I love seeing all the pretty paper flower crafts. I’ve been wanting to give them a try for so long, so I finally did. I needed a little spring pick me up since spring hasn’t quite arrived here. Heck, paper flowers are great for any occasion: someone is sick, it’s Mother’s Day, you want to get your kids excited about spring.
I tried several paper flower projects. My goal was to find the best but also easiest. Some were super simple and some had me struggling to figure them out. If they were hard for ME, you won’t find it on the list. I only wanted ones kids could make.
In the end, I narrowed my list to my top 7 flowers. I will share what they were and tips and tricks I found while experimenting. At times, I modified the flowers to make them easier or to use more common materials you may have around the house.
7 Easy DIY Paper Flowers
1- Lavender
I LOVE the look of lavender! When I saw a lavender tutorial at Kids Craft Room, I had to give it a try. These flowers are super simple to make and sooo pretty.
Tips and Tricks:
The materials can vary for this project. The original article calls for crepe paper. I cut up party streamers we had around the house. Another site I found used colored craft paper.
I happened to use green construction paper for the leaves. Green copy paper may work a little better. The construction paper didn’t fold as nicely.
Oh, I should note that I did not print out the template. I eyeballed the sizes and played around to find the size I liked. The site above does provide a template to make things easier, though.
2- Spring Lilies
Over at One Little Project at a Time, you can find simple handprint lilies. They are adorable. Even preschoolers can tackle this project.
Tips and Tricks:
I tried this project with colored copy paper and construction paper. In doing so, I found both works well.
I would recommend you use little kid hands to make the lilies. Honestly, my big adult hand didn’t work as well. It would look even better with kid-sized hands.
3- Simple Paper Flowers Craft
I enjoyed making these paper flowers. They have the look of daisies, and I love daisies. I adapted this craft by Easy Peasy and Fun to fit the materials I had on hand.
One thing I like about this paper flower is you can cut the materials to the size you want. It is easy to modify.
Tips and Tricks:
The original craft calls for using a tool to punch out the middle circle piece and using decorative straws for the stem. I didn’t have these things and easily improvised.
For the circle center, I cut my own and cut the petals to an appropriate length for the circle.
I love the pretty straw stems, but honestly, I wouldn’t spend the money on it for a craft. I’m thrifty, so I made my own stems by cutting a 1 1/2 inch to 2-inch strip of green paper and rolled it diagonally from one corner to make a stem. It worked great and is sturdy for big flowers.
4- Calla Lilly
Another paper flower I tried was this Calla Lilly. I found the directions at Mess for Less. Aren’t they cute?
Tips and a Tricks:
For the Calla Lillies, I printed out the template provided. I recommend you use it. It will make these paper flowers so much easier for kids.
When making these flowers, I used construction paper. It did not work as well. The construction paper is stiff. Colored copy paper or other craft paper would work best.
5- Carnations
Boy, I did A LOT of experimenting for this one. Carnations are such a classic and simple flower, though, so I wanted to make one. I got the directions from this video on Pinterest.
Tips and Tricks
My problem: what material to use. I tried tissue paper, toilet paper, and paper towels. A napkin worked! I opened the napkin all the way and cut 4 inches across. It worked great.
In the video, the stem is some kind of wire for flower decorating. I used a pipe cleaner. It worked well and is a better option for kids.
6 – Tulips
In my search for paper flower crafts, most of what I found were tulips for card making or pictures. At I Heart Crafty Things, I found this simple tulip craft.
Tips and Tricks
When it comes to flower crafts, this one was beyond easy. The site has a template you can use. I didn’t use the template, but it certainly makes it super simple for little kids.
The original flowers on the site have a decorative straw for the stem. It is very pretty, but I chose to use a pipe cleaner. It worked very well.
7- Roses
Finally, we come to the rose. Roses are perfect for any paper flower bouquet and real ones, too. Hint, hint husband. ? I found a simple tutorial at The Mad House.
Tips and Tricks:
I did these roses in two ways. First, I cut the spiral with regular scissors. Next, I cut it with scalloped scissors. Both make pretty roses.
When the roses were complete, I inserted a pipe cleaner up through the middle to add a stem.
Fun with Paper Flowers
All of the paper flowers were fun to make. I included the easiest and best ones you can use to make beautiful flower bouquets.
Kids will enjoy trying out the different flowers. Beware, you may find yourself overrun with paper flower bouquets. These flowers will last a lot longer than the dandelion bouquets you will get this summer, AND they won’t have bugs crawling through them. WooHoo!
If you are looking for other fun projects to do with your kids, check out How to Make Cool Op Art Flowers with Kids and How to Make the Best Homemade Watercolors.
