Do It Yourself Project: Tissue Fringe Photo Backdrop

Alright, now for a serious DIY project. This fringe wall is gorgeous, but I’m not going to lie: it’s a lot of work. Fortunately, a lot of it can be done in front of the television so it certainly doesn’t need to be a stressful experience. I recommend starting two months ahead of time if possible so you can go at a leisurely pace, but it could probably be done in about two weeks or so if you’re dedicated to it.

Note that you’ll need fringe scissors, which are basically a standard pair times six on one tool. You can certainly use a standard pair, but being able to make multiple cuts into the tissue paper in one cut will save you a lot of time.

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What You’ll Need:
Fringe Scissors and Standard Scissors
Tissue Paper in Multiple Shapes
Mylar Tissue (Optional)
Double Stick Tape
Plywood or Other Lightweight Wall Material
Ruler
Primer (Optional)

Choose several shades of tissue paper that fit your color palette. Tissue paper is pretty inexpensive to purchase, so spend a couple of extra bucks to get premium tissue, which is thicker (less transparent!) and less prone to tear as you cut. If you’d like to add a little sparkle, purchase some Mylar tissue paper sheets, which can be found in the tissue paper section of major party stores.

Cut long strips of tissue paper measuring 6″ high. Keep each color organized together to save you time later. After your tissue paper strips are cut, use fringe scissors to cut 4″ into the tissue paper at a 90° angle, keeping the top 2″ of the strip for support and as an adhesive area. While cutting, make sure to keep the paper area where you’re cutting as taut and level as possible to avoid tearing the paper or the fringe. If something does tear – whether it be a piece of fringe or just a bit of the strip – it’s not the end of the world, as the layering will obscure most of the imperfection (always good to try to avoid it though!). When you reach the end of the strip, set the strip aside and continue to keep it organized by color.

Purchase a large piece of plywood or consult with a home improvement store associate as to an alternate lightweight material that has enough coverage to serve as a wall. You’ll need to consider how you want to photograph your guests, as a 4′ tall by 6 – 8′ wide piece should be enough for shots that are about chest high, but you’ll want at least 6′ tall for full length (taller if your guests are, well, on the taller end). If you’re worried about transporting larger pieces, ask your home improvement store to cut them into halves or thirds length wise; you want to maintain the height of the wall but just make them thinner, so when you install the wall you can just but the pieces up against one another.

Prep the wall with either a layer of primer or a glued layer of tissue paper so that any visible wood grain or surface color doesn’t come through the tissue paper – this is an optional, but recommended, step. When the primer or glue is dry, measure 3″ in from the bottom of the wall. Apply double stick tape along the top of the uncut portion of the fringe strip and attach the tissue strip straight across the wall at that 3″ marker. If your strip of tissue is longer than the width of your board, trim the extra strip area and set it aside to be applied elsewhere later. If the strip is shorter, take a second strip and butt it up against the first strip to give as seamless of a transition as possible; remove any extra strip area and set aside.

This first strip will overhang the bottom of the wall, with 2″ of uncut area, 1″ of fringe on the wall, and 3″ of excess. Trim the 3″ of excess fringe and discard it. Measure 2″ above the top of the first attached strip and place another strip of the same color there. Repeat this  to the top of the wall, so that each color gets three strips before alternating to another color. When you get to the top, you’re done!

Images by Paper Antler.