BTS: MY INSTALLATIONS FOR KILLER FILLER WORKSHOP
how I created two installations with paper decorations for the amazing original wedding shoot specialists
I was over the moon when Nicki from Killer Filler got in touch to ask if I’d create some installations using my signature Pinwheels and other paper decorations for their Wild Child shoot day. With weddings still slow to come back online due to the backlog, this was a brilliant chance for me to do some creative wedding styling which would be photographed by some of the best alternative wedding photographers from all over the UK.
Working with the marvellous Nicki & Jade (Killer Filler), Karen (Meadows & Mulberry Weddings) and Alice (Fleur De Lace) we all travelled down to the Giraffe Shed in Wales bright and early for the set up day and cracked on making some magically Wild scenes…
Here’s what happened before I got to that point!
How to make paper pinwheels!
Pinwheels all start with pleating! Mountains of pleating! It’s really important to get the size of the pleats exactly the same to get a perfect circle and a good aesthetic, so I’ve developed various techniques over the last year to do exactly that. Each pinwheel uses 8 squares that are individually cut, scored and folded.
Once you’ve constructed the pinwheels, they should hold their shape well but I apply a lot of hot glue on the back of each paper rosette which stops it folding in on itself again.
Now these Pinwheels weren’t my signature marbled versions so I had a bit of testing to do with the inks and dyes I was going to apply. When you’re trying something new like this, always test your paints on the same paper as your final application and leave to dry fully to check the effect (a hairdryer can be employed to speed things up!).
A key consideration with painting the Pinwheels was whether the paper was heavy and absorbent enough to soak up the ink without losing its shape or any of the sharp folds.
I experimented with watercolour inks, food colouring (cheaper but smelled a bit weird) and pure inks, using water to dilute and play with different effects that almost looked a bit like Tie Dye! I ended up going through a LOT more bottles than I anticipated, even using water to dilute…
If you’re doing some DIY wedding making it’s great if you can build in a bit of time for play and experimentation, A) because it’s fun and B) because it’s often from mistakes or unexpected outcomes that the best result arises!
I bring YEARS of this experimentation and artistic training to the table for my wedding couples that want bespoke wedding details making for them as they simply don’t have the time (or inclination) for this!
Tropical paper leaf decorations
The leaf shapes start from semi circles, effectively HALF pinwheels, so yes once again we’re back in pleatville! This time with three different coloured green papers as bases…
WEDDING BACKDROP TIP
When you’re making decorations for a backdrop or installations you need to work out the right quantities - this can often be more than you think! A way to work this out accurately is to create a basic scale drawing of the space you’re trying to cover e.g. a wall (length/height x width) then you can use that scale to sketch on your decorations (also roughly to scale). This should give you a good idea of how many you need to create in different sizes and colours.
For the hanging ceiling Leaf installation I made 45 leaves in 2 different sizes, and there were 27 Pinwheels in 3 sizes for the wall backdrop. Here’s what they looked like in situ…(photos all by Nicki Shea Photography)
If you’d like to get the full lowdown on how to make both Pinwheels/rosettes and Tropical Paper Leaves check out my online workshop for £45 below - it not only teaches you how to design bespoke pinwheels for your wedding, but how to design the backdrop and install.
I LOVED doing this styled shoot. Collaborating with other creatives is always high up on my list. If you're an artist or creative who might like to collaborate on a styled shoot, drop me a line 💌