Tutorial Tuesday: Victorian Tussie-Mussie

While thinking about what tutorial to feature this week, I realized I couldn't imagine a project more utterly Victorian and suited to our clip art than the tussie-mussie.

Victorian Lady Tussie Mussies by Alice M. Wingerden on Flickr

A tussie-mussie is a small flower bouquet, often created using herbs and flowers with symbolic meanings, and wrapped in a decorative paper cone. While the term tussie-mussie comes from the Victorian era (1837–1901), nosegays and other small bouquets have been a popular gift since Medieval times.

Today, many crafters and artists create beautifully decorated tussie-mussie cones that can be filled with flowers, hung as an ornament, used as a unique wrapping for small gifts, or hung on a mantle as stockings at Christmas. Here's another example from Suzie Crafter Designs on YouTube:


Now, the challenge is that this project is SO simple, I'm not even sure how to put it together in a tutorial! You simply create the paper cone, and go wild embellishing to your heart's content! So, instead, here's a list of supplies

Here's what you'll need to create your own tussie-mussie cone:

Decorative paper cut into a square of approx. 12" x 12" (use a bigger square for a larger cone) You could use:

scrapbook background paper
sheet music
wallpaper
paper you've stamped, painted or printed yourself

Embellishments are limited only by your imagination! Of course, we recommend starting with any one of our vast selection of Victorian clip art, which you can use royalty-free. But you might also use:

scrapbook embellishments
silk or paper flowers
pearls or beading
tissue, lace, or other trim
jewels and jewelry bits

There you have it! What do you think? Will you be trying your hand at your own tussie-mussie? Tell us in the comments!

Win This Collection: Steampunk Sourcebook

We're nearly at the halfway point of our Very Victorian Craft Contest! Have you created your entry yet? If not, have no fear- this week we're focusing on our super collections that celebrate the Victorian Era! We have 20 to choose from!

This week's featured collection is Steampunk Sourcebook, a one-of-a-kind collection that combines futuristic technology and Victorian romance to explore the influence of the steampunk style. More than 500 images range from dirigibles and sea vessels to corsets and pocket watches...plus, a gallery of original art completes the volume!
Download the full collection of nearly 540 images for $15.99 or individual image sheets for $1.99!

Want this great collection added to your DoverPictura account absolutely free? Comment on this post any time throughout the week and on Friday afternoon we'll choose 5 comments at random to win the entire Steampunk Sourcebook collection.

Win This Week's Featured Collection: Little Kids Stuff

This week we're focusing on our latest and greatest- four fabulous clip art collections new to DoverPictura.  Browse our newest clip art collections.

This week's featured collection, Little Kids Stuff, features cheerful images of baby ducks, teddy bears, cupcakes, dolphins, and much more. Additional graphics include background patterns and border designs, plus snowmen, Easter bunnies, and symbols of Halloween, Valentine's Day, and Christmas. Perfect for party decorations, birth announcements, invitations, stickers, greeting cards, and more!

Download the full collection of more than 250 cute, cuddly, and colorful original JPG images for $14.99 or individual image sheets just $0.99!

Want this great collection added to your DoverPictura account absolutely free? Comment on this post any time throughout the week and on Friday afternoon we'll choose 5 comments at random to win the entire Little Kids Stuff collection. 

Win This Week's Featured Collection: Sea Life

Take it easy. The dog days of summer are here. Lean back. This week on the blog we'll take a look at a number of collections that speak to the carefree ease of the last sultry days of summer- a time when you'll want to lounge by a body of water, take a trip, or even just go on a leisurely bike ride.  Take a look at our Dog Days of Summer clip art picks.

Take the plunge into an ocean of inspiration with this week's featured collection, Sea Life. From seashells to squids, starfish to penguins, plus whales, dolphins, sharks, and giant jelly fish — this stunning array of images includes fish great and small, real and fanciful. Fine-quality art for professionals or anyone who wants to design like one offers a feast for the eye and the imagination.

Download the full collection of more than 280 full-color illustrations for $15.99 or individual image sheets just $1.99 - $2.99!

