Introduction: Wedding Bouquet Floral Arrangement - Paper Flowers - Coffee Filter Flowers

By Etsy
About: Hi my name is Mandy Reyes. Ever since I was a child I have loved to create and craft all sorts of things. Recently I have been pushing myself to learn how to make video tutorials so that I can share my passion…

If you want a project to keep your hands busy, this is it! My mom and I worked for months to create over a hundred paper flowers that I used in place of real flowers in my wedding. It sounds daunting, but it was really fun. The best part is that I was able to keep my bouquet as a keepsake instead of watching the flowers slowly wilt away. Creating paper flowers is a bit time consuming, but if you're like me I love to see the final project especially knowing that I created it myself. Whatever you do, don't try to make your flower arrangement the night before your event! You will end up frazzled with paper confetti strewn all about. There will be hundreds of tiny pieces of paper that you can save and use for other projects like confetti eggs or confetti filled balloons. In my opinion, the paper leaves do not give the flowers an authentic look, therefor I opt for natural looking greenery that you can purchase at your local craft store. Post your flowers in the comments and have fun!

Step 1: Dye the Coffee Filters

Materials:

  • Acrylic Paint * I used white acrylic for the Anastasia Flower and pink for the others)
  • Old dish/glass bowl that you don’t mind ruining

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases linked in the material section.

Steps:

  1. Fill your dish with warm water. Add a few drops of paint and mix it together. Some paint will settle to the bottom of the dish, be careful not to let the coffee filter touch the bottom.
  2. Now dip a stack full of filters several at a time (6 to 7) in your paint solution. Wring them out like you would a towel.
  3. There are two ways you can dry them: Air dry or at a low temperature in the oven. Set the oven to about 200-230 degrees. Lay the stacks on a cookie sheet, trying not to overlap each stack. Then after about 10 minutes you move the stacks, separate a few layers and flip them over. This takes about 30 minutes to an hour versus the entire day. ONLY DO THIS AT YOUR OWN RISK!
  4. They will be wrinkly and a little crispy and that is normal.
  5. Now that all of your filters are dyed you are ready to create!

Step 2: Anastasia Mum Flowers

The template creates 1 large flower and 2 small flowers (Only the large flower is shown in the photos.)

Materials:

  • 18 Dyed coffee filters from step #1

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases linked in the material section

Steps:

  1. For the large flower you will need 12 filters in two stacks of 6 filters.
  2. Cut a circle around each template #5, #6, #7 #8 on the first stack of filters, don't cut out the design yet!
  3. Use the template as a guide, don’t try to cut it perfectly on the lines.
  4. Aim to have pointy tips and don’t cut too far into the middle of the flower template.
  5. Use stack 2 (6 coffee filters) to cut out the remaining templates #1 #2 #3 #4
  6. Now remove the flower template guide from on top. Fold the stack of 6 filters in half and cut a small hole in the middle (for the wire to poke through).
  7. Separate the 6 layers so that they don’t all lay the same way. You want the petals to be dispersed and not stacked in the same direction.
  8. Poke the stem of the floral wire through the hole of #1 about ⅛ of the way up, put a tiny dot of hot glue at the base of the floral stem protruding and squish the petals together to create a pointed tip of petals. You want the layers to completely surround the floral wire.
  9. Now poke the bottom of the stem through #2
  10. Push the petals all the way up.
  11. Put a dab of hot glue underneath the bottom layer of #1 & push up #2 (the newest layer) towards the top. (All of the layers will be glued once you push them up).
  12. Continue these steps until you have used each set of petals.
  13. Fluff up the petals and trim off any petals that seem too long or out of place.

For the small flower you will repeat the same steps using 6 coffee filters.

Step 3: Peony Flower

The template creates 1 flower (varying sizes)

The cool thing about this flower is that once you know the steps, you can use the template to create flowers of various sizes. Use a few layers for a small flower and add on extra outer petals for a larger size.

Materials:

  • Dyed coffee filters from step #1 (I used a light pink & some pink mixed with yellow to make a peach hue)

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases linked in the material section.

Steps:

  1. Cut out an 8” strip of yellow streamer. Fold it in half from right to left 2 times. Then fold the top half down.
  2. Use your small sharp scissors to cut small strips (fringe) on the OPEN side of the yellow strip. Do not cut up too far or the pieces will fly off. Continue cutting the entire length of the strip.
  3. Put a dab of glue on the tip of your floral wire. Wrap the yellow streamer tightly around the tip until the end, and fix the end of the strip with another dab of hot glue. (You can lick your *clean fingertips or use a splash of water on your finger tips to smooth out the glue to make it set quicker.)
  4. You will need the following: 3 layers of template #1, 9 layers of #2, 12 layers of #3 *Remember you can vary these numbers to create different sizes.
  5. Overlap #1 each petal on top of the other. (I always layer my petals in sets of 3.) Then wrap it around the yellow center and slightly twist at the base. Use a strip of the floral tape to wrap around the base of the petals to lock them in place.
  6. Repeat with layers #2 and #3.
  7. With each set of petals you wrap around, use a strip of the floral tape to make sure they are secure.
  8. To give your flower a fuller look, you can stick your finger in between the petals and separate them.

Step 4: Roses

Roses

Materials:

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases linked in the material section.

Steps:

  1. Cut out the petals according to the template.
  2. Open up #1 and poke the wire through the center. Fold #1 around the wire and secure with a strip of floral tape. Repeat using petals #2 and #3
  3. Open up petal #4 by tearing the strip at the bottom. Place the wire on the far left end and roll the petal completely around several times and secure with floral tape.
  4. Now you will stack petals #5 (6) by layering each on top of each other, 3 petals at a time.
  5. Wrap around and secure with tape.
  6. Repeat previous steps with the last petals #7 (8).
  7. Always in stacks of 3 petals. If the flower looks a bit lop sided, you can cut out more outer petals to even it out.
  8. Now cut out the long strip from the peony template. Fold the right end downward about ½". Roll it inward starting from the right side.
  9. Place a dab of hot glue inside the rose and place the rolled up strip in the center of the rose.
  10. Fill your dish with warm water. Add a few drops of paint and mix it together.
  11. Use your paint brush to lightly paint each petal. The coffee filter will soak up the liquid quickly. Paint each petal as you wish. You can add darker accents with more paint on the petal rim.
  12. Place the flower in a small bottle or vase to dry. Once it is dry you can use a small stick to roll the petal tips downward, but it is not necessary.

Step 5: Arrange Your Bouquet

Materials:

  • Your beautiful flowers
  • Any wired ribbon you like. I bought mine at the craft store.
  • Decorative Cabochon (it's actually a button!) - optional (I couldn't find the exact one I used online)
  • Natural greenery leaves - keep an eye out at the craft store, you can often find them 40% off

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases linked in the material section.

Steps:

  1. Form your flowers into a bunch and secure them with floral wire.
  2. Add your greenery around the outside any way you wish.
  3. Secure the stem with floral tape each time you add more greenery.
  4. Fill in the gaps between the flowers with more greenery or add more flowers.
  5. Wrap your wired ribbon several times around the stem. I like to wrap it until the part that you hold looks uniform in size.
  6. Glue down the end piece of the ribbon.
  7. Finish it off by hot gluing your cabochon.

Step 6: Admire Your Bouquet!