Tissue Paper Flowers

When I was in grade school we had Spanish class once a week. I took three years of Spanish in high school and then switched to French in college. I know enough Spanish to ask where the bathroom is, but whether or not I understand the answer is another matter. Oh well, at least I took away one thing from all those years of Spanish class - these tissue paper flowers! I made these all the time as a kid. They're really that simple! 

All you need is some colored tissue paper and a bunch of green pipe cleaners. You can buy a multi color pack of tissue paper, but I just used tissue paper I had saved from our wedding and Abe's baby shower. 

1. Cut your tissue paper into 10 inch squares. For this flower, I used 2 squares pale green and 4 squares spring green. (If you want smaller flowers just cut smaller squares.)

2. Stack tissue paper squares and fold accordion-style. I did a 1½ inch fold on this one.

3. Wrap a pipe cleaner around the center of the folded paper and twist to secure. Just make sure your top/interior petal colors are facing up!

4. Cut edges as desired. For the green flower, I did rounded edges and then made 1 inch slits toward the center. (See my notes following the tutorial for instructions on how to make other flowers.)

5. Unfold one side of the flower...

...and carefully separate the layers of paper. 

6. Repeat on the other side and fluff the petals to fill in any empty spots.

7. Display in a vase or wrap a bunch of stems together to make a bouquet. I found the flower heads were too heavy to be supported by a pipe cleaner so they just flopped over in a large vase. Wrapping the stems around a chopstick should fix the problem, or just put them in a bottle or bud vase with a narrow neck.

I experimented with a bunch of different flower shapes. Scroll down to see the folding and cutting instructions for each one.

To make a chrysanthemum, follow the instructions above.

To make a dahlia, use 4 squares of hot pink tissue and 2 squares of pink. Make 1½ inch folds and cut the ends to a point.

To make a peony, use 2 squares each of pink and pale pink, and 4 squares of white. Make 2 inch folds and cut rounded ends.

To make a rose, use 2 squares pale peach and 4 squares peach . Make 1½ inch folds and cut rounded ends.

To make a daisy, use 6 squares of white tissue and 2 squares of yellow. Make 1½ inch folds and cut the ends to a point.

For the poppy, use 4 squares deep yellow and 2 squares pale yellow. (For an oriental poppy, use 4 squares red for the petals and 2 squares black for the center.) Make 3 inch folds and cut rounded ends. 

Experimenting with different colors is part of the fun, so feel free to just use what you have!

There you have it, a sweet and simple decoration for Cinco de Mayo, Mother's Day, weddings, birthdays...anything really. Enjoy!