Pompoms

Two weekends ago, I hosted the kick off to a bachelorette weekend for my amazing friend Amy. It was a sleepover for the bridesmaids to start our weekend of festivities off just right. Feeling adventurous, and somewhat brave, I decided to try my hand at some Martha Stewart tissue paper pompoms. 

Now, my love for Martha Stewart and her vast empire is a little deeper and more intense than I have time to get into right now. Let's just say, ours is a story that would take hours to tell. One day, I'll write more thoroughly of my fascination. For now, just know that I hold her in high regard. 

Not the jail part so much. But all the rest. Yes, all the rest. 

Anyhoo, as I was about to get started I realized I was feeling somewhat inadequate, as is normal when attempting a Martha project. So, I did what any person would. I brought in the big guns. The liquid courage if you will. Armed with a glass of white wine, I felt as though I could take on the world. Er... Martha. Which is really, almost the same thing. 

In all reality though, these little babies were super easy to pull together. I just followed the instructions from her website, and as easy as 1,2,3... I was finished. Here are the official instructions. But, in addition to sharing her official instructions, I thought I would also illustrate what it looks like when a real person attempts these suckers. 

Because come on. Martha always makes it look easier than it really is.

Carli's Pompomapalooza 

(Read: A real person, who is not an amazing alien from Planet Perfect tries their hand at home-made, tissue paper pompoms) ...

First, you fold the tissue paper sheets (8 to be exact) into roughly 1.5 inch folds. 

Then, you just wrap a bit of thin wire around the folded tissue paper, twist a couple times, and snip with some wire cutters. 

The finished wire-tying should look something like this. Or maybe it shouldn't. Either way, that's what it looked like for me :)

Next, cut the ends of the tissue paper folds into your desired shape. I opted for rounded edges. But you can cut the ends into a point too. That would result in a more feathered looking pompom. Also a fun option. 

Then, sheet by sheet, just start fluffing. Pull each sheet out, gently as to not rip the tissue paper. Eventually, you'll be left with a pompom. Yay!

The final result? Some beautiful tissue paper pompoms that were hardly rocket science to figure out. I hung mine with clear, acrylic thread. The pompoms are super light, so they're not difficult to hang, and I think they look great staggered from the ceiling.

Turns out real humans can complete this Martha project rather easily. 

O Martha. Once again. Ya nailed it.

Add these pompoms to the ever-growing list of why I'm so fond of that woman and everything she stands for.

Except the jail part. Not that part. Just all the rest.