I purchased my metal tree I used for this project from a place called Copper Moon in Toledo Ohio.  You could make your own tree out of wood, cardstock, or purchase a similar tree.  If you search for metal tree, there are a lot of nice options for you to pick from, and many are at a reasonable price. Here is a nice option from Home Depot https://www.homedepot.com/p/Evergreen-Metallic-Tree-Outdoor-Metal-Wall-Art-6M548/315120906?source=shoppingads&locale=en-US  

I was not a fan of the metal look my tree was when I purchased it, but this was an easy fix.  I first sanded the piece down. I bought a white primmer spray paint to help protect the metal from rust.  I also purchased some rose gold spray paint and applied two coats to my metal tree.  With the shape of this piece, it was easy to miss small sections.  So, once it dried, I gave it a good look over and made sure to cover any areas I might have missed or needed another coat.  I love the rose gold.  I also liked that it made it shiny, but still looked kind of like a tree trunk color.  

I really like cherry blossoms/Sakura trees, and with the cherry blossoms blooming in Japan, I thought it was a fitting flower for this tree.  I purchased two different shades of pink cardstock from Joann Fabrics.  I liked that my lighter pink cardstock had a little texture to it.  I did not want both colors to have texture to them, because I thought that might be too much.  The flower is a simple 4 petal flower.  I used my Cricut Maker (other cutting machines, punches, or cutting by hand would also work) to make my flowers.  For my tree I decided to make each flower about 0.5 inches big.  I then made several copies of my flower pattern.  I then cut the pattern out in both my lighter pink and darker pink cardstock.  Both colors were cut to the same 0.5 inch size.   I put my cutout flowers in different containers to help keep me organized.

Once I had a lot of flowers made, it was time to assemble them.  I found a nice gold marker from Dollar Tree.  I used that to make a small circle in the center of all of my light pink flowers.  I then applied a small amount of Elmer’s glue to the center of the darker pink flowers and placed the lighter pink flowers on top of it.  I made sure the petals were positioned so that they did not cover each other up.  I set the flower aside to dry and worked on assembling the next flower.  I then went back and with my fingers carefully bent each flower petal up to give the flower some more dimension.  I had this tool with a small ball on the end, which I place in the center of my flower, which helped hold the flower as I bent the petals with my fingers.  This tool is meant to bend the petals itself, but since the flower was so small, I found it easier to use the tool to just help me hold the flower down/in place.   

Once all of my flowers were assembled it was time to put them on the tree.  For this part I used Gorilla Glue to apply each flower to different areas of the tree.  This glue seemed to work really well.  I placed the flowers in random places, but with the front of the tree in mind.  Since I was going to set this piece on a shelf, I knew the back would not be seen much.  So, I angled flowers in the back of the tree towards the front so you would see the full flower, instead of the back of flowers.  I also decided to place two flowers at the bottom of the tree like they had fallen off the tree.   

I really like how this project turned out.  It has all of my favorite things in it; flowers, metal, and rose gold.  What are some of your favorite things or what are your favorite items to work with or craft with?  This project was a little time consuming, but I did not mind it.  I played some videos on my computer as I assembled flowers.  It was relaxing to me.  It is hard to pick a favorite project, I have made, but this one is definitely up there for me.  I look this tree every day when I sit at my crafting desk. What are some decorations, either that you have made or that you have bought, that bring you joy?