How to Make Tissue Paper Poppies

A simple guide on how to craft cute poppy flowers

Last Updated: May 24, 2022

Tissue paper poppies are a simple DIY project that add color to any space they're placed in. Plus, unlike real flowers, they won't ever wilt and don't require any watering or sunlight! Making them is as easy as choosing colors of tissue paper and connecting them together. After you finish this crafty project, use your new tissue paper poppies to decorate spaces however you like and create whimsical accents all over.

Method 1

Method 1 of 2:

Ruffled Tissue Paper Poppies

1
Lay three pieces of red, orange, yellow, pink or gold tissue paper on your work surface. Use additional layers of tissue paper if you want a fuller poppy. If desired, use more than one color to create variety and depth.
2
Put a round plastic lid, such as a lid from a cottage cheese or margarine container, on top of the folded tissue paper. Trace around the lid with a pencil, then use scissors to cut out the circle.

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3
Lay three pieces of black or brown tissue paper on your working surface. Use a small cup or another object about 2 inches (5.1 cm) in diameter as a pattern. Draw around the circle, then cut out the black tissue paper.
4
Place the stack of small black circles on the center of the stack of larger circles. Poke a green pipe cleaner up through the middle of the stack. Leave about an inch of pipe cleaner extending above the paper. Bend the pipe cleaner down in a hook shape, then pull the bent part of the pipe cleaner through the paper so the hook is hidden in the poppy. Secure the pipe cleaner to the paper poppy with a small amount of white craft glue.
5
Spread the layers of tissue paper to make a ruffled poppy. Place the poppy in a vase or other decorative container. Repeat the steps for each tissue paper flower you wish to make.

Method 2

Method 2 of 2:

Simple Tissue Paper Poppies

1
Spread a piece of red, orange, yellow, pink or gold tissue paper on a flat surface. Use a ruler or yardstick and a pencil to divide the tissue paper into four equal squares. Cut out the squares.
2
Fold each tissue paper square twice, so the folds make four equal quarters. Fold the tissue paper one final time to make a triangular shape. Leaving the paper folded, use your scissors to round the corner opposite the fold. When you unfold the tissue paper, you will have a scalloped circle with eight equal scallops.
3
Push a green pipe cleaner up through the bottom of the shape. Leave about an inch of the pipe cleaner extending above the circle. Next, bend the extending inch of pipe cleaner in a hook shape. Pull the hook down into the paper, so that the hook is hidden in the poppy. Secure the hooked part to the poppy with a drop of white craft glue.
4
Finished.

Community Q&A

Question

What are poppies for?

Community Answer

Poppies are herbaceous plants, often grown for their colorful flowers. They also produce edible seeds. Following the trench warfare in the poppy fields of Flanders during World War I, poppies have become a symbol of remembrance of soldiers who have died during wartime.
Question

Why are they not red?

Idabelle

Community Answer

Poppies come in different colors, not just red. This example used white poppies, but they can be red, pink, white, yellow, orange or even purple.