After the amazing 'Paper flower construction' workshop, we wanted to share the knowledge-wealth. These things are easy to make, and they look awesome. People created some serious blooms at that workshop. So, here's a tutorial for a simple stack-based flower.

You will need:
-About 10 squares of tissue paper, all (roughly) the same size
-About 10 squares of a different color tissue paper, all the same size, but a bit smaller than the first lot
-Scissors
-Florist's wire, or, in a pinch, twistee-ties
(Paint-and-ink covered cutting mat is optional)



Initiate flower making! Hold the larger squares together with a paperclip and cut out a flower shape. You can give the petals any shape you like - rounded, pointy, fat, skinny, fringy, whatever floats your flowery boat. Repeat for smaller squares.



Place smaller flower sheets on top of larger flower sheets, and then pierce with a pin. Pierce it good! Wiggle the pin around to make the hole large enough for your wire.



Now you have three options:
1) make two holes, like a button hole, and thread the wire through so both ends come out the back of the flower
2) make one hole, and make a little loop on the top and bottom of the wire to stop the flower breaking free
3) use a brass fastener to keep it together

We went for the last option for this flower.



Now it's time to create BEAUTY. Take each sheet layer by layer, starting from the inside, and SCRUNCH or FLUFF or FLOOF that stuff good. Build the shape and character of your flower! The flower may well go through stages of looking, to use our lovely teacher's phrase, 'like a dog'. But persevere! The right amount of scrunching, fluffing, and floofing will result in a beautiful bloom. No flower is a lost cause.

Ta daaa! All done. These can be made all different sizes, and by varying the amount of sheets you can get a fluffier or less fluffy flower. You can glue some yellow bits (stamens, right?) into the centre if you so desire. Your life need never be flowerless again.

With many effusive thanks to Anna for teaching us the way of the tissue paper blossom.