Crepe Paper Flowers

Is it Spring yet? After what felt like a very long winter (yes, I know I have no right to complain living in the Bay Area), it's almost Spring! Which to me means flowers! Lots and lots of flowers.
So let me share with you a Martha Stewart original, with a bit of a twist for young ones -Crepe Paper Flowers made easy...


materials:
paper streamers
scissors
pipe cleaners

get to work:
1. Start by pulling out a long strand of the streamer and cutting it off.

2. Fold it in half a few times until it's about an inch long.

3. Cut from the folded edge a single petal. (You can use my example as an outline or draw the shape on the paper to make it easier for kids to follow).

4. Open the petals up and slide them onto the pipe cleaner one at a time.

5. Gently tug on the paper, stretching it out and making each petal stick up and curl a bit.


alternative:
Once you've placed the petals on the pipe cleaner, make a small loop on the pipe cleaner end on the underside of the flower and twist the top part of the pipe cleaner to secure the petals. Then you can hang them on a string, or make your own mobile.

Here's the mobile we made and hung in Max's room, using a wire photo mobile to hold the flowers.