HOW TO MAKE TISSUE PAPER FLOWERS {2 WAYS}

I am well aware that girls have probably been making tissue paper flowers since the invention of tissue paper, and that this type of tutorial is not original, but I figured if it's been a while since you've made one, you might need a refresher!  Recently, with some gals from my church, we made a BUNCH of flowers for a women's, so I thought I'd share the process with you in case you have an event you might want to make some for, too.

First, I'll show you how to make large, full, puffy flowers.  You will need 6 total sheets of tissue paper per flower, (4) 20x30" sheets and (2) smaller sheets, approximately 20x20.  I found the best deal on the larger sheets online here (affiliate link).  We were making around 75 large flowers, so I ordered a variety of the colors I wanted in the "quire" amount (24 sheets per pack). For the smaller size, Dollar Tree had pretty multi-colored pastel packs that I used.  I also bought some packs of plain white from Dollar Tree to mix in with the colors.

I spread my layers out in this first photo so you could see them better, but you'll want to stack the 4 large sheets straight on top of each other, then stack the two smaller sheets in the center of the large ones.  Then, start at the short end and start folding everything together, back and forth accordion style.  The folds should be about 1 1/2 inches wide or so, but you definitely don't have to be super precise.  When you're finished folding you should have a narrow stack of folded paper like the bottom photo.

Next, find the center of the fold, pinch it together as best you can, and secure it.  We used small pieces of pipe cleaner, or you could use twist ties, floral wire, or even staple it.  Just try to wrap whatever you're using pretty tightly against the tissue paper.  

Then, gently spread your folds apart, with the smaller tissue paper layers on top.

Start fluffing the layers by separating them from the top down, gently pulling them apart and raising them up towards the center of the flower.

Keep fluffing until the layers are full and it looks how you want it to.  You can sort of wrap the open sides together so they won't show, and the flower will look like a continuous round circle... just play with it until it looks right.

For the second type of flower, we made smaller ones to mix in with the larger.  We used the smaller paper sheets for this one (the Dollar Tree packs are perfect).  You'll need two sheets per flower, plus a small section for the center.  I cut up several yellow sheets into fourths to use for the centers.

Use the same process to accordion fold two sheets together and secure the middle.

For these, trim the ends to help the finished shape look nicer since there are only 2 layers.  Round the ends so that each "side" of your folded flower is about 5-6 inches long.  Again, you don't have to be too precise, just even up the ends if they aren't.  Cutting the ends into a point also gives a nice look to the finished flower, so you can choose what shape you like best or mix them together.

Then, spread apart and fluff a little like before.

The smaller flowers need a little help on the sides, so use a small drop of (low temp!) hot glue (or regular glue) to attach the petals where the separate sections meet, so there are no gaps around your flower.  The bottom photo here shows the white layer glued together, where the green layer is still separated so you can see the difference.

To make the center, just wad your scrap of center paper up into a decent looking loose ball, then use hot glue to secure it to the center of the flower.

So easy and inexpensive, yet colorful and dramatic for simple decorations!

 I've already used these for several different events, tomorrow I'll show you some ideas for decorating with them.