The Blue Barn: Pretty Peonies

We have had a couple of rainy days here in New England. Normally I'd be disappointed but the weather has been so hot and dry the grass really needed it. The only disappointment was that the Peonies I had been waiting for fully bloomed in the pouring rain and got bashed to pieces; oh well it is a good excuse to pick them and bring them inside. I wish they flowered for longer, they really are spectacular in full bloom.

My little guy has one more week of preschool so we used his day home to create some beautiful handmade Peonies for his teachers this coming Friday to say thank you.

You will need:

Yarn

Tissue paper

Hole punch

Piece of card

Scissors

Glue

Step 1

Cut a circle out of card (we used the inside of a cracker box) and punch holes in it. The holes can follow a pattern or just be random it doesn't really matter which. Depending on the age of your child let them cut the circle and make the holes. D made maybe 3 holes and then decided he would rather I did it.

Step 2

Cut a length of yarn, it is better too long than too short but you need it long enough to thread around the holes. Thread through the first two holes and tie in the back.

Now you can hand it to your child to start threading. If the end of the yarn becomes frayed you may want to wrap a little tape around it - this also makes it easier for younger children to push back and forth through the holes.

Once they have connected all the holes with the thread, tie the loose end off again on the back.

Step 3

To create the petals, take a sheet of tissue paper and fold back and forth on itself.

Place glue along one edge and fold in half to create a fan shape.

Step 4

Cut petal shapes at the end that is not the fold.

Now carefully pull open the shape, keep a hold of the center and glue the two outside edges you have together. You should end up with a circular flower shape.