So, four days ago I got the Tim Holtz Rosette die and YESTERDAY found the Sizzix Accordion Fold Flower die!!! I am now a MASTER of folding, flipping and attaching those wonderful rosettes!!! Check it out... I made 20 in one hour!
Let me share the secret grasshopper....
I discovered yet ANOTHER use for my oh-so-beloved Tonic Studio Glass Cutting mat. Because the mat is lifted up off the crafting table by rubber feet, it is SOOOOOO easy to prepare the surface (in this case, a glue dot in the center of a flower) that the accordion folded flower will be attached to, place it next to the cutting mat.... actually pushing it up under the lifted cutting mat so the glue dot is right next to the bottom edge of the mat, preparing your rosette ON TOP of the mat, then SLIDING the rosette off the cutting mat onto the waiting glue dot. No lifting or trying to maneuver the rosette!!! Let gravity do all the work! I then finished off the rosettes with another glue dot on top sealing the rosettes in place (see above pic) and finishing them all off with a 5/8" circle! It took me a little while to figure out how to make these easy to assemble, but once I figured it out, I was able to make these in a SNAP!
Note: The Sizzix Accordion Fold Flower die requires that you cut out three sections of the accordion fold pieces per flower and glue the pieces together unlike the Tim Holtz rosette that cuts in one solid piece (for the Sizzix assembly instructions for the flowers pictured above click HERE). When I started assembly of these flowers, I was using Zip Dry glue. That ended up taking WAY more time due to the rapid dry of the glue (having to work too fast led to more mistakes) and how thick the glue formula is. Zig Two Way glue ended up being the most economical for money and time. Dry time WAS needed with the Zig glue, but I found that gluing all my pieces first allowed enough dry time so that when I finished and began with "flipping" of the first flower strip that I originally glued, everything was more than ready to rock. Also, if your rosette is not dry, the rosette "flip" is near impossible without a third hand. Once everything is dry, I found the assembly of these flowers were pretty easy by placing the "flipping" pressure on the glue juncture spots (as they are the stiffest point and will pull the rest of the rosette into the "flip").... I hope that made sense. I hope this post makes it easier for EVERYONE wanting to give these AWESOME flowers a try!!!
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