Bridal Bouquet and Vintage-style Jewellery

Transform pretty brooches into Stacey Powell's everlasting bouquet and vintage-style jewellery mementos

Brooch bouquets are swiftly overtaking fresh flowers as the hottest wedding trend. They won't wilt or fade, plus it provides the opportunity to create something from vintage brooches as 'something old'! Ask those most close to you to contribute a piece each so your bouquet tells a story, or try car boot sales, online auction sites and charity shops. Choose at least three, but not more than five colour families and try to use either all shades of gold metals or all silver for a more co-ordinated look.

Brooch Tiara

1. Source a floral brooch with a filigree edge and carefully remove the pin backing with pliers. Wrap a length of gilt wire around a double wire tiara band twice to secure, then thread on the brooch, positioning it so that it will sit to the side of the head when worn. Wrap over this and the band to secure, then repeat on the other side, until the piece feels secure.
2. For the branches, cut 20cm of wire and thread on a pearl, placing it in the middle. Fold the strand in half and twist downwards until you reach midway down, then add another pearl. Use a mix of pearl sizes to create an organic look. Pull away from the main branch, then twist down again until you meet the centre. To create denser branches with longer sprays, just cut a longer piece of wire and follow the same process, but have more sprays coming off the main branch.
3. Make as many branches as required, remembering to leave about 3cm of untwisted wire at the bottom to attach to the band. Fasten each branch onto the tiara by wrapping the excess wire around the bands. Repeat, until you feel you have enough branches, keeping them to the same half of the band as the brooch detailing and making sure that you don’t go over the central arc.
4. To add clusters of pearls next to the brooch, cut a long but manageable length of wire; around 40cm is best. Thread on a pearl and wrap around the band, then next to the pearl again to secure. You may find that the bead spins around the tiara but the more you add, the less this will happen. Make sure every pearl added is a different size to the previous one, to add to the overall effect.
5. To create a cluster effect and to coverany untidy wiring, place two pearls together occasionally. Repeat on both sides of the band up and around the brooch. You may need to add more wire lengths; simply wrap to fasten them on as before, then cover up the join with clustered pearls for a neat finish.
6. Cut another 40cm of wire and attach it next to the top of the brooch as before. Loosely wind it around the band and on each wrap, add a pearl. Repeat on both sides of the band. To finish, wind tightly at the base about five times, keep each wrap uniform, then trim the excess. Add more pearls in this way to the base of the tiara bands too, under the clustered pearls. Adjust each spray by slightly wrapping around your finger for an organic bend, then apply clear nail varnish on the underside of the band on all the exposed wires to set and help prevent movement. Once finished, leave to dry.

Bouquet

1. Source 10 brooches and thread a 20cm - 30cm length of wire through the openings on the back of each After threading the wire through, turn back the end and twist it around itself to secure. Wrap extra wire around the brooch until it can support itself upright.
2. Repeat for all the jewellery pieces being used for the bouquet. Since each brooch will be different, you will need to alter your wiring technique for each piece, as heavier designs will require at least a couple of wire lengths to give it extra support. The wired brooch should not droop when you hold it between two fingers otherwise it will not hold up in the finished bouquet.
3. To secure the wire and the brooch together, wind florist tape down the ends of the stem, which will not be seen, pulling as you go. The tape sticks best when gently pulled and overlapping itself. The wired and taped brooch should be sturdy. Repeat until all the pieces are individually wired and taped. Trim the wire ends to 30cm or the desired height for your bouquet. To build the bouquet handle and provide extra strength, attach the wire lengths to 8mm florist dowels with florist tape, wrapping its round in a spiral and leaving 6cm of wire at the top so the dowels don't show through the wire collar.
4. Place a wire florist collar on top of a pint glass or small vase and insert the brooches one at a time, as if arranging flowers. The collar acts as a spacer and fills in any gaps between the pieces, hiding the wires. The centre of the wire collar will be completely covered when you have finished your bouquet. Rotate the bouquet as you insert the brooches, to maintain a pleasing domed shape.
5. Cut 30cm of gilt wire and thread on an ivory pearl. Fold the wire in half and twist downwards for 2cm to 4cm, then make another branch and add another embellishment. Each branch is made in an organic formation, with a mix of pearls, buttons and lace flowers. Keep the lengths at different heights to give the bouquet a 3-D feel and keep the stems long for inserting later. Repeat, until you have approximately 60 individual lengths, and add to dowels as before; you can attach two or three to each dowel.
6. Using the same technique as for the wired brooches, place the branches between the brooches to fill up the design. Afterwards, take a moment to check the bouquet, as this is the best time to add more branches if required, or to adjust the shape before it is all secured with tape.
7. Hold the bouquet tightly under the neck of the collar and wrap round with florist tape five times, pulling tightly each time to secure. Cut the wire ends to the same length; the best size for this is approximately 20cm. Take the florist tape and make a cross pattern at the base of the bouquet handle to cover the unfinished wire, then wrap from the bottom upwards in a spiral formation.
8. Take a length of ribbon and as in Step 7, make a cross at the base and tape in place. Next, wrap in a spiral formation to overlap the previous ribbon edges as you go. Once at the top, tape in place, then cut an extra 30cm of ribbon. Wrap over the tape and bring both edges of the ribbon together, crossing both so they overlap. Push a pin head into the overlap to secure in place. For further decoration, add more ribbon around the top and tie neatly in a bow, leaving the ends long.
9. To add more detail, attach a long length of gilt wire to the wire collar, wrapping round three times to secure. Thread it around the edge of the collar like a running stitch, adding any leftover lace flowers and pearls as you go in and out, until the overall look feels right. Stand the bouquet upright in a sturdy vase to keep the flowers positioned correctly until it is time to use.

Necklace

1. Remove the pins from three brooches, sand smooth and link with jump rings
2. Add two 10cm chains to one side, and 16cm, 17cm, 19cm and 22cm chains to the other
3. Add pendant drops with lengths of chain and pearls