I don’t have a green thumb. But I love orchids. I’ve had a potted orchid on my mantle for the last 7 months but it isn’t blooming anymore. The stem is still healthy, green and sturdy. I read about possibly cutting the stem back and hoping for a re-bloom but, like I said, I don’t have a green thumb. I decided to try something a little different…tissue paper flowers.
{images courtesy of Martha Stewart although they seem to be so old that I can’t find a direct link to the original ones}
After studying a few how-to’s, this is how I went about making my faux flowers: I got my supplies together. This included tissue paper, scissors, wire {you could use pipe cleaners or string also} and a wire cutter.
I cut the tissue paper into squares. {For my bigger flower I cut 7 ~6″x6″ squares and for the smaller flowers I cut 5 ~3″x3″ squares.}
Keeping the squares stacked, I folded them accordion-style, back and forth onto themselves.
I cut and secured a piece of wire around the middle of my folded tissue paper. I left the wire ends long enough to allow for attachment to my orchid stem later.
I used my scissors to round off each end of the accordioned squares. You can cut the ends rounder or pointier, depending on what you want your flower to look like.
I gently fanned and pulled up each individual sheet of paper. I did this on each end.
I finished the flower by shaping it into a round bloom.
Then I simply attached it to my bare stem using the wire that held the middle of the tissue paper squares together. I just twisted the wire securely {but not tight enough to cause damage} around the stem.
I followed the same steps to make 2 smaller blooms for the top of the stem. Here’s my final product up on the mantle…
Violà! Super-duper cheap and easy. And I can’t kill them. I’m still adding 3 ice cubes weekly to my pot to keep the stem alive. Does anyone have experience with keeping an orchid blooming indoors longer than 6-7 months? If so, your advice is appreciated!
budget decor, DIY