DIY Project: Origami Flowers
This next project isn’t for the faint of heart…it’s time consuming and detail driven, but if you have the patience, it’s GORGEOUS. Love that the bride put so much TLC into her day.
Materials
1. Origami paper (6×6”) or medium-weight textured art paper (12×12” works best)
-Origami paper available at Michael’s, AC Moore, or online at Paper-tree
-Art paper available at Michael’s, AC Moore, or online at Scrapbook Paper or The Paper Mill Store
2. Bamboo skewers or Round basket reed
-Bamboo skewers available at Kroger, Harris Teeter, or online at Chefs Resource
-Basket reed available online at Baskets of Joy
3. Paintbrush (flat and slightly angled works best)
-Available at Michael’s, AC Moore, or online at Utrecht Art
4. Inkpad
-Available at Michael’s, AC Moore, or online at Rubber Stamps
5. Hot glue gun
-Available at Michael’s, AC Moore, or online at Adhesive Solutions
Optional:
6. Clear polyester resin, like Castin’Craft; and Catalyst for polyester resin
-Available at Michael’s, AC Moore, or online at ETI-USA
7. Thin crafting wire
-Available at Michael’s, AC Moore, or online at Artistic Wire
Instructions
1. If you’ve decided to use art paper instead of origami paper, first cut your sheet into squares using a paper cutter, or a straight-edge and Xacto knife. A 12×12” sheet will divide into four 6-inch squares.
2. Using illustrated step-by-step instructions and/or videos, fold the square into an origami flower. Excellent how-to guides are available at the following links: Origami Tulip (10 steps; for the novice) and Origami Lily/Iris (14 steps; a bit more advanced). If using heavier paper, it’s useful to keep a credit card handy for making sharp creases. You may also want to utilize the end of a paper-clip to help pop out the tulip and make it three-dimensional (in the last step), and a pencil to help curl down the petals of your flowers. Enlist the help of bridesmaids’ – it’s so fun to do this over snacks and good girly gab – and it gets the job done even faster!
3. Paint the edges of your flowers. An inkpad distributes just the right pigment and is easy to “brush out” for a soft, faded look. You can experiment with tea-staining flowers by dipping them in a brewed cup of tea and letting them air dry. Or use colored origami/art paper for beautiful solid flowers.
4. Insert the pointed end of a bamboo skewer into the bottom of each flower and secure with a generous bead of hot glue. Or if you prefer drooping flowers, clip a length of basket reed, insert one end of the piece into the bottom of your flower, and glue into place.
5. Optional: You can create interesting centerpieces with height by arranging various flowers at different levels and securing them together with craft wire.
6. Optional: If you want to make your blossoms a bit sturdier and give them a high-gloss glassy-like coating, then dip them in polyester resin that’s been mixed with catalyst per the container’s instructions (make sure you do this in a well-ventilated area and on a dry, non-humid day!). Stick the skewers in the ground outside to cure for at least 24 hours.
7. Arrange your flowers bouquet-style in your favorite vase.
Your flowers can be used throughout your wedding. Wrap a ribbon around the stems and – voila! – beautifully unique bridesmaids’ bouquets for your ceremony. The vase arrangements make great DIY centerpieces for the reception – and they double as the perfect take-home favors for your guests! Consider highlighting your favors by buying cheap bud vases (from thrift stores, Michael’s, or online at Ikea [as low as .79 cents each!]), sticking a single blossom in each one, and putting them at each place-setting.
Vote!
Vote!
VOTE!
Vote
Vote
VOTE! -- These are beautiful!
VOTE!
Vote
Vote
Vote
Love the flowers! You have my vote!
vote! :D
ROCK THE..
VOTE!!!
Dido.. VOTE!
VOTE!!!
Vote
Vote...beautiful
Vote
vote
The flowers are beautiful just like you! :)
You have lots of patience. They look lovely.
VOTE!
OMG those are awsome ! Vote !
SO gorgeous -- VOTE!
vote!
VOTE! Love 'em!
Vote! Who knew...?
Vote! =)
Vote!
vote!
You are really creative and it looks wonderful.
It will be beautiful for all to see.
With all these beautiful Oragami decorations Amy may want another wedding. Nice work...I know its time consuming...but its worth it.
VOTE!
Vote!
VOTE! These are going to be gorgeous center pieces!
Amazingly beautiful. Vote!
Elles son tres belles ces fleurs, very pretty.
Vote!
These are beautiful.
great job - takes a lot of patience
Great Job!
Vote
I think these are better than real flowers because no is allergic to paper that I know of and these will last much longer...
Vote!
VOTE...very cute!
VOTE
VOTE
VOTE - great work
VOTE
VOTE!
VOTE
VOTE!!
Vote
Vote!
Vote!! SO pretty :)
Vote!
VOTE!!
Unbelievable. They are gorgeous! Vote!
WOW. These flowers are so original and elegant!
