Frantic Stamper Happenings: Technique Thursday: Easy 3-D Flowers

by Anne Harada

Easy 3-D Flowers

Hi Everyone!

You can make fantastic 3-D botanicals with basic punches and tools whenever you need a flower for any project! And the best news is, most punches can be used to make multiple kinds of flowers. Hopefully after reading this post, you'll learn to make some new flowers you haven't made before with the punches you have! Punches are really a great investment when you can use them over and over, use up scraps, AND use most of them for many different types of flowers!

There are a few tools that are very handy when making 3-D flowers. The tools aren't required; they'll just make the activity easier and faster! A stylus with a large and small ball, tweezers, and small pointy-tipped scissors will be your best friends for just about any flower you want to make. In addition, you will find it helpful to have a mouse pad (or similar foam type mat) on hand when shaping flowers. Frantic Stamper carries a cool "kit" that includes a shaping tool specifically for making paper flowers, a stylus with several sized balls, a paper piercer and a craft knife with extra blades all in one handy-dandy hinged case: Floral Craft Punch Tool Kit-- I highly recommend it!! (I’ve used it for the flowers in my samples below.) The punches used in these samples are also all available at Frantic Stamper as well. Fran carries a huge variety and all the name brands!

Black Eyed Susan

Punch a scalloped circle (Marvy "Extra Jumbo" used here) from yellow cardstock. Score a line straight across the diameter in-between two opposite scallops. Cut down between each scallop towards the center to form "petals" -- about 1/4" from the center all the way around. Sponge brown ink on the edges on both the front and back of the scalloped circle; fold in half then sponge the folded edge.

Use a stylus tool with a large ball and apply pressure along the fold so the center flattens and the ends curve upwards.

Free-hand cut a dome shape from dark brown cardstock and glue behind the fold. Draw in some scratch lines as shown to complete the flower.

Sun Flower

Punch 3 daisies (Punch Bunch "Medium Daisy" used here) from bright yellow cardstock and a 3/4" circle from dark brown cardstock.

Use a ruler as a straight edge to create a score line down the middle of each petal of the daisies. I use a paper piercer, very lightly, to get a thin score line.

Pinch the petals so they fold slightly on the scores.

Stack and glue the daisies and arrange them so the petals are staggered, making a complete circle. Set aside.

Add black dots with a fine marker to the brown punched circle. Add some white highlights with a white pen (Signo Uni-ball used here).

Turn the brown circle upside down. Use a stylus tool with a large ball and stir the so the brown circle cups. Snip foam tape so it fits inside the "cup".

Turn over and adhere to the yellow flower.

Bachelors Button / Cornflower

Punch 6 Cosmo shaped flowers (Martha Stewart "Cosmo" punch used here) from periwinkle blue cardstock. Snip down the center of each petal of all 6 Cosmo flowers. On two of the Cosmos flowers, trim the petals down about 1/4".

Use a stylus tool with a small ball and stir the center of 3 of the Cosmo flowers. Two of these you'll want to stir a little deeper so the petals cup up further.

Use a stylus tool with a small ball and stir the center of the trimmed Cosmo flowers. Pinch at the base so the petals are gathered tightly, almost closed.

Start with the one, "flat" Cosmo flower that has not been stirred -- this will be the base of the flower.

Stack and glue the next three stirred Cosmos on top of the flat one. Finish the stacking with the two that were trimmed and tightly gathered.

Begonia

To make this flower, I followed the steps on p. 36 of Paper Bouquet (by Susan Tierney Cockburn). The handbook is far more detailed and extremely helpful, not to mention inspiring and gorgeous to look at! A great reference book if you're waning to jump in to crafting your own paper flowers!!

Punch the "Mega Begonia Petals" by Punch Bunch 5 times -- you will end up with 25 petals. (You will not need all of the resulting petals.) Shape five of the large petals and chalk the tips of the petals with a darker color of chalk to add depth and tone to the petals. Repeat with eight of the medium-sized petals and two of the small petals. Punch one 5-pointed small flower to use as your base to adhere the petals to.

Glue a medium sized petal to each point of the small flower. Continue adding the petals using smaller and smaller sizes as you layer them over the base petals.

Finish with two of the smallest petals curled tightly in the center. Allow the glue to dry for about 10 minutes before handling.