Do you have a summer event coming up that could incorporate a garden theme? If so, here is an idea for combining my last two published projects, Make a Seed Packet Bouquet and Make Gift Tags Into Recycled Greeting Cards. Presented in a terra cotta plant pot, these “bouquets” could be a garden themed gift, party favor or table decoration. I made these samples because I needed Mother’s Day gifts in a hurry, but variations could be made for garden parties, weddings, tea parties, picnics and more.
In my project Make a Seed Packet Bouquet, I experimented with different embellishments for the corners of the seed packet holders. For this group I punched out a whole bunch of circles with a circle craft punch. Then I stamped a flower stamp on many pieces of colorful scrap paper. I cut the flowers out then glued each to a circle.
Flower stamp credt: 7Gypsies.
I then used the circles on the corners of the seed packet holders by punching a hole in the middle and attaching them with metal brads.
Stamp credits: Flower inside circle, realistic butterflies, bird egg, “Crazy Love” by7Gypsies. “Seeds”, brackets, “love” by CarolynHDesign. “Celebrate” by Making Memories. Scribble flowers and butterfly by Fiskars.
I selected two tags for each seed packet assembly, one smaller and decorative and the other larger and functional with “To” and “From” on the back.
I went to Schnarr’s Hardware to buy terra cotta plant pots and packets of lettuce seeds, then to JoAnn Fabrics and Crafts to buy a bag of natural moss. You can buy florists foam to stick the skewers into, but I had some chunks of scrap styrfoam on hand so I cut them apart with a hand miter saw and stuck a piece in each plant pot.
I wrapped each pot with tissue paper gift wrap that I had on hand, then placed some of the moss on top. I pushed each skewer in through the moss and tissue into the foam, then tied the tags around each “stem” with twine.
How did I decide which seeds to include? I chose a lettuce mix because it can be grown in a small container and harvested as micro greens. I bought two packets and divided the seeds up among the five smaller packets that I made. In order that the recipients would know what the seeds are and how to grow them, I scanned information from the back of the packet into the computer and used graphics software to make this graphic, which I then printed out.
These graphics came from the back of the Botanical Interests brand seed packets that I purchased.
After printing the above graphic I cut out the informational graphics out and glued one to the back of each homemade seed packet.
This project is adaptable to many varieties of seeds and many different themes. I hope you enjoy the ideas!
Here is a new and improved and combined version of a couple of tutorials I wrote in 2016. Enjoy!
Tools and Materials
Seeds, either purchased or home harvested Template for a 2.5 x 3.5 inch envelope, and Seed packet holder template for 2.5 x 3.5″ packet Decorative paper Cardstock Squeegee tool or bone folder Glue stick Scrap cardstock, chipboard, or file folders for backing templates for tracing Clean scrap paper for gluing surface Rubber stamps Stamping ink Punches, stencils or templates for flower, center hole of flower, and leaf. Scissors Cutting mat X-acto or craft knife Metal ruler Pencil Double-sided tape Small hole punch Wood skewers (available in grocery stores) Tape Decorative paper flowers Needle tool or awl – if using brads to attach embellishments Brads Adhesive dots Glue for attaching embellishments Small floral theme embellishments
Instructions
First make the seed packets.
Template for Seed Packet Envelope Small
Download and print out the Seed Packet Template Small. Cut out the template and glue it to scrap chipboard or cardstock for durability with a glue stick. Trim around it with scissors.
Stamping on plain paper. Stamp credits from left to right: handwrting background stamp by Inkadinkado, newsprint by Posh Impressions, Da Vinci frontispiece might be Stampington, Pennsylvania Dutch Border Rubber Stamp by me, and arts and crafts botanical tile pattern at the far right by me.
Take some plain paper or decorative paper with a subtle pattern on it and stamp some background stamps on it in complementary ink colors to make it more interesting. If your paper is interesting enough without this step you can skip it.
I own a lot of rubber stamping ink pads, but I don’t have one for every re-inker in my studio. If you want to save money and/or space, you can just buy a re-inker instead of a pad and apply the ink to a palette with a brayer. Then you can roll the ink onto the stamp, or for small stamps just press it on the inked palette. This works best when you want to do a lot of stamping with the same color – when you only want to do a little bit of stamping a pad is much more convenient. When you’re done stamping, if there is any ink left on the palette you can sprinkle a little water on it, lay down a piece of plain paper and burnish it. It’s a fun way to make interesting backgrounds. You can even draw or stamp or make marks into the ink to do a form of monoprinting. When I first took printmaking class, I got into what I could do with the palette at least as much as the printing blocks that I carved.The picture shows a piece of plexiglass as a palette, I’ve also used at various time palette paper, waxed paper, and the shiny side of freezer paper.
