My DIY Tissue Paper Flower Wedding Centerpieces

I'm trying to keep my wedding as low budget and DIY friendly as I can. So, when I saw this post over at the Intimate Weddings Blog, I thought I would give tissue paper flowers a go!

Here's the finished product:


I decided to make these early because I plan on doing a lot more DIY projects for the wedding (invitations, ceremony decor, jewelry for all, etc) so this was something that I knew would last until the wedding, so I decided to knock them out this summer!!

Here's how I made them:

First, I collected a whole lotta sticks. This was not that much fun because A: sticks are found in nature, and I don't really like getting nature on me. Too much dirt and bugs. Bleck. B. I sliced my hand open with garden shears in the process of cutting a stick off a dead branch. Not fun. C. I needed 144 sticks. That's a whole lotta sticks.
That was like the 60 sticks I collected on my first attempt. I collected them without counting and for some reason thought it would be enough...silly me!!

Then I cut the sticks down to size, and laid them out to spray paint.


I sprayed them using Krylon Metallic, which worked really well. It dried really fast and was only about $3.30 at Walmart.

Next, I set to work on my flowers. I bought packets of tissue paper from Walmart and Target for $1 each in each of my wedding colors: pink, purple, and silver.

I cut the tissue paper into 5 inch by 10 inch rectangles. Each flower takes four pieces. 

Fold it up accordion style


And then tie it secure around the middle with a piece of wire.

I trimmed the edges into a point,

And then pulled the layers apart on each side 

And kept fluffing until I had a flower!

One down, 143 to go. Yeah this was a very long process. I had my faithful bridesmaid Morgan help me two nights, brought them to gatherings with friends and made six more friends help me create, and watched a whole lot of episodes of Gilmore Girls finishing the rest myself.

After all the flowers were made I attached them to the sticks. I didn't get a picture of this part, but basically all I did was wrap the wire around the top of the stick and them hot glue the stick into the flower. 

I plopped them in vases I got from the Dollar Tree, put some ribbon around the middle, and voila! Pretty flowers.


I made 16 vases, and they are all sitting in a spare bedroom in my house just waiting for the big day....202 days from now :)



Break down on costs:
Vases: $1 each from the dollar tree - $16
Tissue Paper: $1 each from Walmart and Target - $15
Spray Paint: $3.30 each from Walmart - $10
Ribbon: Two spools from Walmart - $5
TOTAL= $46. 

Oh yeah. Under $50 for all my centerpieces.  I think I'll want to put some small candles or something else on the tables as well, but the big part is done, and much cheaper than having floral centerpieces made up!

Now....onto the next wedding project. What to tackle next!!!

I'll be sharing this with all the link parties in my header including Today's Creative Blog and Christina's Adventures

39 comments

  1. simple, yet pretty, great idea, and the cost perfection. Wedddings are costly enough. WINKS-jen

    ReplyDelete
  2. What a great idea! They are so colorful. I love the silver stems. You have saved so much money by doing these.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Super cute! I love them. :)

    Anna
    www.askannamoseley.com

    ReplyDelete
  4. They look so pretty, love the color combo!

    ReplyDelete
  5. I remember making those for my cousin's wedding when I was about 12. It was just me and I thought it would never end. Those are really adorable!

    ReplyDelete
  6. ahhhhh.. i see those dang flowers again!!!!! :D

    ReplyDelete
  7. You've been busy. Very fun and creative!

    ReplyDelete
  8. love your beautiful flowers how pretty and you can keep them forever if you choose

    ReplyDelete
  9. Great job, Rebecca! I have an "I do" board on my pinterest if you want to take a look. We do a vow renewal luncheon once a year at my church, so I'm always collecting ideas!

    ReplyDelete
  10. I love it! Thank goodness for friends though! Can't wait to see the rest of the DYI goodness you have planned.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Love these - the colors are beautiful :)

    ReplyDelete
  12. All the things you can make with tissue paper! These came out very beautiful!

    Come link and party at my woot woot wednesdays @ thetootsiewootsie.com

    http://www.thetootsiewootsie.com/2011/08/woot-woot-party-5.html

    ReplyDelete
  13. thanks for this easy tutorial!they look pretty!

    ReplyDelete
  14. That's a great little how-to Intimate Weddings did. Your centerpieces will look stunning.

    ReplyDelete
  15. This is awesome! And the flowers are simpler to make than the coffee filter ones I've seen. I'm going to pin for my wedding next summer! Just have to find some sticks in LA.

    -caroline @ c.w.frosting

    ReplyDelete
  16. I love poms!! Theyre finding themselves all over my house! These are extremely cute!
    I'm hosting a link party today. Stop by if you'd like!
    http://formamas.blogspot.com/2011/08/show-tell-party-1.html

    Chrissy
    www.formamas.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete
  17. EEEE these look GREAT! What a cute idea...that must have taken such a long time, but they're super worth it, especially for that price!!

    Thanks for linking to "20 Below Thursday"!

    ReplyDelete
  18. This is a very great tutorial! Thank you for linking to my blog!

    ReplyDelete
  19. Wow, so impactful and pretty! Hilarious line: "I don't like getting nature on me." Hee - that's what delegating is for! Beautiful centerpieces!

    ReplyDelete
  20. How cute! The silver twigs make all the difference. I did a DIY wedding series here: http://cheapchichome.blogspot.com/search/label/Wedding%20DIY that may also give you some inspiration (maybe not, who knows?!) Congratulations and have fun crafting.

    ReplyDelete
  21. They're great! The twigs with the tissue paper was just brilliant! Thank you so much for linking up!

    ReplyDelete
  22. Wow, I know this must have been a time-consuming labor of love, but it was worth it. So cute.

    Warmly, MIchelle

    ReplyDelete
  23. super cute! my daughter did a LOT of DIY for her wedding. It really cut down on the costs.
    good luck with the rest of the details.
    thanks for sharing @ catch as catch can.
    gail

    ReplyDelete
  24. Cool... I have a party coming up... I'll use this idea.

    We have a link-up party going on - Tea Time Thursdays @ Kreative Korner. I would really appreciate if you'd link up some of your awesome posts there. Hope to see you at the party.

    http://tanyaanurag.blogspot.com/2011/08/tea-time-thursdays-3-and-features.html

    ReplyDelete
  25. This is nice for party events. I still prefer fresh flowers though on wedding occassions. But the idea of cutting the cost is ecstatic.

    ReplyDelete
  26. Tissue Paper Flower Wedding Centerpieces are looking fabulous. Thank you for sharing how to make this in easy way :)

    ReplyDelete
  27. Great project for a bridal shower centerpiece!

    ReplyDelete
  28. How tall was your vase and how long were your stems?

    ReplyDelete
  29. The vase was probably about 10-12 inches tall, and the stems were various lengths but probably about 6 inches taller

    ReplyDelete
  30. Simple & Great Idea. It would be fun to do on cutting-down cost. I try to make it for my daughter wedding party. Thanks for sharing. Birdcage wedding centerpieces

    ReplyDelete
  31. I must also take this moment to say that I DID like all of the dresses tried on, but this particular purchase involved more than sensibility and logic. It involved YEARS of girlie imagining, fashion perusing and the heart of "Uptown Red Head!"


    wedding ceremony dress

    ReplyDelete
  32. Oh no. It's great. An attractive wedding flowers with cheap budget. Lantern Centerpieces for wedding

    ReplyDelete
  33. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  34. Premium wedding flowers from the finest U.S. growers, Wholesale Flowers by the bunch or the case no minimum order. Nationwide to your door delivery.wholesale wedding flowerss

    ReplyDelete