As you walk around your garden, keep a lookout for flowers you would like to re-create in paper. You’ll want to begin simply, but keep practicing and you will be able to tackle anything. See the article on Jude Miller for inspiration!
When you spot a flower you like, try this:
- Take a photo to capture the colors of the living flower and foliage. Take a second photo, of just the center of the flower.
- Pick the flower, including a length of stem and some leaves.
- Put the leaves between a sheet or two of newspaper and weigh them down with something heavy.
- Once they have flattened, you can trace them to make a pattern. If you like to add veins to your leaves, dry the leaf completely so you can keep it for reference.
- Take the flower apart carefully. You want a good example of each type of petal, of the stamens, and of the calyx.
- Flatten them in the same way you did the leaves.
- Trace your patterns for the petals and calyx. Dry the petals thoroughly for future reference.
- Make several copies of the petal patterns, since you will experiment with them.
Now comes the most creative part. Experiment with the petal patterns. As you stretch the crepe paper to make the petals look natural, you will find that the shape of the original pattern should be changed. Snip away at one of your pattern copies until it works.
You’ll need to decide how to replicate the center of the flower. If you look through The Art of Making Paper Flowers, you will see several different ways to make centers and stamens. Try to use, combine or modify one of them to make your own center.
Go ahead and experiment. Even if your first efforts don’t look like the original flower, they will be pretty!
Bob and Jane Morris
http://www.ourpaperflowers.com
