How to Make Paper Flowers Look Real for Scrapbooking
Paper flowers make whimsical, colorful and beautiful embellishments for scrapbooking layouts. Whether the page features photos of a baby's milestones, a wedding shower, a Hawaiian holiday or a spring tea party, you can design your own floral embellishments to customize the colors, sizes and designs. Give the faux flowers a realistic look by shading and texturizing the paper or cardstock. Use the dimensional accents on borders or photo mats and apply the same techniques to create flowers for handmade greeting cards, gift tags and bookmarks.
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Things You'll Need
- Cardstock or patterned paper
- Pencil
- Flower stencil
- Scissors or craft knife
- Stamping ink pads
- Adhesive dots
- Glue
- Paintbrush
- Seed beads
Instructions
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1
Trace a flower shape onto the back of a piece of cardstock or patterned paper using a pencil and flower stencil. Cut the flower out with sharp scissors or a craft knife. Repeat the process to make two additional flowers out of coordinating shades of cardstock or paper.
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2
Sprinkle the paper flowers with water to make the cardstock more flexible. Carefully crumple the shapes to create texture and smooth them back out again. Allow the paper to dry.
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3
Add definition to the flowers by running a stamping ink pad along the edge of each petal. Choose a color that's slightly darker than the cardstock or patterned paper.
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4
Place the three flowers on top of one another, turning them slightly so the flower petals are only slightly overlapping and not stacked directly on top of one another. Use adhesive dots to stick the flowers together. Give the petals added dimension by using your fingernail to lift and curl the edges up for a "shabby" look.
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Create the flower center by applying a thin layer of glue in the center of the top flower with a paintbrush. While the glue is wet, sprinkle seed beads that contrast with the flower color onto the adhesive. Use your fingertip to press the beads down lightly and let the glue dry.
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6
Affix the paper flower accents to the background page of the scrapbooking layout, a photo mat, border or title lettering with adhesive dots.
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Tips & Warnings
Preserve the look of the dimensional paper flowers in your scrapbook by storing the album vertically on a bookshelf. Keeping scrapbooks upright instead of stacked horizontally will also prevent dimensional accents like beads from pressing onto and making dents in the photos or memorabilia on the facing page.
Save time by buying pre-made paper flowers at a scrapbooking, rubber stamping or craft store. Customize the look of the blooms by layering different sizes and colors or by enhancing the color with craft chalk or stamping ink. Attach the flowers to the scrapbook layout with mini brads---hold the flower accent in the desired spot on the cardstock and poke a needle through the hole in the center of the flower. Push the brad's prongs through the hole in the flower and the hole in the cardstock, and then open and flatten the prongs in back of the page.
