Painted Brownie Anemones

June 1, 2023

Painted Brownie Anemones

This year, I had the opportunity to make these sweet, delicate anemones that have an earthy silky appearance given by the muted brownish accents of color. These blooms were a part of a bridal bouquet commission that I took on, this spring. It took me a while to find photos for inspiration, because these are very rare naturally dyed flowers and you can’t find them in flower shops, as much as other types of anemones. I started the creative process by dyeing the ivory strips of fine 90 gr. crepe paper, with a mix of acrylics and watercolors. Then, I laminated them and cut the petals freehand.

I often work like this… I’m keeping the inspirational images or my drawings next to me and my hand holding the scissors moves naturally, especially when it comes to flowers that don’t have complicated petals to make.

After I shape each petal, I carefully paint the edges with the same color tones that I used in the dyeing process, in order to obtain a realistic effect. The foliage is also painted individually, in a gradient manner; first I paint the green tones and I add all the brownish touches after I cut each leaf.

You can learn how to make the flower center, the stamens, the curved stems, how to assemble the flower and many other coloring tips in my Anemone Tutorial.