DIY Origami Flower Wreath

About a month ago my lovely mother, Denise Wilcox, introduced me to this super fun paper craft idea that she had read about and bought a book about. 

The book illustrates and gives instructions for the simplest creation, like a flower, all the way up to difficult projects that I will probably never be able to achieve.

But that is beside the point. After showing me the origami flowers she had made we decided to invest in more supplies so that I could embark on creating my own. The following post is my adventure in doing so along with the final product, which is on its way to Salt Lake City to hang in my Grandmother's house.
To start let me give you a list of the required supplies you will need to complete your project...

1. Elmer's Glue (or some other brand of white glue)
2. Hot Glue Sticks
3. Hot Glue Gun
4. Buttons (used for the center of the flowers)
5. Old Book (one you don't mind destroying)
6. Wreath Mold
7. Other Decorations to fill in the empty space on the Wreath
8. Ribbon

(Collage courtesy of: PicMonkey)

Oh, interesting fact that I just barely learned. The type of flower I created for my wreath has a name. It's called a Kusudama Flower and below are the steps you will follow to create each petal of each flower (a total of 5 petals is needed per flower). 

Steps:(based on pages from a small book)

• Step 1: fold paper into a 6 inch x 6 inch square. Then fold horizontally and crease well. (Paper should look like a triangle)

(Collage courtesy of: Photovisi)

• Step 2: take the left corner and fold it in towards the top. Repeat on right side. (top A, right side B & bottom C)

(Collage courtesy of: Photovisi)

• Step 3: starting on the left, fold AC onto BC. Repeat that same fold on the right.

• Step 4: now, to "squash" the flaps. Place your finger in the pocket created in step 3 and fold it flat. Then repeat on the other side.

(Collage courtesy of: PicMonkey)

• Step 5: fold down both tips.

• Step 6: now fold the two flaps in diagonally as indicated

(Collage courtesy of: Photovisi)

• Step 7: now you will need to glue the two sides together. Apply a thin strip of Elmer's glue on the outside of each flap and "roll" together. Hold for about 10 seconds or until glue is dry.

Now that you have successfully completed the above 7 steps for one petal you have the joy of doing it 4 more times. You need a total of 5 petals for each flower.

Don't feel bad if your do not turn out as perfect as the one shown above. Trust me, they will not be perfect but they will be beautiful because you created them.

Once you have the basic flower created you can move on to choosing something to decorate the center of the flower and bling it out a bit. 

For my flowers I decided to raid my grandmothers button box that was passed on to Denise after she passed years ago. The buttons were amazing, there were tons of different styles and sizes and they made the perfect center for my imperfect flowers.

To attach the buttons to the flowers use a hot glue gun. Insert the tip of the gun into the center of the flower. Fill it with hot glue and then attach the button. Most buttons have a small "tab" on the bottom so push it into the hot glue to hold the button in place. 

Now, to assemble the actual wreath. This is the fun part!! You need to start with a basic Styrofoam wreath frame.

(Photo courtesy of: Joann's)

Now decide where you would like to place each flower and then poke a hole in the frame for the flower to sit in. Now fill the hole with hot glue and push the flower into it. Hold for about 10 seconds until glue is dry. Trust me, the flower will not move!

Once you have the flowers attached where you want them you can now figure out what you want to use to fill in the empty white areas. As you can see, I decided to go with glittery, colorful decorations. I bought them at my local Joann's.

You may have to cut the decorations in order to fit in between the flowers. Attach them to the wreath in the same way you attached the flowers. Poke a hole in the frame, fill it with hot glue and push the decoration in. Hold it until the glue is dry.

This final step is completely optional, cover the inside and outside edges of the completed wreath with ribbon to give it a more finished look. 

Alright, you have reached the end and you super awesome Origami Flower Wreath is complete and ready to hang for others to enjoy.

I hope you have enjoyed this super fun project!!! Leave me a comment and let me know what you think. THANKS!!!

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