Free Template to Build Your Own Paper Model of Big Ben

Practice your paper craft skills and turn the famous London monument from 2D cutouts to a beautifully detailed 3D model!

There are many reasons paper is an exciting medium to work with. Being recyclable and readily available in most countries is a great starting point, but there are also the diverse traditions and endless possibilities it offers.

Through paper crafting, you can transform a simple 2D sheet into a beautifully tactile 3D object. From bouquets of flowers to paper skylines, your artwork can be at once sculptural and impactful, while also being delicate and lightweight.

Freelance paper engineer Sarah Louise Matthews (@sarahlouisematthews) studied textile surface design at university, but ended up loving the paper practice maquettes so much, paper became her main medium to work with!

Following her studies she opened an Etsy shop and Instagram, from which commissions began to appear. Now, Sarah has made window designs for Selfridges and Pandora, and worked with other brands such as Ted Baker. She’s also published a book, Paper Craft Home. Here, Sarah shares two amazingly in-depth resources to help you create a paper Big Ben.

This famous feature of the London skyline is also known by its official name, Elizabeth Tower—Big Ben is the name of the largest bell inside. Currently under the most intense restoration in its history, the tower was originally completed in 1859 in a Neo-Gothic style, and as such is covered with minute architectural details. How can we render such a complex object with paper? Before we find out, let’s discover a little more about this ancient art…

The ‘then and now’ of paper craft

There are many historic traditions associated with paper craft. For example, you may be familiar with origami, a Japanese paper folding discipline, or papel picado, a Mexican folk craft of cutting intricate tissue paper designs.

Paper can also be used in composite artforms and materials, such as papier-mâché (which stretches back to Han Dynasty China and Ancient Egypt) and decoupage (which may have originated in Siberia). All around the world, paper has been used to make everything from helmets to caskets to folding screens.

With the invention of such tools as laser-cutters and plotters, paper craft can be done with increasing speed and precision. This means that artwork can become more and more elaborate, hence its popularity in the art world even today. Sarah stresses that once you know the basic techniques, your possibilities with paper craft will be endless. Event decoration, set design, packaging design, advertising and visual merchandising: all of these and more are interested in beautiful paper creations.

What’s in this download?

So, if you’re ready to have a go at some complex yet therapeutic paper craft yourself, let’s explore what’s included in the link below.

Sarah has written a step-by-step guide to bringing Big Ben to life through paper. Alongside the instructions is a template showing you every piece of the puzzle, from large panels to build the structure, to tiny cut-out diamonds to decorate the façade.

She notes that, “some of the details are quite small and fiddly but don’t be put off—you can add as few or many of these paper details as you would like! So don’t feel pressured to include them all, you can make this design your own with a simplified version, by leaving some of the details off or simplifying some of the decorative shapes.”

Even understanding the basic building blocks of the design is useful in your own practice. The basic design for this Big Ben model is a tower formed from a cuboid, a cube, and an elongated pyramid on top. Learning to work with these shapes, you can go on to create different buildings: even an entire skyline if you have the dedication!

Before you click download and get started, here are the materials you’ll need…

Materials

- Your selection of papers (Sarah uses a range of blues, noting the specific paper names and thicknesses on the templates document if you are interested)
- Printed Templates
- Scalpel
- Cutting Mat
- Metal Ruler
- Scissors
- Tacky Glue

Download the Free Big Ben Paper Model Template

After clicking on the button below, you will find a file in .zip format in the Downloads folder on your computer called Free Big Ben Paper Model Template by Sarah Louise Matthews. After unzipping the file, you’ll find more information about Sarah and her course, and the two documents you’ll need: the paper templates, and detailed instructions.

If you are interested in learning more about this subject, you can sign up for Sarah's course, Paper Sculpture for Set Design. In it, you'll learn paper crafting techniques to create 3D illustrations and structures for a product photography set.

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