Make a lollipop tree and surprise your loved one this Valentine's Day. The tree is pretty to look at and hides a sweet little surprise. Your Valentine will definitely not miss this message of love.
Total Time: 30 minutes, including drying time
Yield: one miniature tree
Supplies:
- 1 lollipop, such as Chupa Chup or FizzPop
- 7cm x 6cm sized terracotta pot
- white felt
- 10mm wide black Washi tape with small white flowers printed on the tape
- left-over piece of green water-retaining floral foam
- 1 small packet of moss
- green florist tape
- true red acrylic paint
- paintbrush
- 2 inch heart-shaped cookie cutter
- pencil
- bowl with water
- kitchen knife
Steps:
- Paint the inside and outside of the pot with the red paint and allow to dry thoroughly.
- Add Washi tape around the top of the pot.
- Use the cookie cutter and trace 9 hearts onto the felt. Cut out the hearts. These will be the rose petals, whereas the lollipop will form the centre of the rose.
- Fold the bottom part of each petal around the stick of the lollipop. Use floral tape to secure the bottom point of each heart to the stick. Continue until all 9 rose petals have been secured.
- Cover the whole stick with floral tape, so that the rose will have a green stem.
- Soak the piece of floral foam in the bowl with water. Do not push the foam under the water, but allow it to soak up the water on its own, or else it may leave dry spots in the foam which can't be detected from the outside. After 20-30 seconds, or as soon as the top of the piece of floral foam is level with the surface of the water, remove the piece of floral foam from the water.
- Use the knife and cut the foam block to the correct size, so that it will fit snugly into the pot. You will have to cut the foam at a slant, to make provision for the fact that the pot gets narrower towards the bottom. Do not cut away too much at once ~ cut a few small pieces away, measure it to the pot and keep on cutting and measuring until the foam fits into the pot.
- Put moss into the water, squeeze excess water out and then add the moss to the top of the pot to cover the foam.
- Push the lollipop rose through the moss and into the foam.
