Dogwood Paper Flowers from Thuss and Farrell

A How-To by
F EATU R ED BY SW E E T PAU L M AGA Z I N E
DOTTED DOGWOOD
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Paper to Petal How-To
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HOW-TO
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Paper to Petal How-To
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HOW-TO
MATERIALS :
BUILD 1. Cut a pile of 3-4" lengths of
in the tape while spinning the stem,
thumbs and index fingers away from one
• Single-ply crepe paper in pink and floral tape. Roll the chocolate piece of
(not moving the tape around the stem)
another, gently pulling from the center
orchid. www.blumchen.com
crepe paper tightly with the fringed
Wrap the tape around the base of the
out, coaxing the folds of the paper
• Florist/Italian crepe paper in chocolate side up to create a center. Secure the
flower a few times. Continue wrapping
apart. Leave a border to maintain the
and gold. www.papermart.com
base tightly with a piece of floral tape
down onto the wire at a slight diagonal,
petal’s structure. The number of strokes
• Floral tape stem wrap in brown. www.
(see Using Floral Tape skill). 2. Gently
making sure to continually and gently
depends on the weight of the crepe and
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brush the top of the fringe with a thin
pull the tape as you progress. Tape
how cupped you want the shape to be.
• Craft paint by Martha Stewart in smear of pale blue paint and set aside
beyond the center, petal, or leaf and
Cupping is one of the most important
shades of purple, pink, and pale blue.
to dry. 3. Stack the 4 Petals #215, and
down onto the stem to secure. Helpful
skills when working with crepe, so
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gently flute the center top of the petal
Hints: With some practice, floral tape
practice is recommended before using
• Striping brush by Martha Stewart. with your finger by gently stretching the
is simple to use. Firmly but gently
this technique on an assembled flower.
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crepe pieces. Scrunch Pleat (see Scrunch
stretching the tape as you wrap is crucial
• Fringing scissors by Martha Stewart. Pleat skill below) the base of each petal,
to release the adhesive that makes it
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and attach one or two at a time with
stick to itself. With one hand, hold and
• Hot glue gun
floral tape, evenly around the center.
slowly twist the stem while applying
• Scissors
Crease the floral tape close to the base
pressure to the tape. The opposite hand
• Found branches
of the petals with your fingernail to help
stretches the tape as you work. Overlap
keep the tape from unraveling. 4. Trim
the tape as you wrap, adding pressure
the base off with sharp scissors leaving
with your fingers to prevent unraveling.
a “stem" of about ¼-3/8". Adjust the
Make a few fingernail scores at the end
petals as desired. You can leave some
of each length of tape to help it adhere.
ADD COLOR Cut an 8" wide fold of the
petals styled flat, curled in, and you can
When building a flower, keep a small pile
single-ply crepe in orchid. Dilute a shade
also gently Cup them (see Cupping skill
of precut 3"–4" (7.5cm–10cm) strips of
of purple craft paint with a small amount
below) for variety.
tape at the ready to use for attaching
TEMPLATE #215
of water in a wide mouthed container.
each petal.
Test a small strip first and let dry before
PROJECT NOTE Using a hot glue gun,
painting the entire sheet. Lay the crepe
place a drop of glue on the base of the
Scrunch Pleat: Begin Scrunch Pleat by
paper on a flat trash bag to protect your
flower and quickly hold it to a desired
holding one side of the base of a petal
work surface and using the tips of the
point on the branch, hold in place until
or leaf between your thumb and index
striping brush dipped in paint, create a
the glue sets. We also made small buds
finger, and the opposite side of the
dot pattern. Set aside to dry.
and smaller flowers by hand-cutting
base between your other thumb and
small petal shapes and following the
index finger. Scrunch the sides toward
CUT Crepe paper grain (the vertical
same build steps. Additionally we
each other, creating multiple gathers.
ridges in the paper) runs with height; all
crafted branches with pink and gold
Press a bit to crease. This technique
dimensions are given as H × W. Cut a 1
crepe papers.
adds dimension, creates a thinner base,
¾" x 4" piece of chocolate florist crepe
and a slightly rounded petal. You can
paper. Fold in half width wise, and using
SKILLS Using Floral Tape: Holding
pre-scrunch your petals to condition the
fringing scissors, fringe the folded edge
a stem with one hand, place a petal,
paper, and then Scrunch Pleat again as
halfway down. Petal #215: Cut 4 from
leaf, or shape at the back of the stem,
you attach each one to a stem.
painted orchid crepe paper by cutting
holding both between your thumb
a strip of the dotted crepe paper a bit
and index finger. Place the tape on the
Cupping: To Cup, lightly grasp the
taller than the height of the template
front of the stem and begin wrapping
center of a petal or leaf at its widest
and accordion fold it 4 times to fit the
it around the stem, continuing to hold
point between the thumbs and index
shape. Leave them stacked together.
the petal in place and catching the base
fingers of both hands. Gently slide your
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Paper to Petal How-To
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TEMPLATES
215
FOR PERSONAL USE ONLY. NOT FOR COMMERICAL USE. / © Copyright THUSSFARRELL, LLC. All rights reserved.
Paper to Petal How-To
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