Valentine Tussie Mussie

A couple of years ago, I saw these tussie mussies on Etsy and had to have some.

My Inspiration:  Christmas Tussie Mussie from Etsy

I looked at the construction of these and thought I might be able to make one.  I was thinking about making one for Christmas, but never got around to it.  Well, it's two days before Valentine's Day, and I thought I would give it a shot to Gitter Done!  Now I'm not particularly crafty because I didn't get the construction or mechanical genes.  But I did a google search to try to figure these out because they're so.stinking.cute.  The paper rosettes are the most challenging part.  I don't think I need to reinvent the (pin)wheel, so here is an excellent link.  I also wanted to get a more precise tutorial on cone-making, which I found here.

My original Etsy version (seller is no longer there so I cannot cite the source) has a smaller cone and two rosettes layered over a large glittered star.

The cone is scrapbook paper, the handle is a metallic chenille stem, and there is flat silver garland around the cone opening.

Since I'm making these for Valentine's Day, I decided to soften them up and add a lot of PINK.  I LOVE me some pink!  So I gathered my supplies:

One advantage of waiting till the last minute is that I scored the pink feather "boas" for $1 at Hobby Lobby.

I made the layered rosettes first, using the above-mentioned tutorials.  You basically cut the paper into strips and fan-fold them.  I used a contrasting paper to the one I used for the cones and used my scallop scissors to cut the strips on one side to add a cute detail..  One thing I learned is that the accordian folds of the paper strips should be very tight and quite small.  I thought a paper crimper might be good for this project if those still exist, but I don't have one so I did it the old fashioned way.  Be careful with the hot glue when you're making the fan shape!

A glittered foam sticker heart forms the center of my rosettes, but you could also use a die cut heart, button, gem or whatever your heart desires
 

I also tried a rosette using crepe paper as seen in this video which turned out pretty cute, too.  Truly, there are so many talented people out there that don't mind sharing their knowledge!  Here's my first attempt at a crepe paper rosette:

After I made my cone and glued on my rosettes, I used a single hole punch on the top left and right sides of the cone to thread my chenille stem through.  Then I used my hot glue gun to embellish the cone with that frothy, feathery pink boa.  That was my favorite part, because everything started coming together!  Here's the finished version:

My frothy pink confection that will be filled with creamy chocolate confections

I added a cream-colored banner that simply says, "Valentine."  I used the Edwardian Script font in MS Word, then cut it out and prettied up the ends.

The last part of my tussie mussie is the little ball on the bottom.  The original had a small styrofoam ball that is glittered.  I couldn't find any styro balls smaller than 1 inch, so I decided to use a pink pompom.  Still looks chic, no?

These aren't perfect by any means, but they were made with love with my own two little hands.  I cannot wait to fill these with Dove's dark chocolate Promise hearts and gift them to my friends, because we all know that love isn't love until you give it away!

Happy Valentine's Day!

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