Octopus

It can be a little daunting when a customer requests making a floral tribute that's not one of the 'norm'. From Smurfs to a Witch on a Broomstick, to an Alien, Aeroplane, 3D Pig and a multitude of other shapes, designs or completely random items, it is always imperative the tribute ends up looking as close to the design as it can do. The pressure to get it right has been known to cause many a sleepless night - I certainly wouldn't be doing my job correctly if they didn't. 

They cause even more pressure when I am asked to replicate something totally unique and personal only to the person who has passed away, or their family. I found myself just this week, images, ideas, multi colours, whirling around in my head at 3am. Questions like "how do I get it perfectly round? What if I don't make those bits long enough? How do I make those colours paler?". The reason for this is because I was tasked with making a tribute that was a complete one-off, totally personal, and (the hardest part of all) for a child. 

My customer came to me with a photograph of an octopus she had made before proceeding to ask me if I would be able to recreate it in flowers. Of course, I said "yes"; then the panic set in! 

Thankfully - even though I was unable to get the spray paint colours I wanted - I was able to mix a few, add a touch of white here-and-there, shake some cans more than others, and with a woozy head. multicoloured painted hands, arms (face and feet too - how I got it in on feet is anyone's guess) I managed to get the colours as close to the photo as I possibly could. 

Above is the wool (yarn) version - I drew inspiration from that to make the flower one a little more authentic as I made some wool eyes and used wool for the mouth. Below is the flower one I made. Thankfully the customer loved it so I slept well that night!