Introduction: Super Easy Paper Flowers for $2!

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About: Salutations! I am a Finance major and origami enthusiast.

In October, I cosplayed as Chihiro from the Studio Ghibli film, Spirited Away. Because the cosplay is rather plain, I decided to add a bit "more" to it. I did this by making a bouquet of flowers Chihiro was seen holding in the beginning of the movie.

I learned this flower-making method from an annual Japanese bazaar that I help out at. It's taught at an origami stand held for little kids to learn origami, so this is a super easy way to get started!

These flowers are super quick, super cheap, and super awesome!

Step 1: Materials

  • Post-its or square pieces of paper (Note: each flower will take one and a half pieces of square paper to make.)
  • Wire, pipe cleaners, etc. (I used galvanized wire from the dollar store) 
  • Scissors
  • Pliers (if you're using pipe cleaners, you don't need them)
I bought the wire in a 3-pack for $1 at my local dollar store, and a pack of Post-its for another dollar. These flowers take very few of these materials, and you can make about 70 flowers for just $2!

Step 2: Folding the Petals

  1. Cut the square in half.
  2. Fold the square in half, length-wise.
  3. Fold the corners down, making two triangles.
  4. Bring top down. 
  5. Repeat on other side.

You've finished two petals! We'll call these "pieces". Each side of the piece is a petal of the flower. You will need a total of three pieces to complete a flower. So, fold two more pieces.

When folding, make sure the side with the color you want to show is on the inside. In the case of Post-its, this means that the sticky side should be on the outside. Your folds will cover any unwanted colors/stickiness.

Make sure your creases are crisp and clean. Uneven folds will lead to ugly petal edges and may cause your flower to look lopsided. 

Step 3: Putting the Flower Together

  1. Stack three of the pieces together, side-by-side.
  2. Take your wire/pipe cleaner and place it on top of the stack.
  3. Bend the piece of wire back and twist the excess.

Do not twist the wire too tightly or too loosely. If they are not secure, the petals will fall out or move around. If the wire is too tight, it can easily cut through the paper and ruin the flower. So you'll want to make a snug (but not tight) fit on the wire.

Once it's all put together, you can trim the wire. I chose 8 inches for my stem length, but you can pick whatever length you like.

Now you can proceed to shaping the petals!

Step 4: Shaping the Petals

  1. Take your thumb and index finger.
  2. Pinch the petal. Use your thumb to shape the ends.
  3. Repeat five more times.
Take your thumb and index finger and pinch the petals. In doing so, you are unfolding the tips of the three pieces, making six petals in total. You can give the petals a little curl by pinching outwards and down. Some pieces may be too far out one side; this is where you can adjust how far a piece is sticking out. Just pull the short end to even it out. 

And you're done!