DIY Paper Hydrangea Flower Bouquet

I’ve always had a love for flowers but between my black thumb & my busy schedule, it’s literally impossible for me to keep any plant alive at home. This is why I love making paper flowers so much! With this simple tutorial, you can create hydrangeas that are sure to stand the test of time with zero maintenance.

What you’ll need:

• 5-7 sheets of 12x12 Solid Color Cardstock Warehouse Cardstock Papers
• 5 solid color for petals & 2 sheets of your favorite shade of green for leaves. I used Pure White 80lb and Spearmint 100lb.
• A Styrofoam/Polystyrene/Durafoam sphere 6”
• A thin Curling Tool (ie. glue sticks, knitting needles, wooden dowels, pencil)
• A Hot Glue Gun
• A green wooden plant stake
• An Electronic Cutter or Clover shaped paper punch & scissors

Optional:

• A straight edge ruler or Embossing Tool
• Inks or Watercolor paints for shading the leaves

Step 1: Cutting

• The first step is to create the petals. If using an electronic cutter, use a 4 leaf clover shape for the petals. Cut your clovers to be 1.5” each. You’ll need to cut approximately 5 sheets of 12x12 paper which should yield about 250-300 petals. If using a clover paper punch, simply punch out your petals from the cardstock. 
• To cut the leaves, you can use any generic leaf shape provided in your electronic cutter software or draw your own. You’ll need to cut 4-5 leaves, each ranging from 4”-7” long. If cutting by hand, fold your cardstock in half & cut freeform leaves, using the fold as your centerline. 
• Take Styrofoam sphere & cut in half.

Step 2: Curling

To create depth & variation in the petals, you’ll need to curl each clover using a thin “tool” - about 1/8” is best (you can even use the plant stake!). Curl the 4 outer edges of the petal towards the center. Curl some straight inward & others at an angle to create natural variations in the petals.

Step 3: Gluing

• Start by creating your “stem”. Push the pointed side of your green plant stake into the flat side of the halved Styrofoam ball at an angle. Pull the stake back out of the ball & add hot glue to the hole. Quickly push the stake back in to secure in the Styrofoam ball.
• Next glue clover shaped petals to the sphere at the center of each petal. Cover the entire domed part first. Try to fit each petal into each other like a puzzle in order to cover the Styrofoam ball completely.
• Once the domed side of the Styrofoam is covered in petals, glue your leaves to the flat side. Glue only the bottom portion of the leaf close to the stem. Then cover the rest of the exposed Styrofoam with more clover petals.

Step 4: Embossing (optional)

To give your hydrangea a more realistic look you’ll want to emboss & shade your leaves. To do this use your embossing tool or the flat edge of a ruler to create free-form “vein” creases in your leaf. Then add depth by rubbing inks or light watercolors along the outer edge & into the creases of your leaves.

Now that you’ve completed your Paper Hydrangea, place in any vase or container to display & make sure you forget to water it!

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Happy Paper Crafting!

-Daphny (D Lauren B)