hold of hot glue, invest in Gorilla Hot Glue Sticks that are highly rated for crafting. You can also pair regular hot glue with tough-holding E6000, a glue you should keep in your home.

Cut six 12 inch long pieces of wire to make into stamens. Bend each wire in half, and wrap the folded wire's length loosely with a few layers of masking tape until you have a long shape resembling a large stamen. At what will be the base of each stamen, bend the wire into a small coil with one or two rotations to create a larger surface for gluing. Create six of these, bend them into a gradual curve, and paint them. Give each one a glittery or flocked tip once they're dry, and glue their bases to the center of the petals so that they project outward, curving away from each other. After all this hard work, find a hanging spot that isn't in a high-traffic area; a shoulder bump that's a little too hard or an aggressive draft from an open window could have your creation crumbling.