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Sunday, 7 January 2018

How to make a Kusudama flower ball

Hi everyone, and welcome to my blog. How is your 2018 going?

Whether you are in the depths of winter or the heat of summer in January, it might be a time for staying indoors out of the weather, and doing a little crafting, so hence my blog post for today.

How to make a Kusudama ball. 
I must admit that until I read my copy of "Breathe" magazine a few months back I had never heard of a Kusudama ball. which is a traditional Japanese decoration that can be hung to twirl in the breeze.


According to British Origami Society - "Kusudama (medicine ball) is believed to have originated in the Heaian Period (794 - 1192). At first fragrant woods and herbs were placed in a small cloth bag, which was decorated with blossoms of sobu or iris and other flowers. Long silk threads of five different colours were attached to it. This was hung in the house on May 5 to dispel evil spirits and disease."



According to Wikipedia -
"The word itself is a combination of two Japanese words kusuri, Medicine, and tama, Ball."

  My magazine supplied instructions. They showed a flower made from coloured paper, you could use origami or patterned paper, but I decided to up-cycle pages from an old book. 

 For your ball you will need to make 12 flowers with each flower having 5 petals made from 5 squares of paper. I gave instructions for making these flowers last year. Click here to learn how by following the easy step by step instructions - How to make a simple paper flower


The folding tool you see in the lower right hand corner is really good for getting those folds firm. The size of the finished ball will depend on the size of your pages. My squares were about 13cm x 13cm.

Follow illustrated step by step instructions on my blog here - How to make a simple paper flower

  Glue each petal together, and then glue the five petals together at the centres to form a 5 petaled flower.  Unlike the paper flowers I showed you how to make last year, there is no stick up the middle.



When you have made 12 flowers you are ready to assemble the ball. Apply a line of glue to the back edge of one of the flower petals (a hot glue gun is good for this) and press a second flower to it, holding until the glue sets. Then run a line of glue down the join between the two flowers and attach a third flower, holding the three together till the glue sets. 
Repeat to make 4 sets of 3 flowers.


Now glue the 4 sets of 3 flowers together to make a ball. Glue a length of ribbon between the flowers  to make a hanger. 

There are other flower shapes they also use to make kusudama flower balls. Search on the net and see what you can find.  I found this one you see below here - how-to-make-beautiful-origami-kusudama-flowers/

 
Thank you so much for stopping by. I value your comments and look forward to hearing from you. I will try to visit your blogs in return. Have a wonderful week. 

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17 comments:

  1. eileeninmd7 January 2018 at 21:35

    Hello, it is a pretty shape, like a flower. Looks like a fun craft to make. Thanks for sharing. Enjoy your day and week ahead!

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  2. Jo ~ Lifestyle Fifty and ZigaZag8 January 2018 at 13:36

    That's so beautiful Jill. You are very clever. It must be quite tricky to make, but what a beautiful result :)

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  3. handmade by amalia8 January 2018 at 16:10

    So pretty. I'd love to give it a try.
    Amalia
    xo

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  4. betty-NZ8 January 2018 at 18:56

    I have seen these before but had no idea what they were called. Thanks for sharing this piece of art with us!

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  5. Anonymous9 January 2018 at 06:33

    So colorful Jill! The Japanese are a whiz at folding paper to make any object. I bought an origami book for my grands - now am waiting till they show interest:) Many thanks for showing this beautiful kusudama flower to All Seasons! Have a lovely week!

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  6. lotusleaf9 January 2018 at 14:46

    A pretty decoration. I am going to try it now.

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  7. Rambling Tart9 January 2018 at 15:34

    I never heard of it until your post today. :-) What a delightful project. :-)

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  8. Lady Fi9 January 2018 at 16:14

    Ooo - so beautiful!

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  9. italiafinlandia10 January 2018 at 18:31

    How funny...and pretty!

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  10. Pieni Lintu10 January 2018 at 18:37

    These are so pretty!

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  11. Su-sieee! Mac11 January 2018 at 04:59

    Oh, that's gorgeous. I've made note of the Kusudama flower ball so that I can make one. I've got a lot of old books to repurpose. :-)

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  12. Angie11 January 2018 at 13:04

    I have seen these but didn't know the name or how to make them. Thanks!

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  13. Buckeroomama11 January 2018 at 14:42

    That's a great activity to try with the kids to get them away from screens!

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  14. Molly11 January 2018 at 21:47

    That is very cool, thank you for sharing

    Mollyx

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  15. Polly12 January 2018 at 03:27

    oh it's beautiful. In a nearby village to me the Church hosts a Christmas tree festival, one of the trees was adorned with decorations made out of folded paper, it was probably the same as Kusudama. It looked very nice.

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  16. likeschocolate12 January 2018 at 17:47

    Pretty! THANKS FOR SHARING! mY GIRLS AND I MAY HAVE TO TRY MAKING THESE! hAVE A GREAT WEEKEND!

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    Replies
    1. Jill Harrison13 May 2019 at 08:34

      I hope you and your girls had fun making the balls Kelleyn.

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I hope you have enjoyed your visit to my blog. Thank you for stopping by and for taking the time to comment. I read and very much appreciate every comment and love hearing from you. I will try to visit your blogs in return.