Hello everyone! If we’ve not yet met, my name is Rhonda, and I write a blog called Mrs. Greene. (You might also know me from over at Dollar Store Crafts!) 
I’m excited to be back on The CSI Project, and even more excited that this week’s theme is recycled crafts. See, I’m a bit of a pack rat. I save all kinds of things, from my collection of bread bag tabs to my shoe boxes full of bottle caps. I just hate to throw away anything that I can make into something new. One thing that I save is coffee bags. If there is one thing that I might love more than crafts, it’s coffee. So as you can imagine, I have a lot of them! Would you believe me if I told you that I used coffee bags to make this? 
It’s true! To make your own, here’s what you’ll need:
- Coffee bags (I got 2 flowers out of each of my bags)
- 1 1/2 inch circle punch or template
- Felt
- Scrap fabric
- Buttons
- Bias tape or ribbon
- Glue
- Embroidery floss
- Fishing line
- Sewing needle
- Scissors
Start by cleaning your coffee bags. Cut off the bottoms and cut them open along the side seam to open them up into a flat sheet, then wipe any residual coffee from the inside of the bag with a damp rag. Coffee bags come in so many different colors, which makes them perfect for making flowers! (I’ve even been known to buy coffee based on the color of the bag. Terrible, I know.) 
For each flower, you will need to make eight circles. I used a 1 1/2 inch hole punch but found that it didn’t punch all the way through the bags. It did, however, leave a very clear score mark on the bag which I used as a guide to finish cutting out the circles with scissors. Don’t worry if there is writing or other colors that you don’t want to show on your circles; only a small portion of each circle will be visible when you’re done. 
Fold each circle in half…then fold it in half again…and then fold it in half a third time. 
Using a doubled strand of fishing line, sew a single stitch in each folded piece as close to the tip as possible. 
Repeat until all eight circles are folded and stitched into wedge shapes. 
Glue all eight folded pieces into a circle on a piece of green felt. I used Amazing Goop because it sticks to just about everything! 
Thread a button with embroidery floss to give it a sewn-on look. Cut a circle from scrap fabric that is slightly larger than button. I used recycled t-shirt fabric; if you use fabric that will fray, be sure to treat the edges with fray check. 
Glue the fabric circle to the center of the coffee bag flower petals, then glue the button on top. When the glue is dry, cut around the flower so that a thin border of felt is left around the edges. Repeat until you have five flowers. 
Arrange the flowers on another contrasting piece of felt. When you are happy with the positioning, glue them into place. After the glue dries, cut around the flowers so that a border of the second color remains. 
To make ties for the necklace, cut two lengths of bias tape or ribbon that are about two feet long. I used some cute vintage bias tape that I found in my stash of random sewing stuff. (If only you could still buy craft supplies for 15 cents!) 
Glue the flower arrangement down on a third color of felt, sandwiching a tie between the layers on the top of each side. Again, when the glue is dry, cut around the design to leave just a strip of the color showing around the edges. Use embroidery floss to stitch around the edges of the design, adding detail and securing the ties in place. And there you have it! Thanks for having me this week, CSI gals! It’s been fun!