Place decorative paper back side up on your work surface. Place the Seed Packet Template Small that you printed out on the paper and trace around with pencil. Cut out envelope and fold in tabs. A thin ruler or straight edge is a good helper for making folds. Go over the folds with a squeegee tool or bone folder.
Envelpoes cut out before they are folded
With a glue stick, glue all the tabs on the envelope except the top tab. Leave that one open so you can add seeds later.
Fronts and back of assembled envelopes.
Once the envelope is assembled, if the front looks a little plain add some texture stamping along an edge or two. That’s really effective for adding interest.
I added stamping to the edges with some favorite texture stamps.The notebook page border stamp is by 7Gypsies, and the texture at the upper right is by Judikins.
Cut out a narrow strip of paper with a decorative scissors and stamp on it the word “Seeds” surrounded by small brackets. If you don’t have similar stamps in your collection you can use whatever stamps you have that fit the theme. Accent the strip with rubber stamping in lighter colors along the edges.
The Seeds stamp and the brackets are both from my own collection.
Glue the strip across the top of the envelope about a quarter of the way down or whatever looks right to your eye. Trim the ends after gluing if needed.
I glued on the strip that says “Seeds”, trimmed the strips to the edges of the envelopes, and got flower and leaf pieces in place to glue on.
Punch out a flower shaped piece of decorative paper and punch out a paper circle for the middle. Glue circle on flower and glue flower to the front of the envelope. An alternate idea is to cut out a leaf shape and a stem piece to make a leaf design for the front. I used a commercial punch for the flower and a pattern from a paper stack for the leaf. You can use whatever patterns and punches you have that you like if you don’t have these exact designs.
Stamp large brackets around the flower. I used unmounted bracket stamps, so the clear block you see is an acrylic block for temporarily mounting stamps with double sided tape or adhesive bits.
Pictured upper left: bracket stamps on an acrylic block. Upper right: stamping on a seed packet. Even though the clear acrylic block is a bit smudged from use you can still see through it to see where to stamp. The brackets stamps are temporarily attached with adhesive squares. Bottom: Finished seed packets.
Fill the packet with seeds, and write the name of the seeds and if you like growing information on the back of the envelope. You can obtain seeds by buying them in a garden center. This is also a charming way to package seeds you’ve harvested yourself to make a special and personal handmade gift for someone.
Next are holders for the packets
Next make holders so you can suspend the finished seed packets on skewer sticks to display them in a container of some kind. Perhaps a vase as in my example, or maybe a table centerpiece, a gift basket, a plant pot with garden tools or some other special container.
Download the template Seed Packet Holder Template for 2.5″ packet x 3.5″. You might only need to look at it for reference, but if it’s helpful as a cutting guide, cut out and mount the parts on scrap chipboard for durability.
Cut out a piece of card stock of a color that is harmonious with your seed packet, 3.5 x 9 inches. Fold it in half.
Lay the holder piece flat and unfolded on your cutting mat. Cut four diagonal slits through the front of the seed packet holder toward the corners using a craft knife and a metal ruler as a guide.
Punch small holes where indicated on the back of the seed packet.
Push a wooden skewer through the back of the holder so that the blunt end of the skewer ends up inside the holder butted up against the fold. Tape in place.
Slip your seed packet into the front of the holder.
Take four small flower embellishments in colors that go well with your seed packet and attach them to the corners. Depending on what kind of embellishement it is, you could use glue, adhesive dots or brads to attach.
Put double sided tape or adhesive dots along the sides and bottom inside your holder. Fold the front down and press halves together.
Arrange your packets in a vase or other container. You’re done!
Here is a tiny treat basket I made for Easter. You can adjust the colors and themes to suit any occasion you want.
Here is an easy basket to make out of paper for handing out small treats or using as party favors. Each basket side is about 1 3/4″ square. I made these samples for Easter. The colors I used could also work for other spring occasions such as Mother’s Day, showers or weddings. Change the colors and design motifs for any occasion of your choice throughout the year.
Tiny Envelope Treat Basket TemplateGluing parts cut from template printout to leftover file folder cardstock to make templates for tracing.
