Our Monthly Tip: Decorate for a Child’s Memorial with Paper Stars

Tissue paper stars can be a beautiful memorial for a child’s death

Our Tip of the Month

For families grieving the loss of a child, planning a memorial service that acknowledges the depth of their grief but also the vibrancy of their child’s personality may feel impossible. One idea for families who are hosting a memorial service in their home is to decorate the windows of their home with colorful paper stars. This easy-to-make project offers a pop of beautiful colors that can be customized according to the child’s favorites. But the most touching aspect may be the way that when it is dark outside, the light from within the house causes the translucent paper stars to truly glow, symbolizing the way that while the family is surrounded by the darkness of grief, the beautiful memories of their child continue to color their lives and offer comfort. 

How-to Suggestions

Craft company Mud & Bloom offers straightforward instructions for how to create this memorial idea with just tissue paper and a glue stick. First, cut the tissue paper into rectangles and then fold it multiple times until it creates a diamond shape. After you have folded eight diamonds, glue them together in a star formation, which you can then tack onto the window.

Craft instructions and photos for tissue paper stars
Credit: Mud & Bloom

This craft is simple enough that younger children in the bereaved family can help make the paper stars, and quick enough that making stars together could be incorporated directly into the memorial service. You may also invite the guests to take a star home with them when the service is over, symbolizing how the light of the deceased child’s life will continue to spread throughout the community. Colorful, cheerful and comforting, these paper stars offer a unique memorial idea.