Pom-Pom-ed!

A while ago I posted some photos of our Crane humidifier, and got quite a few inquiries about the "pom-poms" hanging above the changing table. I'm in the "pom-pom" phase again at the moment (conjuring up some multi-colored poms for Freida's art party on Sunday), and wanted to share the simplicity of this whimsical craft.

Pom-Pom DIY (via Martha Stewart Wedding):

1. Stack eight 20-by-30-inch sheets of tissue. Make 1 1/2-inchwide accordion folds, creasing with each fold.

2. Fold an 18-inch piece of floral wire in half, and slip over center of folded tissue; twist. With scissors, trim ends of tissue into rounded or pointy shapes.

3. Separate layers, pulling away from center one at a time.

4. Tie a length of monofilament to floral wire for hanging.

In addition to these making for lovely decor, there are ways to get the kids involved in the process! I've done this in the Pre-K classroom and the kids find the whole thing (especially the outcome!) really incredible. I used white tissue paper, and gave the kids spray bottles filled with liquid tempera paints and water. When they sprayed it onto the tissue paper the color "spread" and it made a pretty tie-dye effect. After the sheets have dried you can follow the steps above, and watch the childrens expressions! :)

I did another version of this with Freida (on a much smaller scale) we used coffee filters (white would have been better), and Do-A-Dots to create a similar look. She had fun stampin' away, and after the filters dried she was dumbstruck when I showed her how to "open" up the pom. I left it hanging from her door-knob for a while, then stuck it as a ceiling pendant in her little sukkah.

If you like the look but are more keen on skipping the process, you can get yourself some perfectly-ready-to-assemble, beautiful, whimsical pom-poms through the original "Pom-Pom provider": Kirsten Hadley of PomLove over at Etsy. The shop features the most fantastic tissue pom options, and Kirsten is an absolute pleasure to deal with! She's dubbed the shop with the tagline, "happy, floating. paper", and it delivers! Here's a little glimpse into what she offers:

Happy Pom-lovin'!!