Want this great collection added to your DoverPictura account absolutely free? Comment on this post any time throughout the week and on Friday afternoon we'll choose 5 comments at random to win the entire Sea Life collection. 

Win this Week's Featured Collection: Letters and Alphabets

It's Back-to-School time and your latest projects will make the grade with our studious collections of decorative alphabets, book illustrations, and more.  Check out all of our Back-to-School clip art.

In the spirit of ABCs, this week's featured collection is Letters and Alphabets. This amazing collection of images, selected from dozens of rare sources, displays the infinite ingenuity of designers in embellishing letters of the alphabet using florals, animals, figures, abstracts, and other motifs.

You can download the full collection of 484 black-and-white illustrations, 150 in color for $15.99 or individual image sheets just $1.99 - $2.99!

Want this great collection added to your DoverPictura account absolutely free? Comment on this post any time throughout the week and on Friday afternoon we'll choose 5 comments at random to win the entire Letters and Alphabets collection. 

This Week's Contest Winners and Words of Wisdom

Congratulations to this week's contest winners! They will each have our Ladies in White collection added to their DoverPictura account absolutely free!

Winners:

Wendy: What a beautiful painting. I would love to have a chance at winning the collection.

Beckie Holso: Wow, this is an absolutely gorgeous collection!!

Oh Way Cool: I looked through the entire set, they are beautiful!

Alexia Gordon: Such beautiful scenes.

Sweetscraps: This is my first time here. I'm not knowledgeable about art, but I do love the Ladies in White. ...such beautiful art. I'd sure be happy to win it!

For this week's  inspiration, let's look to some of those mustachioed men who brought us the Ladies in White for their words of artistic wisdom:

 

Have a crafty weekend, everyone!

Win this Week's Featured Collection: Ladies in White

Romantic summer days, languid summer nights...our spectacular new collection of royalty-free clip art, Ladies in White, features carefully curated images drawn from gorgeous full-color paintings from the late 1800s and early 1900s.

From a formal portrait of a society lady to leisurely scenes of picnics and boat rides, our Ladies in White collection features a wealth of women in white, portrayed by artists such as Sargent, Monet, Whistler, Reid, Hassam, Benson, Chase, and others.

You can download the full collection of 26 images for $7.99 or any individual image sheet for just $0.99 and add a little breezy summer romance to your projects!

Want this great collection added to your DoverPictura account absolutely free? Comment on this post any time throughout the week and on Friday afternoon we'll choose 5 comments at random to win the entire Ladies in White collection. 

Win This Week's Featured Collection: Nature Stencil Designs

This week our featured collection is Nature Stencil Designs— and you'll be able to embellish pillows, cards, stockings hung by the chimney with care, and more this upcoming holiday season with black-and-white stencils of a peacock, dragonfly, sea horse, morning glories, poinsettias, acorns, berries, and other flora and fauna. 

You can download the entire collection of more than 560 images for $12.99 or any individual image sheet for just $0.99 and get to work on your holiday gift list right away!

Want this great collection added to your DoverPictura account absolutely free? Comment on this post any time throughout the week and on Friday afternoon we'll choose 5 comments at random to win the entire Nature Stencil Designs collection.

Win This Week's Featured Collection: The Great Outdoors

This week our featured collection is The Great Outdoors— and what better way to celebrate the spirit of adventure inherent in these images than by kicking off a fun new contest series?

Every Monday we'll highlight a new clip art collection. Comment on the featured collection post any time throughout the week and on Friday afternoon we'll choose 5 comments at random to have the entire collection added to their DoverPictura account- absolutely free!

This week, embark on a journey of creative exploration with The Great Outdoors, 206 full-color and black-and-white images featuring campers, hikers, fishermen, and others enjoying nature and outdoor pursuits.  Sources include European and WPA travel posters, paintings by N. C. Wyeth and Winslow Homer, and line illustrations by Daniel Beard, a co-founder of the Boy Scouts, ensuring a variety of styles bound to spark your sense of crafty adventure.

To have this collection added to your DoverPictura account, simply comment below! (Maybe tell us where you're escaping to this summer.) Then, check back on Friday to see who won!