Something for the Men Folk - Easy Feather and Raw Silk Boutonniere Tutorial

Hello!  It's so nice to see you again!  I'm back to the land of the living, finally.  After a harrowing bout of illness over the past four days, I'm back in the saddle again.  And to celebrate, I bring you a tutorial!

(It's also to distract you from the fact that I haven't yet posted any actual pictures from the photo shoot a week ago.  Coming soon, I promise!)

Sometimes I get asked to make boutonnieres and corsages for weddings, which I love to do.  For the photo shoot we did last weekend, I made up a few of these cute little feather boutonnieres that took me about 5 minutes total.  I thought these would make a super easy DIY project that's elegant and a great way to save a few bucks at your own wedding!  And NO glue!!!  Yay!

Feather & Raw Silk Boutonniere for the Men Folk

What you need:

Feather picks
Find these at JoAnn's or your local craft store in packs of two.  There's all different kinds of feathers, colors, sizes.  Or if you're feeling extra crafty, grab your favorite feathers, strip away about a half an inch at the bottom, and bind together with florist tape to make your own pick!
A strip of raw silk 
About an inch wide, 8-12 inches long.  Make a snip at the selvage edge and tear away!  Remove any long strands that get in your way along ripped edges.
Scissors
Clean fingers
A pat on the back (for when you're done - you did a great job and saved all that money!)
Start with the feather pick.  If there is a little plastic loop at the bottom, go ahead and remove it.  If you have too many feathers or it's too long, pull out or snip and shape the feathers to the size you desire.

Then take the strip of silk and wrap tightly around the bottom of the pick a few times to hide the florist tape.  Tie in a simple knot, not too tight, not too loose.

Or make a bow if that's your thing, (or hot glue in the back to hide the ends for a simpler look.)  Trim the ends of the knot to the desired length

 And fray the ends a bit with your finger tips.  Voila!

A very handsome boutonniere that will last forever.  Very manly, but not too manly.  You could even embellish the groom's boutonniere by adding a little flower or a bit of greenery, or distinguish it by using a different shade of fabric.  I love raw silk because it comes in every color of the rainbow, and has such a shimmery, lush appeal to it.

This project would probably cost about $5 for a quarter to half yard of raw silk, and about $1-$4 per feather pick, depending on what kind you get, so if you made 6 of these for the groom's party, you could potentially get away with making these for right around $12-$15!  More money saved for honeymoon mai tai's.  ;)