Accordian Pinwheel {The I did it happy post!}

In honor of my lovely MILs 65th birthday, my husband and I had the family over for a “surprise” dinner this past Saturday. MIL has two sons and two brothers… and now she has her little bouncing baby girl – ME! 🙂  Because she’s grown up with boys and raised boys, and now has a grandson, good girly stuff is a rarity {girly as in girly gifts, conversation, lunches}. For the party I wanted to have laid back vibe, yummy food, margaritas and some decorative touches that I thought she could appreciate. I’ve had my eyes on the accordian pinwheel/flowers that elementary school and Martha made famous for some time now (didn’t happen in December like I’d hoped). I love paper crafts, texture, color … pinwheels are all of that! One WP night last week I was browsing and came across a blog I’m now following… she had her version of accordian pinwheels posted that she’d done for a baby shower. I sent her a message and she was kind enough to offer tips. THANK YOU! It gave me the kick I needed to feel like I, too, could do this {and finish}.

I’m a total improv crafter…..  When my accordian middle was uneven I decided to stick a brad in the middle to take the focus of the flaw – it made it look like a flower! When I forgot to cut the paper edges round before gluing, I went with it. When the backs of my flowers were not perfectly even (so therefore didn’t lay flat), I hole punched and added a ribbon. I used paper I had available and didn’t buy anything. Here’s what I came up with on my imperfect journey:

My door greeter (yes, I know…)

flower made with tissue paper squares by my son!

paper message with the cookies

the babies got back…so I could tape them to the wall!

bright, festive!

my FAVORITE

see the brad I shoved in the middle?

arthritis pile … just the beginning!

my first practice one…i forgot to round the edges before I got to work! thank god for rough drafts (yes, plural)

these are the brads I had on hand

I had all these little cuties laid around the counter in my butler area off the kitchen where all the mexican fixins’ were waiting to be eaten. They added lots of color and interest and looked so sweet. My coworker said they reminded her of the world fair and I thought that was a good call! I also hung some in my backyard off the awning mixed with some white paper lanterns. It was a really sunny day and it all looked so nice in the breeze!

These little arthritis starters still make me so happy. Finger cramps and glue gun burns were totally worth it. My favorites are the floral design with yellow/red/pink warm tones. I’m now going to affix them sprinkled throughout my picture wall! 🙂

I don’t write DIY posts, I read them, but I’m happy to answer any questions and LA LA LOVE to read your comments.