How to Make Lifelike Paper Petals

Learn this simple method for making 3D paper craft petals, with Eileen Handmade.

Paper flowers capture the beauty of nature and survive a lot longer than your average bouquet.

Eileen Ng (@eileen_handmade), also known as Eileen Handmade, is a craft artist and maker who has been creating floral installations for years. In this tip, she shares a simple technique to make paper petals with volume.

1. Cut your paper

With a pair of scissors, cut a strip of paper from which you will be able to cut a collection of petals from. Cutting them all from the same strip will make it easier to keep them uniform when you assemble them into a flower.

2. Shape your petal

Cut off a piece of paper that is slightly longer than the petal size you want to achieve. Cut the piece into an oval or diamond shape. Don't cut all the way around as you will want to leave a tail at the end that will allow you to attach the petal to the main flower.

3. Add life to your flower

Add a sense of volume to your petal by wrapping the edges around a pen or a similar thin cylindrical object. This will make your petals seem more lifelike and vivacious.

If you liked this tutorial, you can check out Eileen Handmade’s online course Paper Flower Craft Techniques where you will learn how to use paper to create a wide variety of everlasting blooms and foliage.

You may also like:

- Design and Creation of Floral Compositions, a course by ORA The Floral Agency
- Advanced Papercraft Techniques: Designing with Paper, a course by Diana Beltran Herrera
- Creating an Illustrated Scrapbook, a course by Nuria Mel.