Faux Flowers (pom poms) Part I

In the February 2011 edition of Country Living magazine, crafter/writer/stylist Lauren De Bellis is highlighted on page 64 in the Idea Notebook section.

Pom Pom Flowers

Click on the picture and you can see the details on the Country Living website. There they recommend buying pom-pom makers to make the flowers.

My 19 year old daughter, still home from college, saw this in the magazine and wanted to make them. So here in our kitchen I'll show you two ways to make pom-poms without the cost and wait of buying several pom-pom makers.

Today, my way.

When I was little I lived in a place where the marsh would freeze all winter long, and I spent my time skating. I made hundreds of pom-poms using this method throughout my childhood. You can use yarn with variegated color, use one color yarn, or you could use two colors of yarn and end up with a pom-pom that is, for example, blue on one half and yellow on the other. You might have your kids use their school colors or their favorite team colors.

You'll need some pliable cardboard. I find cereal boxes are nice to use.

Cut out two circles of matching circumference. Cut a small hole out of the center of each, so they look like matching donuts.

Holding both cardboard circles together as one, take the end of a length of yarn and begin to wrap through the hole and around the outer edge, and back through the center again. If you have to change yarn, make sure the yarn is long enough to go over the top edge. Cut off the extra length, then start another piece.

Continue doing this until the entire circle is covered with yarn. The thicker the wraps, the fluffier the pom-pom. You can just keep wrapping as many times as you like.

Once the donut shape is covered, keep your finger or thumb in the hole as you begin the next step. This part can be tricky.

Take your scissors and begin to cut the yarn along the outer edge. After the first cut, your scissors can go right into the space between the two circles. This will make it easier to cut the yarn. Holding tightly, cut the yarn around the entire circle. You may have to wedge your scissors in a bit and cut a few pieces of yarn before the scissors will fit in between the two pieces of cardboard.

Still holding the donut shape carefully, take a longer piece of yarn and wrap it between the 2 donuts, pulling it into the edge where you cut the yarn. Pull it tightly and tie it.

At this point you can remove the cardboard donut. You can cut it off or you can try to remove it and re-use it for another pom-pom of the same size.

Now you have a pom-pom! You'll want to trim it up to make it even. You can use the ends from the length of yarn to tie it to your skates, or if you want to try the Country Living craft and make some faux flowers, you're ready!


Tomorrow one of my daughters will show you their innovative version. Stay tuned...