A new bloom Out-of-work couple turn paper flowers into business
Larry Deklinski/Staff Photo A group of "flowers," formed from coffee filters and other papers by Gordon and Mechelle Long, of Coal Township, are displayed on a porch.
Gordon and Mechelle Long are turning coffee filters into flowers, and turning the doldrums of the recession into a business they hope will continue to bloom.
The Coal Township couple experiment not only with coffee filters, but various forms of paper and paint to create unique and beautiful flowers under their Painting The Roses Red name.
Mrs. Long, 39, saw an episode of the "Martha Stewart" show with Cassie Mae Chappell, who is known for creating roses out of coffee filters. She decided the art would be a perfect way to relax and express her creativity.
Her husband, 37, who, like his wife, was out of work, found creating the flowers was a great pastime.
"With the economy the way it is, what better time to start a business," he said.
Since March, the two have created hundreds of flowers out of dozens of packages of coffee filters. The flowers look very realistic, and the Longs continue to experiment with paint types and combinations, as well as with other types of paper.
They hope to build their business to the point where people would hire them to create flowers for weddings.
"If you want flowers that last longer than the sentence to the dog house, see us," Mr. Long said with a smile.
A flower grows
The Longs sat on their Spruce Street porch during Friday's rain, winding a cut-out coffee filter around a bamboo skewer. The skewer was covered in green tape to simulate a flower stem.
Mrs. Long recalled how her first few flowers months ago did not come out very well. A self-described meticulous person, she said she kept trying until she got it right.
One example of the Longs' trial and error is a currently orange-hued flower named Frankenstein, given that name because of the experiments of paper and paint they conduct with it.
"Now it glows in the dark and is scented," Mrs. Long joked.
Natural look
The Longs have had a garden for many years, and grow many types of flowers, including lilies, hydrangeas and two varieties of roses. They use the real flowers as guides for their paper creations to make them as realistic as possible.
They have also made hundreds of carnations out of tissue paper, and combined roses and carnations for the Shamokin Cardinals football team and put together an array of purple paper flowers for the Little Shamokin Indians.
They use watercolor paint, food coloring and clothing dye to color the flowers, and each one requires about 12 coffee filters, Mr. Long said.
Their own flowers
Another reason the Longs began to create flowers is to make some extra cash for a big wedding they are planning for next June. They were married in 2001, but at the time couldn't afford anything more than a small service before a district magistrate.
Mrs. Long hopes to create all of her own flowers for her dream wedding. She already has decided on the colors: an array of blues and creams to match her blue diamond engagement ring.
The Longs said they can make flowers for any occasion and can match personalties and interests with the creations. For example, the couple made a flower from an old music book; musical notes can be seen in the pink-colored petals.
Mrs. Long also created a black and silver rose just after the death of Michael Jackson. She is sending it to a family member in California, where she lived before meeting Gordon. The rose took her more than three days and four coats of black paint to complete.
On the Net: http://sites.google.com/site/paintingtherosesred2009/home
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