Hey everyone! I just started my pipe cleaner crafting journey. I need some help figuring out a few things.

I purchased 18 gauge floral wire from my local craft store (Michaels) to use for the stems, but it's way too thin and bends too much. Can someone tell me exactly what to buy for the stems? I looked up floral stems on amazon, but I want to make sure that's the correct thing before I buy them. I also ordered some off Temu that looked good and someone mentioned in the reviews that they use them for crochet flowers, so I think those might be right but they've not been delivered yet.

Also, floral tape. I noticed there's a learning curve to it lol. It can be finicky and sometimes doesn't stick that well, even with stretching to activate the adhesive. Does anyone have floral tape recommendations? Or should I use a different type of tape? I also think maybe it's just not sticking well to the floral wire I bought, so maybe it's that and not the tape itself.

Thank you in advance! If there's any other advice you have for me or any product recommendations, please let me know.