Easy Grocery Store Lei

How to Make a Beautiful $20 Grocery Store Rose Lei

There’s something so special about making your own lei, but cost and access to flowers can be a struggle.

The good news: you don’t need exotic blooms or a wholesale flower market to create something beautiful and meaningful.

In this post, I'll walk you through how to make a gorgeous, inexpensive grocery store rose lei using rose petals and simple greenery from your own backyard. Total cost? Around $20 not including a lei needle or raffia (both of those can be purchased at Ace or on Amazon and both are under $20).

Rose petal & pōhinahina lei / kui poepoe method with lei needle & raffia

Why Grocery Store Roses Are Great for Lei Making

Grocery store bouquets are often overlooked for traditional lei making, but they’re actually an easy and inexpensive resource for creative, budget‑friendly designs.

• They’re affordable and easy to find, even last‑minute.

• Roses have sturdy petals that can be layered and stacked for a full, lush look.

If you’re just starting your lei‑making journey or you don’t have access to specialty flowers, grocery store roses are a great way to practice technique while still ending up with something beautiful you can wear or gift.

Gathering Your Supplies

For this $20 lei project, you’ll need:

• 1 (12 roses) bouquet of grocery store roses (you'll want regular roses vs. spray roses for this project).

• Waterfall raffia and a lei needle (or long, sharp needle).

• Scissors for trimming stems and raffia.

• Greenery or leaves from your backyard, think clean, healthy foliage that’s flexible enough to work with, like:

  • Pōhinahina

  • Ferns

  • Any non-toxic ornamental plant that looks good with roses (basically anything that is sturdy, flexible, and won't wilt immediately)

• A clean workspace: a table or counter where you can lay out petals and greenery.

You don’t need anything fancy. The focus here is using what you have on hand and making the most of it.

Prepping Your Roses and Petals

Before you start sewing your lei, you’ll want to spend a little time preparing your flowers.

1. Deconstruct the bouquet: Remove the roses from the bouquet and gently strip away any damaged outer petals. Clip heads off of stems. Or, if you are not using roses right away, clip ends of stems on the diagonal and place in water.

2. Separate the petals: Carefully pull the petals off each rose by gently holding and tugging the head off of the stem. The whole head should pop off of the stem with just a few tugs and twists.

Using Backyard Greenery to Save Money

One of the best parts of this project is how it invites you to look at your backyard differently.

Walk around your yard and look for:

• Clean, healthy leaves with interesting shapes.

• Soft, flexible greenery that won’t snap when bent.

• Anything will work as long as it is flexible and does not wilt easily.

Give everything a quick rinse to remove dust or bugs and let the greenery dry before you use it. Combining these backyard elements with store‑bought roses keeps costs low while honoring the spirit of creating with what the land offers.

Sewing Your Inexpensive Rose Lei

Once your petals and greenery are prepped, it’s time to bring the lei together.

1. Measure your raffia: If you are making a regular sized lei, aim for about 32 inches and leave several inches on the top and bottom. Knot one end securely.

2. Create a pattern: Decide on a simple pattern you’ll repeat, such as:

   • Blocks of rose petals sewn together, followed by a block of greenery

   • Keeping a pattern makes the lei look intentional and helps you stay in rhythm.

3. Start sewing: Roll your rose petal so it looks like a cigarette (lol) and use your lei needle to pierce the end of each roll. Using the kui poepoe method (also known as star or box method) work your way down the needle and slide it down the raffia in tightly packed blocks. Add greenery using the same method.

4. Build the lei gradually: Continue the pattern, rotating rolled petals and greenery as you go, until the lei looks full and balanced. Adjust as needed...whatever looks best to you.

5. Close the lei: When you reach the length you want, tie the two ends of the string together securely. Add a raffia or ti bow if desired.

Keeping Your Lei Fresh

Because you’re working with grocery store roses and backyard foliage, a few quick steps can help your lei look its best for longer:

• Wrap finished lei with either paper towels or a tea towel and store in a hydration chamber like a large sized ziplock bag. Place in fridge in produce drawer.

• You do not need to mist lei.

• Lei will last for several days in fridge.

Why This $20 Lei Matters

Beyond saving money, this style of lei making is about accessibility and creativity:

• It shows that Hawaiian lei tradition can be practiced with simple, everyday materials.

• It gives beginners a low‑pressure way to learn techniques and develop their own style.

• It encourages you to see beauty and potential in both store‑bought flowers and the plants that surround you.

If you want to see this process step‑by‑step in action, you can watch the full tutorial on my YouTube channel @leillupea, where I walk through exactly how I turned about $20 worth of grocery store roses and backyard greenery into a beautiful lei that anyone can make at home.

Easy Grocery Store Lei Tutorial