Snowflake Rosette Tutorial

Print, punch, pleat! Make snowflake rosettes as ornaments or as a cascade.

Snowflakes are my favourite festive decs because they have a life beyond the festive season. You can keep these cheerful pleated flakes hanging around in gloomy January. Make a bunch using the free printable download (below). The fancy edges are made using Simplicity Pattern Punches from Tonic Studios.

The snowflake design is engineered to coordinate with two styles of Tonic Simplicity Pattern Punches - either the Scalloped Diamond design (Item 962e) for a more geometric look or the Victorian Border (Item 963e) for a lacy edge.

Just download a file below and print them onto plain white copier paper - then you'll be good to go with the tutorial. Choice of .svg, .jpg, or .studio file:

https://dl.dropbox.com/u/27130011/SnowflakeBordersSelect.svg
https://dl.dropbox.com/u/27130011/SnowflakeBordersSelect.jpg

These files are meant to be printed. They are not cutting files in the case of the .studio and .svg files. They should fit exactly onto an A4 piece of copier paper.

Now for the tutorial:

1) Print the snowflakes and cut out the individual pattern bands. For the smaller size snowflake, remove a strip 1cm (3/8in) wide from the bottom edge of the snowflake. I'm using scissors, but a paper trimmer is even better for the job.

2) Fold the pattern band in half crosswise. Mark the centre of the punch with a piece of masking tape, as shown (the "n" in the Tonic logo at the punch bottom is the centre).

3) Make the first punch. Make sure that the pattern band is facing the direction shown (with the snowflake point facing towards back of punch). Really important!

4) Punch the pattern band halfway (7 punches), then finish punching the band in the opposide direction (6 more punches). 

5) This pic shows how to align the punches. See how the cutout matches the design on the base of the punch.

 6) Trim the ends of the punched pattern band.

7) Next, fold over alternate points and glue them down. Glue down only the points without a snowflake point on them. This creates a pretty double-sided paper effect which highlights the punch design!

 

8) Accordion-pleat the pattern band as shown, aligning your folds with the punched scallops.

9) Accordion-pleat once again, folding your first set of pleats in half. There should be a mountain fold in the centre of each snowflake point, with valley folds in between.

10) Glue the pleated strip into a ring, overlapping the last segments on either end. The finished ring looks like a cracker crown!

 

11) Tricky bit! Flatten the pleated crown, points to the outside. Ease the pleats into position so the ends meet at the centre. Don't let go!
You should also have on hand a 2.5cm (1in) paper circle with a hole pierced in the centre.

12) Carefully turn the rosette over and glue the paper disc onto the centre. 

13) Now turn the rosette over once more and adjust the pleats. Make sure they meet at the centre and that the creases are sharp.

14) You can weight the rosette with a punch as the glue dries. The punch shown is from Tonic Studios Petal Pairs Box Set 4 Item 883e. When the snowflake rosette has dried, use the punch to cut out a Petal Pair flower from white paper. Pierce a hole in the middle of the Petal Pair flower. You can use any punch in the Petal Pairs range to make the snowflake rosette centre.

15) With a sewing needle, thread a bead onto a piece of soft embroidery cotton or craft thread (white). Slide the bead to the centre of the thread.

16) Switch to a tapestry needle and thread both thread ends through the eye. Thread the bead through the centre of the Petal Pair flower.

17) Knot the thread on the back of the rosette. Trim ends. 

 18) You've finished your snowflake rosette! It makes a lovely decoration as is, especially useful for gift wrapping. Since the snowflake design is only printed on one side, if you want to make a hanging ornament, then you must stick two snowflakes back-to-back.


Here's how to make a hanging snowflake rosette ornament:

1) You need two completed snowflakes. On one snowflake, thread a hanging loop. (Use a needle to thread a loop of string through the cardboard circle.) Knot the hanging loop near the end. On the centre disc of the other snowflake, stick a Dodz 3D Adhesive Dot by 3L Scrapbooking Adhesives.

2) To complete the ornament, join the snowflakes back-to-back, with points alternating. Press the snowflake centres to make sure the snowflakes are stuck together well. Your ornament is finished!

Completed snowflake rosette ornaments. Double-sided for hanging!

That almost does it for the Snowflake Rosette workshop. Just a few fine points and extras:

If you are making the larger size of snowflake, you must clip into the folds for ease like so (above).

Big and little snowflake sizes contrasted.

If you like paper chains (and who doesn't), then you can make a bead-linked snowflake vertical cascade. Hang it against the wall because the snowflakes are one-sided. The vertical format look fresh.
(Don't make a horizontal chain - the snowflakes will twist.) 

Petal Pairs "Centre Perks" make pretty snowflake centres.

Instead of a bead, you can add a Petal Pairs "Centre Perk" to the rosette centre. You need two Petal Pair flowers to make the Centre Perk. Pierce holes in the centres. Knot a piece of thread in the centre, fold it in half, and thread it through the Petal Pairs, like so:

To fold the Centre Perk: fold the top petals to the centre; open them back out, then fold them down consecutively, tucking the last petal in.
 
And of course, you can make pleated rosettes from other papers besides the snowflake printout. Great all year round.

Thanks to Leah for taking the pics. Gratitude and cheesecake to you.