Tag Archives: How to Make Crepe Paper Flowers

DIY Paper Flower Crowns

01 Monday Apr 2013

Posted by in Party!, Projects

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I hope you all had a good weekend, and a great Easter if you celebrated.  We are back at home after a lovely weekend in New Hampshire. We got to visit with family, hunt for eggs in the snow and eat lots of good food.  The girls loved their Easter treats.  I made up some extra flowers when I was working on their Apple Surprise Balls and used them to make flower crowns for their baskets.  These lightweight crowns make a nice alternative to party hats for birthdays and are inexpensive to create.  To make your own Paper Flower Crown you will need:

*How to Make Crepe Paper Flowers book (We have the 1922 version)

*Variety of Crepe Paper (We used this 100 gms paper from Papermart, and each flower used less than one roll of paper)

*Thin Headband

*Floral Tape

*Floral Wire (We used straight 18 gauge wire)

*Craft Glue

*Scissors

*Pinking Shears (optional)

*Card Stock for Patterns

1. Follow these directions to make Flower Crowns.  We omitted the ribbon for these light-weight crowns.

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DIY Apple Surprise Ball

27 Wednesday Mar 2013

Posted by in Inspiration, Projects, Vintage

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I love surprise balls!  There is something magical about the simultaneous combination of unwrapping and disappearing and discovering.  Last week I wrote about some beautiful and inspiring surprise balls made by paper artist Anandamayi Arnold.  I had fun making this surprise ball for Ada’s Easter basket last year, but really wanted to make the initial package more beautiful this year.  I decided on an apple shape, complete with apple blossom, leaves, stem and bud.  (Yes, I know this does not occur in nature).  Ada’s apple is red and Josie’s will be green.  My finished apple does not come close the the amazing fruits by Anandamayi Arnold, but I was happy with the results.  I followed directions to make leaves and blossoms from this vintage book of crepe paper flowers.  (My mother-in-law gave me the 1922 version and it is one of my prized possessions).  To make your own Apple Surprise Ball, follow the directions from our Easter Egg Surprise Ball here.  I used washi tape to attach layers of crepe streamers this year.  Try to make your wrapping more of an apple shape as you go, and finish with a red streamer.  Follow directions for blossoms and leaves in the above book, or cut out your own shapes from crepe paper.  Glue on stem and wrap with red streamers to finish.  I filled the apple balls with the following inexpensive toys for the girls:

*Marble Pouch (I stitched this up from our box of fabric scraps.  I will post directions soon)

*Pom-Pom Bobby Pins by the Belle Company, Brooklyn ($4 for 2 at My Brooklyn Baby)

*Beaded Necklace Kits (I made these up from thrift store pony beads and vintage sequins inside plastic pouches.  Under $.50 each)

*Basil Seeds (Free packet came our Myers Clean Day Dish Soap)

*Wooden Bird Whistle ($2 from My Brooklyn Baby)

*Sunmaid Raisin Box

*Marbles (50 for $.99 at the dollar store- These are more fun to unwrap if you open the package and cover one marble at a time with crepe paper)

*Garden Tattoos ($5 for 12 at My Brooklyn Baby)

*Wikki Stix ($.99 for package at Party City)

Have fun wrapping and Happy Spring!

DIY Vintage Crepe Paper Flower Hat

19 Monday Nov 2012

Posted by in Party!, Projects, Vintage

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My Mother-in-Law gave me this amazing How to Make Crepe Paper Flowers book for my birthday last year and I have been waiting for the right time to put it to use.  My copy is from 1922 and contains the secrets to making realistic flowers from crepe paper.  Needles to say, I am in love with this book!  Ebay has several copies for sale here.  The flowers turned out better than I had thought possible and we used them to make a special birthday hat for our friend Sandy.  To make your own Crepe Paper Flower Hat you will need:

*How to Make Crepe Paper Flowers book

*Variety of Crepe Paper (We used this 100 gms paper from Papermart, and each flower used less than one roll of paper)

*Headband

*Floral Tape

*Floral Wire (We used straight 18 gauge wire)

*Craft Glue

*Scissors

*Pinking Shears (optional)

*Card Stock for Patterns

*Ribbon to Tie Hat (optional)

1. Prepare patterns.  Our copy of the book did not come with the original patterns, so we followed the drawings in the book and made our own from card stock.  Label each pattern for future use.

2. Following directions from the book, make up flowers and leave stem wires long until you are ready to apply to the hat.  We used 9 flowers to make our hat.  It is helpful to hold finished flowers in a vase or cup as you go.

3. Lay ribbon over ends of headband about 2″ and glue.  (Our hat was a little heavy, so we added the ribbon to make it more secure for dancing).

4. Wrap headband with floral tape up until the point you want to add a flower.  (Start on one side of the headband and add flowers up and over to the other side).

5. Put a spot of glue over the floral tape and wind a 1″ strip of green crepe paper around the headband over the tape, gently pulling tight as you go.  This will be the visible headband covering, so try to keep it neat.  Our strip was about 15″ long x 1″ wide.

6. Trim the wire on first flower to about 3″, position it and use floral tape to secure to the headband.

7. Wrap green crepe paper over floral tape as you go, covering the headband between each flower.

8. Position the second flower and repeat the wrapping.

9. When all flowers are in place wrap the floral tape and crepe paper down to the other end of the headband and secure crepe with a little glue.

10. Allow the hat to dry.

Get your party on!

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