Coffee Filter Sunflower Craft: How to Make for Frugal Fun with Kids

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This coffee filter sunflower craft is a fun and budget-friendly way to brighten your day.

With just a few simple supplies, your children can make paper sunflowers that are delightful for decorating your home, classroom, or even giving to friends and family. Plus, it’s a frugal project that can be done any time of year, especially summer and fall.

I'm sharing my tips and creative ideas for doing this project for both educational purposes and just because. Learn more and get ready for some beautiful DIY sunflowers!

Related: This coffee filter ladybug craft is an another awesome activity to try!

Example of coffee filter sunflower craft on green popsicle stick with sunflower seeds in center.

Delightful DIY Sunflowers for Kids to Make

I think sunflowers are so pretty and cheerful! I love when I'm out and about with my boys and we see sunflowers. These beauties of nature always put a smile on my face.

When my older boys were little, we had a few surprise sunflowers in our yard. Oh my stars! It was such a treat.

One of our homeschool fun activities is to feed and watch the birds in our backyard. Our bird seed mix contains sunflower seeds. Well, the conditions must have been just right because we had three sunflower plants sprout and thrive in our yard. And this is really a surprise because I have a brown thumb!

The boys were just so excited so I knew a sunflower theme would be a big hit. We read books about sunflowers, drew pictures of our growing plants, and worked on this coffee filter sunflower craft.

Suggested Supplies for This Sunflower Craft

As with any crafts that I share here, I highly encourage you to use materials that you have in your home, classroom, or library. These activities are simple enough and can be tweaked with a bit of creativity and outside the box thinking.

For example, if you don't have green popsicle sticks, no worries! Use the wood craft sticks that you have (or green cardstock, cardboard, or other supply).

If you'd like to follow this tutorial step-by-step, you'll need:

Coffee Filter
Yellow and Brown Washable Markers
Green Jumbo Popsicle Stick
Sunflower Seeds
Glue
Spray Bottle
Water

Coffee filters, sunflower seeds, glue stick, green wood craft stick, and yellow and brown markers.

How to Make This Coffee Filter Sunflower Craft

Before you begin your crafting adventures with kids, collect and organize your materials. This simple step will make it less stressful and more enjoyable for all.

Fold the Coffee Filters.

Color the middle of the coffee filter brown and color the outside yellow.

Coffee filter colored yellow and brown with markers.

Spray water on colored coffee filter.

Spray the coffee filter with water. This step is best to do outside or on cardboard. Allow time to dry.

Child using blue bottle to spray water on coffee filter colored yellow and brown.

Glue the popsicle stick to the back of the coffee filter.

I recommend placing the glue (especially if using glue stick) on the wood craft stick. The coffee filter can easily tear.

Green popsicle stick glued to back of yellow coffee filter.

Optional: Add sunflower seeds.

Glue a few sunflower seeds to the middle of the coffee filter.

Coffee filter sunflower craft with six sunflower seeds glued to center.

Tip: Glue the sunflower to a piece of construction paper for stability. The seeds may weigh the sunflower down.

Frequently Asked Questions About This Craft

What age group is this craft okay to use with?

This craft is perfect for kids of all ages! Younger children may need a bit of help. And if you're working with toddlers (or children who still like to put small items in their mouths), you may want to omit the sunflower seeds. Older kids can work on the craft on their own - and add extra details.

Oh no! I don't have coffee filters? Can we use other materials?

While coffee filters work well because they absorb colors well, you can also try using paper towels or tissue paper as a substitute, if needed. Keep in mind that the final product might look slightly different!

What other supplies can we use to decorate the coffee filters?

If you don't have washable markers (or just want to try something different), you can also use crayons, watercolor paints, or even watercolor pencils to add depth and variation in color. Adding a green pipe cleaner for the stem can also be fun in place of the wood craft stick.

Example of coffee filter sunflower craft with sunflower seeds and 2 fake sunflowers.

Creative Ways to Use Your Sunflower Crafts

Once your coffee filter sunflower crafts are dry, it's time to display all that creativity and work. Consider where you'll be placing your crafts. A few ideas are:

Use as seasonal decor by placing in a small vase, mug, or basket
Hang on a window and use as an opaque suncatcher
Gently use as a bookmark
Make several sunflowers and attach to ribbon or string for a garland

Also, you can make multiple sunflowers and put together a bouquet to give as a gift.

Enjoy a lesson about the life cycle of a sunflower. Read books about how these flowers grow and with sunflower-themes.

A Sunflower's Life Cycle (Explore Life Cycles)The Sunflowers: Vincent van Gogh's Search for Beauty Sunflower House From Seed to Sunflower (Start to Finish, Second Series)

More Frugal Coffee Filter Crafts

Like this coffee filter sunflower craft? Fantastic - because I have other coffee filter crafts for you to try (with more to come!), like:

⭐ How will you use this easy coffee filter sunflower craft with your students? Please share your ideas and let me know if you have any questions about the steps in this tutorial or ideas that I shared!