Loosely cut out the basket, handle, and one of the squares out of the printout. Leave a little paper outside the outline when you cut so that you can trim it closer after gluing. Glue the pieces down on the scrap cardstock with a glue stick, burnishing it well with a bone folder or squeegee to get a good tight seal on the glue. Cut out the pieces.
Fold in the flaps and seams to get a crease the fold back out before you use the basket template. Seeing where the folds are will help you make little pencil marks on the back of the tracing in case you need some to indicate where the folds will go.
Next trace around the shapes you just cut out onto some cardstock with pencil. Only one side is going to show when finished, so if your cardstock is double sided make sure your pencil lines are not on the side you want to show.
Trace squares, the basket, and the handle. Each basket uses two squares as shown, but I made four out of each piece of card stock I was using to have extras for making cards and other things later. Another reason it’s good to have extra squares is that if you use decorative cardstock that doesn’t have the same pattern all over, it’s easier to find combinations that you like with a variety to choose from.
Tracing around basket, handle and square shapes on the back of decorative thin cardstock.
I recommend making several baskets at a time – that’s the easiest way to experiment with colors and patterns to get the look you want. You can make them all match each other, or make them all different like I did.
Cut out the basket piece and handle with a plain scissors, and the squares with a decorative scissors. Punch out a bunch of shapes of your choice.
Cut out a bunch of squares with a decorative paper edging scissors and punch out a lot of hearts so you have a lot of choices to work with.
Take a basket cutout, and fold the flaps and basket sides in and out again to make creases. It’s best to fold toward the outside of the basket first before folding inward. The reason for this is that some colored papers have a white core which can show through if there is tearing along the fold. This shows far less if you fold toward the outside first.
Having creases at this stage makes centering the squares and the punched out shapes in the middle of each side of the basket much easier. Glue a square onto two sides of the basket, and a punched shape on the other two. Then glue a punch shape over each square. Place clean scrap paper over all and burnish well.
Here are some of the resulting color and texture combinations.
One layer of card stock is a bit flimsy for this project in my opinion. To make the basket and handle sturdier, I picked a complementary color of solid cardstock and glued it to the reverse side of the basket and handle pieces to make double thickness laminated cardstock. Then I trimmed around the baskets and handles with a scissors.
Now you can assemble the baskets. Place double sided tape on the flaps and fold in and press the basket together like a little box.
Reinforce each basket corner with design tape, also known as washi tape. Florals and butterflies worked really well with my spring theme.
Put adhesive dots or double sided tape on the top side of each end of the handle, then bend and position it in place. Press with your fingers where the adhesive dots are to firmly attach the handle to the insides. If you think the handle needs a bit more support, a piece of design tape over the join on the inside looks nice and makes the handle attachment stronger.
Here are more examples of Tiny Treat Baskets I made for Easter using different color combinations. I used paper scraps from making them to make little tags which I tied on with bakers twine and embroidery thread.
You’re done! Now you can fill the basket and tie on a gift tag if you want to.
Here is a way to give a bouquet of flowers that is a little different from the usual! Mount seed packets on skewers in a vase for a festive gift. Such arrangements can also be used for table centerpieces or party favors.
Seed packet holder templates
Laminating sheets (optional)
Scissors
Cardstock
Cutting mat
X-acto or craft knife
Metal ruler
Pencil
Double-sided tape
Small hole punch
Wood skewers (available in grocery stores)
Decorative paper flowers
Needle tool or awl
Decorative flower-shaped brads
1. Download the template Seed Packet Holders. It includes two holder templates. Cut out and if you like, laminate for durability.
2. Use the template that is the correct size for your seed packet and cut out a piece of card stock of a color that is harmonious with your seed packet. Fold it in half.
3. Lay the holder piece flat on your cutting mat and place the template over it. Cut four diagonal slits through both your template and the front of the seed packet holder. When you use the template again, if you like you can draw lines through it with a pencil to indicate where to cut on the front of the holder.
4. Push a wooden skewer through the back of the holder so that the blunt end of the skewer ends up inside the holder butted up against the fold. Tape in place.
5. Slip your seed packet into the front of the holder and poke a hole with a needle tool or awl in the holder piece at each corner of the seed packet.
6. Take four small paper flowers in colors that go well with your seed packet and position them inside four larger paper flowers. Poke a decorative brad through each flower to make a flower center. Push the brads through the holes in each corner and fold brads over on the back. If you can use the brad tines to help hold the seed packet in place as you spread them that is a bonus.
7. Put double sided tape along the sides and bottom inside your holder. Fold the front down and press halves together.
