Tissue Paper Flowers

Tissue paper flowers are an easy-to-make craft that's perfect for Valentine's Day. Your kiddos will particularly love this craft because it allows them to create decor that can be used and admired. The materials you need are easy to find, and this activity is great for practicing cutting skills.

--WHAT YOU'LL NEED--

1 green chenille stem/pipe cleaner
1 sheet of green cardstock paper or construction paper (for optional leaves)
3 sheets (12-by-6-inch sheets or larger) of colored tissue paper
Ruler
Scissors

--STEP 1--

Take the tissue paper out of its package, stack three sheets on top of one another, line them up, and cut into 12-by-6-inch sheets. (For larger flowers, use bigger sheets and cut to your desired size).

Once cut to size, be sure your sheets of tissue paper are stacked and lined up once again before you begin folding your tissue paper.

Start with the shorter side (in this case, the 6-inch side) and make a 1-inch fold to start off an accordion fold.

--STEP 2--

Once you have made a 1-inch fold in your stacked tissue paper edge, turn your tissue paper stack over for the next fold, then turn it back for the fold after that.

Keep folding and turning over the paper until you have an accordion-style narrow strip of tissue paper.

--STEP 3--

Take your scissors and trim the ends of the stacked tissue paper strip so that you have a rounded edge. This will help your tissue paper petals have a rounded appearance, like the petals of a real peony, when you unfold the flower later.
Be sure to trim both ends of your folded tissue paper stack.

--STEP 4--

Add the stem. To ensure the stem is centered, fold the tissue strip in half and place the green pipe cleaner or chenille stem at the fold. Loop the "stem" around the middle of the folded tissue paper strip. Twist the pipe cleaner onto itself to hold the tissue paper strip in place.

--STEP 5--

Gentle peel open the layers. Starting on one side, begin opening up the tissue paper folds you made. Be sure to pull apart the folds evenly from both ends.

--Step 6--

Separate the tissue paper sheets. Gently separate the tissue paper sheets to unfold the petals of your flower. It will quickly begin to look like a beautiful blossom.

You can cut leaf shapes out of the green paper and glue those to the stem for a more "real" look.

--Step 7--

Create a bouquet by combining several of the flowers together. Display them in a vase or give them to a loved one!

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Image/craft credit: www.verywellfamily.com