D.I.Y. Wedding Day Flower Wall

Jeremy and I had so much fun making this flower back drop for our wedding ceremony. Since sharing photos we've had dozens of requests for an in-depth tutorial on how we created this back drop. It's actually really easy and would be fun for a photo booth too! 

There are a lot of different types of tissue ornaments in the mix. First there are paper fans or accordion flowers. I purchase a bunch of these and these from Bake It Pretty. They are inexpensive and usually around 12 inches wide, so they cover space well. The biggest bulk of the back drop is made with tissue paper pom poms. I learned to make paper pom poms in girl scouts (YEAH!) and more recently a prettier version from my friend Rachel's blog. She kindly gave me permission to share her beautiful photo how-to with you here...

1. Gather five or seven or nine (must be an odd number to get this look) pieces of tissue paper in two monochromatic shades (pinks & yellows, greens & blues) that compliment each other and cut them three times as long as they are wide. You'll also need some twine or embroidery thread. 2. With your papers stacked, fold them into a fan like so. 3. Trim off the ends at an angle for a petal effect. 4. Tie it together in the middle with your knot and extra string on the edge of the color you want at the top. I wanted yellow at the top of mine. 5. Fan out and pinch around the knotted area in between the folds to help it stay fanned. 6. Very gently, start peeling your layers down. Do them one side at a time so it all looks even when you're done. Your middle layer should stick out in the center but you can peel it to the top or bottom a little here and there to make it look a little more like a flower.

The pom poms we made for our backdrop are just a slight variation of this method. You don't have to fluff out both sides, because one side will lay flat against the wall. Also some of the flowers on our backdrop have a more rounded (scalloped) petal or a deeper fringe. You can experiment with slightly different techniques when cutting the petals to create different looks.

To hang the pieces we nailed and adhered them directly to the wall. Since this isn't possible on most walls, I recommend cutting a huge cardboard backing (as wide and tall as you want your entire piece) and the using hot glue to adhere all your flowers. Then you would only need to use a few nails to secure it to the wall, causing minimal damage. Other elements that we included in our backdrop were fringe flowers cut from plastic bags, feathers and fabric squares. I recommend sticking with a general color scheme (we chose jewel tones) that has some room for variety.

I hope this tutorial has been helpful! Remember, a smaller scale version would be super cute for a photo booth or party table. xo. elsie 

Photos by Kinsey Mhire, Arrow & Apple and Rachel Denbow. 

Comments

[fang ting]

The flower wall u created for your wedding is absolutely beautiful! Even more so when it's the couple who made them together. Thanx for sharing this!

Fang Ting
http://ftashion.blogspot.com/

[Jo - Lost in the Haze]

Hooray, I've been wanting to know about the wall decor for ages! <3 It is so beautiful, Elsie! I'm so glad I can make one myself now!

x
www.lostinthehaze.com

[thicany]

Lovely , I always read your blog ,soy tu fan ;)
y esta pared de la boda quedo genial

[Mandy @ Miss Indie]

Great DIY! I really loved the way all of the flowers looked for your wedding. I think the jewel-tones were beautiful! xo

[Ronifeelsnostalgic]

Thank you for sharing this wonderful idea! I Love it as a backdrop for pictures...think I might just want to have a happy/frilly wall like this in my house 24/7/365! :)

[Hannah @ Sparrow + Spark!]

This is fantastic! I would like it as a piece of art in my bedroom!

Thanks for your blog course by the way- it's such a great read.

[Candace]

So great - I loved seeing your wedding photos and all of the amazing personal touches you created. This wall was so stunning!
I helped a friend with her wedding last year and we hung a bunch of these paper pom-poms along the outdoor pool at her reception :) so simple, cheap, and PRETTY!

[grace]

so awesome - love that....

-grace
http://herumbrella.com

[Marielle]

I used to make bouquets of flowers this way as well :)

[sian]

ha! i spent a long time yesterday looking for a tutorial on this and now you've posted it! it's a sign! i'm going to make some for christmas. i love your blog its so inspiring. thank you!

[irene wibowo]

love it.. ;)http://lovesimplegreen.blogspot.com/

[Elise]

I really like this.

I've been thinking of adding a DIY wedding section to my site and you've definitely inspired me!

It's incredible what people can create.

Really beautiful stuff Elsie.

Elise

[Lauren]

this looks amazing, i might try this for behind my bed. it's lacking something amazing!

[The F Girl]

What a fun idea!

[Ngaio May]

This is very cool indeed! Thank you for sharing!

Ngaio May xx

[Paula]

thanks for making this into a tutorial, I loved it when I saw it back in your wedding pictures and it looks easy enough to do, great!! :)

[Deb Baker]

This is the most beautiful creative wedding idea I've seen in a looong time. Thank you for sharing.

[Sarah]

The flower backdrop just look so perfect behind you both for the pictures. I will try this but I'm not too crafty so I doubt it would look as great as yours. I may have to recreate it on a smaller scale for a party table :). xo

http://www.almostdelightful.com

[Alex]

Great Details!

[melissa]

your backdrop has to be my favorite thing about your wedding!!

beautiful!

xo

mamaSTYLE