Pen Bouquet with Helpful Hints - Tutorial

There are already some of these floating around Craftster and you may have seen these decorating desks around your local businesses! It's the simple, classic pen bouquet.

I didn't think to take any photographs while I was putting them together, and I only have phone pics of the finished product, but it should be plenty to give you ideas for your own pen bouquet!

It was made for my sister-in-law's daycare that has a garden theme, so she specifically requested gerber (Gerbera? I've seen it spelled both ways!) daisies. I picked out as many different colors as the store had to make sure that it was bright and colorful! She gave me a pack of standard Bic pens and set me loose!

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I chose a really simple glass vase and clear, iridescent marbles so that they wouldn't compete with the bright colors of the daisies, but instead simply complement them. The marbles are an excellent addition to the vase because they help keep the pens in place when you stab them back into the vase!

First, I took the caps off of the pens, filled the cap with hot glue, and stuck it onto the back of the pen. This gave me extra length and something to anchor the very thick stems to. This step isn't necessary at all, especially if you chose flowers with thinner stems. I opted to also hot glue the flower stem to the pen for extra security before I started wrapping everything up in floral tape.

Start at top and work your way down with the floral tape, being sure to stretch the tape as you wind it around the pen. You might come across some tricky areas as you try to cover the top of the cap and ends of your stems, but go slow and all will be well! Don't forget to overlap your edges for full coverage. When you have as much of the pen covered as you'd like, simply rip the floral tape and press the end down. It should blend it perfectly! The pen might feel a bit tacky when holding it due to the nature of the floral tape, but it will fade with use. Also, don't throw them away when they run out of ink! The floral tape unwinds easily and, if you used hot glue, the flower stem will pop right off so that you can put it on a new pen.

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That's about what your finished pen should look like. You can vaguely see where my cap and stem rest beneath the tape.

Now, fill your vase with marbles and stab the pens into place!

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Almost looks like a real bouquet! Have fun and don't forget to put a sign near the vase if your pens are for public use. My husband complains that he feels like a schmuck at the doctor's office when he stands at the desk and waits for the secretary to hand him a pen!