Christmas Crafting: Making Paper Pom Poms With Napkins

It's almost here! We've spent the last couple of months preparing for or thinking about the festivities and all of a sudden, it is but a week away! As the school term ends and the Christmas prep becomes a frenzy, we find ourselves in need of entertainment for the younger members of the family. Why not take a break and spend a couple of hours as a family creating some handmade decorations that are easy to make and a fun yet sophisticated addition to the Christmas decor?

These paper pom poms were made with napkins instead of commonly used tissue paper. These napkins are part of the Sainsburys Christmas range. Grab an extra packet to make a lovely centrepiece for your table or some festive bunting that fits perfectly with your colour scheme.

Here's how:

You will need your napkins, some good scissors (careful with the little ones here!) some cotton or string, some kebab sticks (if you want to put the pom poms on sticks) and some food bag ties if you have some (otherwise the cotton will do).

Now you need to separate your napkins. If they are 3 ply, you will get 3 sheets from each napkin. This can be a bit fiddly and you might accidentally rip the tissue but stick with it.

Once you have your thin layers of tissues, cut the squares in half, into thirds or into quarters depending on how big you want you pom poms to be.

Layer your strips together. The more layers you have, the more dense your pom poms will be. Try not to use more than 12 layers or it gets a bit too fiddly and the pom pom becomes prone to ripping. 

Now start to fold your layers altogether in a concertina style folding once and then turning the whole lot over and folding again. Press down hard after each layer to maker sure the fold is well pressed in. 

Once you have finished your folding, secure the centre with a food bag tie. Use string here if you don't have ties handy. If you have lots of layers, you might need to secure two ties together. 

Now you need to cut trim the ends. The way you cut will affect the overall outcome of the pom pom, try cutting into a pointed or rounded tip. If you're feeling brave and want a very 'fluffy' pom pom, try cutting a small slit into the end.

At this point, if you want your pom poms to be on sticks, push the kebab stick under the food bag tie and secure the free end around the stick to secure it. 

Lets get pom pomming! Fan out one side like this...

...and start to (carfully now) separate the layers.

Now do the same on the other side. You can hang individual pom poms around and about the place, pop sticks with pom poms on in a vase, decorated jar or jug, attach floral wire and push into a piece of oasis or polystyrene for a centre piece or even a wreath or tie a string of them together to make some pom pom bunting!

I hope you enjoy getting creative with your pom poms and don't forget to come and share with some other Crafty B's! 

Happy Christmas one and all, 

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