Decorative Handmade Cubes

By: Diane Flowers for Styrofoam Brand Foam

In constructing a cube with paper you can come up with an easy handmade cube and roses. Diane Flowers gives us paper cube instructions in eight steps. Once you have created this you can have it set nicely as a tabletop decoration.

Materials:

STYROFOAM™ Brand Foam:
- Cube, 5"
Tissue paper, one sheet each: dark green; green shimmer; brown patterned (or your choice of colors)
Scrap paper
Paper-making kit
Eight yellow/cream roses with buds and leaves
Natural reindeer moss, small bag
Preserved naturals: honeysuckle vine; thick curly willow stems, two; thin twig bunch
Pencil
Ruler
Floral pins
Household blender
Water
Paper towels
Scissors
Wire cutters or craft snip
Thick, white craft glue
Low-temp glue gun and glue sticks

Instructions:

Tear one paper towel and equal amounts of each tissue paper color into small pieces. Place torn paper into blender and fill with water; blend for 30 seconds or more.
Follow manufacturer's instructions to use paper-making kit. Pour blended paper pulp into frame. Follow kit directions for drying paper sheet.
Repeat Steps 1 and 2 to create second handmade paper sheet.
Spread thin, even coat of glue onto one side of foam cube. Adhere paper, smoothing with fingers to ensure good contact. Tear away excess. Repeat to cover all four sides of cubes with paper, overlapping as needed to cover surface; let dry.
Cut and glue 5" scrap paper square to bottom of cube. Use glue gun to glue moss to top of cube.
Trim rose stems to 4" long or less. Glue and insert into top of cube; use photo as placement guide.
Trim curly willow stems and twigs to various lengths between 3" and 4". Glue and insert naturals into top corners of cube in small groups. Trim four thin twigs to 6" long and insert into foam between roses.
Trim honeysuckle vine to between 24" and 30" long; wrap around center of cube. Secure vine with floral pins and glue gun. Glue small bits of moss to exposed pins and glue spots.