Vote!
Gorgeous! They look so real.
Vote!
vote
vote
These are great! Vote
Vote
Vote
These are amazing!! :)
Vote!!! These are great!!!
VOTE
These are super Pretty and amazing!!!!
Vote!
Vote!
VOTE!! These are AWESOME!
Vote! They are beautiful.
VOTE!
vote
Vote! These are absolutely gorgeous!
Vote!!!
Vote!
Vote!!
VOTE!
Amazing! And they'll last forever. You have my vote!
Looks like another Shannon loves these, too. Who wouldn't!
--Shannon R.
VOTE
Vote.
VOTE!
Vote
VOTE!
VOTE! Beautiful and very creative.
VOTE
Vote!
Vote!
vote!!
vote
Gorgeous! Creative and smart!
Vote, vote and vote.
xoxo
VOTE
Vote, Vote, Vote!
SOoo impressive! Would you consider doing this professionally?
~ Natalia
VOTE. gorgeous!
Ab fab!! VOTE
The flowers were beautiful! They look so real.
Vote
VOTE! i am actually very tempted to use this in my wedding :)
Vote
Looks lovely. Vote!!
Vote!
VOTE!
vote!
I'm Harvey Milk, and I'm here to recruit you!
What's all this vote crap about?
vote?
Wow! VOTE!
(I hope my centerpieces of (much simpler) paper flowers come out half as nice as these! 22 dozen down, 8 dozen to go...)
vote vote
votery vote vote coat moot
poot
root
vote
i'm nekid
you need to find something else to do
those flowers are made of paper
Vote.
Looks like a task for Steve!
VOTE!!
VOTAR!!!
vote
vote
Vote NOW!
Vote TWICE ..........NOW!!!
Vote
vote, vote
Vote! Lovely, great job!
Vote! Vote! Tons of patience, beautiful job!
Vote again and again...
VOTE!!!
Vote!!!
vote
Wow--amazing!!!
Vote.
Do you have links to the tutorials on how to fold these? Great work, they look beautiful.
vote---very pretty
VOTE VOTE VOTE VOTE VOTE! Amazing, who you win!
VOTE!
VOTE THIS IS AMAZING....
Hi Suz -- Thank you! I do have some useful links for folding how-to... I see they got dropped in the original post; but here are some good resources:
www.origami-fun.com/origami-flowers.html (diagrams for folding flowers, as well as a video tutorial for the tulip)
www.youtube.com/watch?v=wJDYrzs3VN8 (instructional video for folding irises)
I hope this helps!
VOTE! Gorgeous!!
VOTE!
vote
VOTE!!
vote
Vote!!
Vote
Vote
vote today
VOTE! :)
vote! it's wonderful!
Vote!!! Just gorgeous!!1
The flowers are simply breathtaking!! I wish I was that creative. Please vote!!
The best origami I have ever seen! Vote today!!
Vote! Woof, woof...
vote
Those are beuatiful!
VOTE! These are really pretty!
Vote These Flowers are gorgeous!
Vote
Vote
Vote - these are amazing!!
vote!!
i made these and origami cranes for my wedding! :)
the ink idea to the edges is beautiful!!
vote
What a lovely, personal touch!
What a lovely personal touch!
Vote
Vote-Amazing!!
Vote
Vote-Clever!
VOTE! Beautiful!
Vote! WOW~!
VOTE!
!Vote!
Vote
Vote yes!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Vote:Hope you are the winner they are gorgeous!!!
Vote!:)
Wow! Vote!
Vote!
Very Nice! Vote!
VOTE. They are gorgeous!!!!!!
Gets my vote!
Vote! YOU ROCK SIS! :)
vote, vote
love the vote
Lets win the vote
Beautiful flowers, vote
We will win
Are you sure to vote
Love those flowers vote
Cant wait to see them, vote
Pretty in Pink, vote
Lets go team, vote
vote
Absolutely beautiful! Vote
Breathtaking!!!
VOTE!
I do not think words can express the beauty displayed in these flowers! BEAUTIFUL!
vote
Absolutely beautiful and so different from the usual wedding flowers! Evie Derrickson
vote
vote
vote!!
What a beautiful touch! Marty
VOTE
VOTE - WOW!!!!
VOTE - TRULY IMPRESSIVE!!!
VOTE - You're sure to win, these are amazing!!!
VOTE
VOTE
VOTE - can't wait to see these.
VOTE
VOTE - GOOD LUCK!
Awesome!
VOTE!
WOW!
VOTE!
They are beautiful, but the time and effort would be overwhelming.
All right,vote
Sounds great, Vote
They look great. Vote
Wow, Can't wait to see them. Vote
Oh,They are lovely, Vote
They will look great on the tables. Vote
Colors look great, Vote
Can't believe the day will be here soon, Vote
Spring is here, colors will be great, vote
Are you sure you want to do these. Vote
Save one for us. Vote
VOTE - great, very pretty
VOTE do they smell as good as they look?
