DIY Lucky Butterfly Dome Cloche Display

My word for 2018 is BUTTERFLY

Magic. Transformation. Beauty. Change. Mystery. Abundance. Prosperity. Freedom. Love. I don’t usually choose a word of the year but I’ve read a few books recently that recommend it and the word butterfly continues to reveal itself to me lately. Also, it encompasses all the words in bold above, and those are my words to live by this year as well.

I love butterflies in nature. I haven’t been the sort of person though who collects butterflies for decoration or wears them imprinted on clothing, though I do have a pretty vintage inspired butterfly print in my master bathroom and have happened to have created a few DIYs with a butterfly theme: my DIY 3D Butterfly iPhone Case (was one of my favorites EVER), my DIY gold butterfly dust prints which hang in my office, and my DIY Leather Butterfly Pins inspired by Lanvin, which also reside in my office as decor.

When I am surrounded by living butterflies in nature, I am completely in awe of their beauty and have found myself caught up in their magic for what seems like hours, watching them until they flutter away. Whenever I’m in the presence of one, I think to myself “change is coming” and smile.

I found this beautiful butterfly sitting peacefully in the attic upstairs at Dogwood Tavern a few months ago while we were working there and marveled at its beauty. It must have flown in one of the windows and decided that was a fine place to rest in peace… It was perfectly preserved so I carefully scooped it up and took it home to save with this DIY in mind.

Its spirit may be gone but it’s symbolism for me remains.

And now I can look at it daily and remember its journey through life and find gratitude in my own struggles, transition and transformation.

 

What You’ll Need…

* Dried (found) butterfly or Fake butterfly
* Glass cloche or dome – and TECHNICALLY for display or decorative purposes, you’d use a cloche or dome without a handle on top like this, and while I did have one without the handle, I actually liked the way this one looked better. It also has writing etched in the glass, but I still preferred it. I’ll link a few options below 🙂
* Dried moss & flowers
* Rock & Gold spray paint or this very cool Gold Flame Aura Raw Crystal
* E6000 Adhesive

 

 

NOTE: I am a novice at this kind of insect preservation and am creating this only for my own pleasure. For more in depth information on displaying creatures, go to: Butterfly and Bug Display

Also, this DIY is almost a terrarium of sorts, but not really.

 

Steps…

Decide what element you want to include…

At first I thought a stick or branch would be nice, but then I wanted to incorporate gold for luck and prosperity, so I found a rock sized right, spray painted it gold and let it dry.

I placed it in the center of my display. I did not glue it down (so I have to be extremely careful moving it), but the choice is yours to do so.

Add your moss and flowers around the base.

You can glue this down or not. I also left mine loose.

Decide where you want your creature to rest.

Place a little bit of glue…

* The photo above is simply to show you how beautiful the underside of the butterfly is 🙂

And set your butterfly carefully on your rock with a little pressure until it adheres.

Finish with your glass dome over it.

And… Voila!

 

 

Have Fun!

* Find all my DIYs here