A Bouquet That's Not Fussy!
Today is our first day of school! We are welcoming the new school year in more ways than one this year. Last Monday we hosted 50 of Joe's law students in our home for dinner, and Thursday I decorated for our elementary school's PTO teacher-appreciation dinner. Tonight we will share highlights of the first day of school over supper. And I will have celebration details for you all week!
Tissue paper flowers made a whimsical, fuss-free centerpiece for the dessert table at the PTO dinner. Do you remember making these years ago? I used tissue paper from my stash to make a bouquet of five blooms.
1. Cut each sheet of tissue paper into strips, about as wide as you want the finished flower to be.
2. Stack the strips, and folded them accordion-style. I used three strips each for the blue and green flowers, which resulted in more full and open flowers. Using four or five strips each for the pink flowers yielded a more dense, frilly flower.
3. After you bend the tissue back and forth in the accordion fold, secure the center with wire. I found it helpful to cut a little slit on each side before wrapping the wire around the middle. Pull the wire tight.
4. Add interest to the ends of the tissue by using scissors to round the edges or cut points.
5. Gingerly fluff the flower by separating the layers of tissue and manipulating the tissue to shape it into a bloom. Martha Stewart has a helpful pom-pom tutorial with photos here.
6. Secure the tissue flowers to a wooden dowel or paper straw with hot glue.
For a fun bouquet, vary the length of pretty straw stems, like these from The Sugar Diva. These blooms can be a bit top-heavy, but a handful of pink paper shreds dropped into a clear vase gives stability without covering the patterned straws.
There is more to come this week, so please join me every day!
And with only two weeks left in Taste of Home's search for Mrs. Holiday, I would appreciate your daily vote. Like the contest page here, and you can find my entry by searching for Melissa Lester. Thank you!
