Unlike a typical bouquet of flowers, the tissue paper flower bouquet will not wilt or die, and is always in season. Thankfully, for the discriminating bride-to-be, there are many colors in tissue paper from which to choose and most likely a few that match perfectly with the colors of the wedding. Teal, dark purple, pink, salmon, white, orange, lime green, navy blue, or even viridian can be found at craft stores across the country.
This tissue paper flower project is simple to create and can be done the moment the colors have been chosen without the worry that the bouquets will wilt or die. The paper flower bouquet can be used as a basis for the rest of the wedding decorations or even created before trying on the bridesmaid’s dresses to make sure the size will work. There are multiple benefits of using tissue paper for your bouquets.
After the wedding the paper flowers can be transferred to a vase for eternal keeping. Paper flowers can be made into wreaths and placed in hair or as centerpieces. Making the wedding bouquet into a beautiful Christmas table centerpiece would make it a versatile memory builder.
How to make flowers and leaves
A full bouquet should have about 25 flowers in it. For this project, you will also learn how to make beautiful leaves to help decorate the tissue paper bouquet.
What you will need for the entire project
- Two packages of the chosen colors of tissue paper
- A pair of craft scissors or a rotary cutter
- Floral wire
- Craft glue
- Two one-inch Styrofoam balls
- Pins with pearls on the end (these can be white, cream, or whatever color the bride decides)
- Green tape
Make tissue paper leaves
The two-leaf look:
- Cut a two-by-three-inch rectangle into a stack of green tissue paper. To give the leaves a natural look, make the middle paper a lighter shade of green.
- Taper the ends of the rectangle slightly.
- Twist the paper at the middle and tie a green floral wire around the middle by bending the wire in half and twisting it around the middle of the paper once.
- Loosen the ends of the tissue paper to give it a spread out look.
The one-leaf look:
- Cut a two-by-three inch rectangle out of a stack of three green tissue papers.
- Place a line of glue in between the layers directly up the middle from the bottom to 2/3 the way up.
- Place a green floral wire in the middle of the glue on the inside of one layer of leaf.
- Allow to dry and loosen the ends to give it a three-dimensional look.
You will want to make all the leaves look different so do not cut them all exactly the same nor with the same length, curvature, and width. Be creative.
Blooming tissue paper rose
- Cut out multiple two-by-three-inch rectangles in the color of the wedding.
- Fold these papers individually in half lengthwise.
- Round off one end of five papers at the same size, five more at a slightly smaller size and five more at an even smaller size.
- Twist the other end into a small, tight handle the width of the green tape.
- Starting with the smallest size, tape the little handles of the petals to the pearl studded pin closely under the pearl in a spread out fashion.
- Tape the next size up to the back of the first round of petals and tape the largest group behind this.
- Tape the pin to a long piece of floral wire, covering the pin completely with green tape.
- Spread out the petals to make it resemble a blooming rose.
Rounded poppy tissue paper flower
- Cut out multiple pieces of tissue paper in the desired color at two-by-three inches.
- Wrap the tissue paper rectangles around the Styrofoam balls and twist the ends that hang off into little handles.
- Take the tissue paper rounds off of the Styrofoam balls.
- Tape the little handles to the end of a long piece of floral wire in a staggering fashion so that each of the petals has its own space on the wire.
- Cut down the twist on the top of the petal so that it is barely noticeable but still there.
- Fluff out the petals to make a lovely poppy flower.
You can also add beautiful tissue paper orchids, crepe paper lilies and tulips, and crepe paper daisies and carnations to the bouquet to increase diversity. Use the green tape to tape the floral wires together at the base of the flowers and tie a ribbon over the tape to hide it. Make sure you have arranged the tissue flower bouquet exactly how you will want it so you do not have to remove the tape to rearrange.
A. L. Fetherlin - Author of "Brynn, the Exorcist" and former day care teacher who uses her home as an experiment in woodworking and building projects.
