Are you thinking of taking a flower arrangement - or other memorial - to a loved ones grave this Easter? During holidays and other special occasions florists see a rise in business because many people are thinking of their lost loved ones during these times. If you have a loved one that youre thinking about this Easter, and if you like making things yourself, why not make your own tribute to your loved one? Cemeteries that feature flat headstones generally offer vases where you can place flowers as a memorial. These vases are handy for doing just that, but at the same time, the vases limit you as to the amount of space you can use. Only what will fit in or on the vase are permitted. For this reason many people view flowers, flags and flat plaques as the only things they can use to honor their loved ones. If you have a plastic flower pot around the house, though, you can make a large, beautiful tribute that will cost little. No, the craft isnt a pot of flowers! Its something much more impressive than that! Glue a small Styrofoam square in the bottom of the pot, in the center. Ordinary white glue will work great. Place a dab of glue on a wooden dowel and push it into the center of the Styrofoam. The dowel shouldnt be very large in diameter but must be long enough to extend several inches above the flower pot. This dowel will be used to hold the finished arrangement in the provided headstone vase. The vases contain an upside-down cone of Styrofoam which will let you easily insert the dowel of the finished project into the vase.
Temporarily set the pot - with attached dowel - in a vase. The rod should slide down in the vase but the upside-down pot should surround the top of the vase. This will make it easier for you to decorate or create the arrangement for the pot. If you need to, stuff the upside-down pot with paper towels, or something similar, so that it wont wiggle while youre creating. When its stable there are any number of memorials you can make with ease.
Use waterproof adhesive from your local home improvement store to make any outdoor memorial. Hot glue will not hold up under rain. Purchase a Styrofoam cross shape and decorate it - or leave it white - to use for the main focus of one design. You can cover the cross with glitter, fake jewels or even lace. Since the Styrofoam is white its a beautiful look without embellishing at all. To cover the flower pot you can glue on lace, fabric or even flowers. Even colored foil works great for giving the cross and stand a glitzy look for pennies. Instead of a cross you can also make a unique plaque for the headstone. For a child you can attach a small stuffed animal, some craft balloons and tiny plastic toys. For an adult you can create something completely different. Glue a piece of decorative paper or foil to a piece of cardboard. Lay a printed poem, written tribute or even a photo on the paper. Laminate the arrangement then glue it to the upside-down flower pot. You can bend the cardboard, decorate one side and leave the other side blank, or you can make an arrangement on the backside as well. The images or poem on the front side doesnt have to be the same as the design you do on the back. Glue the folded cardboard so that the ends will connect to the flower pot and the fold will be horizontal above the pot. You can then glue flowers or other embellishments around the ends of the cardboard, where they are glued to the pot. There are many different ways to use this technique to honor your lost loved one. The images can be anything from sunsets across an ocean to pictures of rainbows. Go online to search for printable pictures and images you can use. The upside-down flower pot allows you to have much more space for memorials than you would have by just placing arrangements in the provided vase. The flower pots are lightweight but will hold steady when you insert the dowel into the cone Styrofoam inside the vase. Make the flower pot memorials for holidays, birthdays or any other day!
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