Vote!
Vote! twice!
Vote!
vote
Wow, what a great idea, wouldn't these look great in a whimsical inexpensive versatile vase from CathysWraps?
~ Cathy
Looks pretty, but who has this much time?
VOTE!
Vote! This should save some money!
VOTE
Vote
Vote!
vote =)
vote!
Vote!
Vote x2!
Vote!
Vote again!
Vote!!!
VOTE.
From the Bride:
Thanks everyone for your compliments -- and your votes! In my submission, I got right down to business and later realized I didn't take the opportunity to tell the story behind the flowers. So I thought I'd indulge myself here in a comment!
My mother is from Vietnam, and in our wedding, it's been very important for us to bring in subtle Asian elements drawn from all over to celebrate that unique aspect of our family. I'm wearing a traditional ao dai for part of the wedding, and we're serving Asian-fusion during the cocktail hour. The flower girl's basket will be a silk-covered Chinese take-out box, and the reception decor includes white sand zen gardens and paper lanterns. Our invitations picture two facing origami cranes with a heart between them and our cake-topper will be the same. So it just made perfect sense to bring origami flowers into our day!
I hope crafters won't be too intimidated by the process. It truly takes only two minutes to fold the tulips, and about five minutes to fold an iris. So fear not! Origami is really a very accessible art, and not always as time-consuming as it appears! I promise!
I think what I've loved most about this particular project is its versatility -- they can be any color or combination, and can easily be incorporated into many different parts of your wedding -- and they're infinitely cheaper than real flowers. They also work just as great at home! We're doing a single stem in a bud vase at each place setting as favors. And I just love the idea that guests will be able to take home an actual "piece" of our wedding!
xo, christina
WOW! VOTE!
Gorgeous! Vote!
They are worth another Vote!
Vote
Great job!!!
Beautiful. Very proud of you.
VOTE
WOW! Gorgeous.
VOTE
WOW! Beautifully done.
VOTE
So nice and lovely.
VOTE
You'd never expect that these stunning flowers were made out of creative paper and paint. Lovely and eye-catching! VOTE
Wow. I thought those flowers were real!
Has anyone tried to make these? I'm curious...
I'm wondering how much the bride's "flowers" ending up costing her. It'd be a great comparison to the average flower budget!
very cool and different!
Beautiful and so unique!
I am currently in the process of doing this for my wedding because I feel it is such a cool and CHEAP alternative to real flowers. Our venue actually includes centerpieces but they are very cheap looking with just a content of filler flowers. If we dont use them we get a $15 credit per table (plus taking into account that to use "their" flower we would probably be spending $5 - $10 extra per table to make it look nice). This is a crazy beautiful and inexpensive alternative. There was a question about cost up there so I'll show you my break down.
I used oriental rice paper because it looks alot more delicate which with a coupon i got 48 - 12" x 18" sheets for $9.
So the break down is this -
Lilies:
3"x3" - $0.01
4"x4" - $0.01
5"x5" - $0.03
6"x6" - $0.03
Roses: (pattern from book - uses 5 different size sheets of paper) $0.12
Vase: $1 (dollar store)
Fabric to cover it, ribbon, floral tape etc $0.50
Bamboo skewers $100 for $1.99
We are thinking we are going to use 5 roses and about 30 different size lilies per centerpiece so total cost would be around $3.50 - thats the cheapest rose and lily centerpiece I've found :-)
You probably want to factor in another $10 - $20 start up for the ink pads, paintbrushes etc.
If you are willing to spend the time I think it is totally worth it. We are doing blue and yellow lilies and yellow roses and it looks fantastic.
A note to the original bride that did this - thank you so much for the inspiration. I stumbled across the idea of origami flowers on accident while looking for a swan pattern (my fiance's last name is swan and we thought it would be cute to have swans as our place cards). However I could not find or duplicate anything that i thought looked elegant enough and that I was proud enough of to put on tables at my wedding. When I saw these I thought WOW, if i can get them to look half as good as that, I am so satisfied. They are turning out fantastic. Thanks again for the inspiration!!!
What beautiful flowers! Much better than silk ones I think. I imagine your fingers get quite sore though!
I have been making origami flowers to add to my sculpture. Thank you so much for the ink pad idea to add color! Paint is to heavy in general and I have been struggling. Another tip... using florist wire and tape is flexible so each blossom will go right where you want to. Plus, you don't have to using a glue gun. I used wire cutters to bend a loop on one end of the wire. Put the straight end down through the flower and let the loop hook on to the paper inside. I have made quite a few flowers so far and my fingers aren't sore (yet!)
That's amazing!
Where are the links to the step by step instructions?
THANK YOU SO MUCH!
Finally, some realistic looking origami flowers! And instructions on how to make them!
THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!
I love your inkpad painting technique!