Ronghua Tutorial: How to Make Vampire Roses

The Vampire Roses pair brings together one deep red rose and one inky black bloom, like a meeting of heartbeat and shadow. Inspired by gothic fairytales and old folklore, this duo carries both passion and mystery: the red rose glowing with life, the black rose holding its secrets close. 

Preparation: What You’ll Need

If you’ve purchased our Ronghua Toolkit, you already have everything required!
If not, prepare the following tools:

1. Bristle brush (Medium to soft hardness)
2. Flat iron (the one you use to straighten your hair)
3. Tweezers
4. At least 2 pairs of Scissors
5. wooden sticks / pencils / chopsticks
6. Hair spray or diluted white glue (1:1.15–1:1.2 ratio)
7. Big clips (around 15cm)
8. Twisting boards and wooden blocks (for even tension)
9. Anti-slip powder (optional but helpful)

Full Tutorial Video

Step 1. Align and Arrange the Silk Threads

Start by untying your silk threads. Locate the knot at one end of each bundle and cut it open carefully. This project uses 10 colours of silk to create 5 silk rows. 

Step 2. Group and Prepare the Threads

Each silk bundle consists of tiny strand-like structures — these are your individual strands. 

Align all strands neatly and tie them around a thin stick, keeping the ends even. Avoid uneven lengths — this ensures consistent texture later on.

Step 3. Make Silk Rows

Repeat the above process to create five silk rows in total. Remember to refer back to the data provided in the diagram for the following rows, as each will differ slightly. Below are the finished silk rows we made.

Step 4. Brush the Silk Rows

Fix one silk row onto your stand using big metal clips - if you don't have the wooden ronghua stand, that's totally fine! You can refer to our video about alternative solutions to the stand.

Hold the ends of the threads with one hand and brush gently but firmly from top to bottom. Don’t lift the brush midway. A light mist of water will prevent static. You can apply some pressure — silk threads are stronger than they look! Make sure to brush both the front and back sides until the row looks smooth and fluffy. 

Everyone uses a different brush and hand speed, so the time it takes to complete this step is also different. Taking my situation as a reference, it took me about 10 minutes to brush this silk row. When you feel the hair is soft and fluffy, you can stop and check. When there is no complete linear distinction between the threads, it's ready:) 

Step 5. Attach Copper Wires

When you feel that the silk is brushed enough, secure its tail with another big clip to your table or anything that can help stretch it taut. Take out one copper wire from the folded end of the row and straighten it. Twist the folded part into a spiral of about 3 cm. Clamp the silk threads between two copper wires and twist the opposite side tightly. Pull both wires taut and continue twisting until they merge into one. Remember, the twisting direction for the left and right end are opposite. 

The spacing should be as shown in step 1. 

If you have anti-slip powder, it will be much easier to dip your fingers in it and twist it. 

We highly recommend you watch the video tutorial for this step:)

Once done, remove the silk row from the stand and lay it flat.

Step 6. Cut the Silk Strips

Trim the row’s end neatly, then cut between each pair of copper wires to create even silk strips. When cutting, the scissors must be placed in the middle of two copper wires, otherwise the width of the silk strips will be inconsistent.

If threads stick to your scissors, clean them — it’s usually caused by static or residue. Cut quickly and cleanly for smooth edges. Don't touch the wire or it may get displaced.

Step 7. Center and Twist the Strips

Align the copper wire to the middle of each strip using a flat surface or wooden block.
Once centered, twist both hands in opposite directions to tighten.

Next, place the copper part between the twisting boards and continue twisting in the same direction. Stop when the wire feels firm — twisting too far may cause it to break. How do you know if it is tightened enough? If tightened properly, the copper wire should only faintly show. If the copper wire is very visible, it’s not tight enough.

Use a fine comb or dense brush to brush them again. Light shedding during brushing is normal. If there’s a lot of shedding, the copper wire wasn’t rubbed tightly.

Step 8. Flatten the Strips

For the silver-white silk strips, you’ll only need three pieces. Cut off all the copper wire on the lighter-colored end. Fold all the remaining silk strips in half, making sure the bottoms are neatly aligned, then twist the copper wire tightly. 

Use a heated hair straightener to flatten the silk strips. For the smallest black and red silk strips, keep three pieces of each unflattened—these do not need the straightener.

Then we need to strengthen the flattened strips.

Prepare your setting solution:

1. Use either hair spray, or
2. Diluted white glue (1:1.15 or 1:1.2 ratio)

Soak the flattened silk strips, let them absorb the solution, then scrape off the excess. 

Step 9. Shape the Strips

Now begin shaping the silk strips. Clamp each strip into a gentle curve, curling the bottom inward and pushing the top outward. You only need three pieces in this silver-white color. They are for the leaves

All the other red and black silk strips are shaped in the same way: first curve the strip, then gently pull the edge threads inward. This completes the basic petal shape. Stand the shaped strips upright to air-dry; once dry, they’ll become firm and hold their form.

After drying, trim away any frizzy edges. Curved scissors work best if you have them. Be sure to use separate scissors for petals and for cutting copper wire, as scissors used on wire will dull quickly. Trim the silver strips into a leaf shape.

Trim the large red petal into a heart shape.

Apply a thin layer of chrome marker to the leaves to give them a metallic finish—you’ll need three leaves in total. Clamp the edges of the leaves so they curl outward.

All other strips should have their edges lightly clamped with the straightener. Gently pass a lighter along the edges of the dark red petals to seal them.

Step 10. Make the Leaves

Next, assemble the leaves. Take two 4 mm-thick copper wires and first secure silk thread onto the wire. Assemble the leaves along the wire, attaching another leaf after a short distance. Wrap the thread downward about 2–3 cm to secure everything firmly.

Step 11. Make the Flowers

Once the leaves are ready, begin assembling the rose. Take the three petals that were not clamped with the straightener and tie them together with silk thread. Continue assembling by adding petals one by one, placing them closely together and pulling the thread tight each time. The second layer of petals should sit in the gaps of the first layer. After the smaller petals are used up, move on to the larger ones.

Tie off the thread, then switch to a thicker thread for wrapping. Trim the copper wire diagonally and wrap all exposed wire completely with thread—this completes the black rose. The red rose is assembled in exactly the same way.

If you’re already familiar with rose assembly, you can skip repeating these steps. Be sure to trim the copper wire neatly at this stage; otherwise, the base will become bulky when wrapping. Using four strands of thread will make the wrapping faster and more even.

Step 12. Assemble the Piece

Now assemble the leaves together with the red rose, adjust the direction of the flowers, and attach the black rose as well. Cut off any excess copper wire—don’t leave it too long. Wrap the thread all the way down to the bottom, then wrap back upward. Fold the copper wire at the base and wrap over it to secure.

For a clean finish, take a thinner copper wire, fold it in half, and wrap thread around it. Thread the remaining silk through the copper-wire loop, pull the wire out, and cut off the excess thread.

You can check out our video tutorial for this step:)

Lightly burn any frayed edges with a lighter.

Step 13. Attach the Flowers to the Brooch Base

Finally, attach the finished flower to the brooch using the same finishing method as before. You can lightly pass a flame over the surface of the rose.

If you have UV glue, apply a small amount at the finishing point and cure it with an LED light—if not, this step can be skipped. Add a touch of chrome marker to the surface of the black rose; there’s no need to cover a large area.

And with that, your rose brooch is complete.

We can’t wait to see the flowers you make!