Using Paper Flowers in Your Wedding Theme

Crafty Brides looking to save money can make their own bridal bouquets from paper flowers. Using a variety of papers and scrapbooking items, you can create a beautiful full and colorful bouquet for pennies, and these flowers won't ever die.

Why Paper Flowers and Not Silk?

Using paper flowers really isn't that different from buying a silk flower bouquet, except that you'll be making them yourself, so you can get as creative as you like.

Paper Flower Bridal Bouquets
A lot of bridal bouquets have a mixture of different flowers and different colors. So you can use one or two of the egg carton flowers and surround it with some tissue paper flowers.

Add a couple of origami flowers to the mix and you can create a one-of-a-kind bridal bouquet.

Then whatever colors you've used in your bouquet, make each of the bridesmaids slightly different. The bouquets for the bridesmaids can match their dresses. Mix up the flowers that are in their bouquets and change up the arrangement, and each bridesmaid will have a different but coordinated bouquet of her own.

Where to Get Ideas
A great way to figure out how to make different paper flowers is to take a walk through the silk flowers at a local department or craft store. You can see how the layers of silk are arranged in the different flowers, then go home and copy the design using your paper.

And you can use just about any type of paper too. I helped my cousin make coffee filter flowers, both roses and carnations, for her bridal shower centerpieces.

If you're really good with origami, you can make some origami flowers for the bouquets for you and your bridesmaids.

Different Types of Paper
When you use paper flowers - whether you decide to use tissue paper, computer paper, construction paper, coffee filters, or a combination of several of them - it's a fun way to add some of your personality, style and creativity to your wedding ceremony and the reception.

If you want to use just computer paper and egg cartons, you can go crazy with colors by picking up a variety of craft paints. Craft paints are usually pretty cheap and one bottle goes a long way.

Coffee filters usually just come in white, but there are some that are brown. It's best to just use the white ones though, and paint them the colors you want. You can also use different color beads for the inside of the flowers and the long pipe cleaner can be used for the stems.

Different Uses for Paper Flowers in a Wedding
You can get the plastic holders to arrange the bouquet into or you can wrap ribbon around the stems so they're hand-tied. For the guests' table centerpieces, pick up glass vases at a dollar discount store for $1 each and place a few paper flowers in each vase.

Paper flowers can also be used for pew bows or chair decorations. Use larger squares of tissue paper with some extra layers and you can create a big poofy flower to use as pew bows or attach them to the chairs.

Give yourself some time to play around with different types of paper flowers to see which you like best, which is easier to work with, and which is the most cost effective, especially if you're on a smaller budget.

Make a couple of different arrangements for bridal bouquets and see what you like best. Ask your bridesmaids to stop over on an afternoon and have a paper flowers craft day. Then your bridesmaids can make their own bouquets based on their favorite flowers.