{crafts} Giant Plantable Seed Paper Flowers

Who says decor needs to be dainty? Go all out and make a statement this summer with giant seed paper booms. You may even want to pick a sunny day to craft these outdoors and soak up some rays, especially if you’re planning on making several.

Add these seed paper florals to large Happy Birthday signs, put them up on your walls as a backdrop to take family photos, or hang them up just for the fun of it. Group events may be canceled for now, but DIY craft time and celebrations aren’t.

We got the inspiration for this craft from Sweet Red Poppy but created ours with eco-friendly paper for a plantable and zero-waste version. When planted, seed paper grows into wildflowers that may bring bees and butterflies into your backyard. That means less decor thrown out and more to look at in your garden later.

Here’s what you’ll need to make one flower:

• 9 sheets of 11” x 17” Seed Paper
• Scissors
• Glue
• A pencil
• Cardboard

Tip: Use cardboard from around the house to make this craft completely eco-friendly. Cereal and tissue boxes are great for this.

Note: Use our free printable petal and base templates for tracing.

Step 1: Cut a circle out of the cardboard that is 16 cm in diameter.

Step 2: Trace out the petal shapes onto seed paper. Cut out 8 large petals, 8 medium petals, and 8 small petals.

Note: In a single sheet of 11” x 17” seed paper, you can make a set of 2 large petals, 2 medium and a small, or 4 small.

Step 3: Roll the tops of the flowers, so they curl inwards. This will help to give some extra dimension to your flowers.

Step 4: Make a small (approximately 4.5 cm) cut in the bottom of all of the large and medium petals and 4 of the small petals.

Step 5: On the petals from step 3, put a dot of glue on one side of the cut and overlap the two sides of the bottom of the petal to create the full petal shape. The more you overlap, the more the petal will stand up. My recommendation is to make the large petals stand up the least, and the small petals stand up the most. This will make your flower more full.

Step 6: Glue the petals to the base, working from the outside going in. Start with the large petals, gluing 4 as the first layer and then placing the other 4 over them, filling in the gaps. Continue to do the same with the medium petals. Be sure to leave a space for the centre of the flower to fit.

Step 7: Create the middle bud of the flower by gluing the bases of 4 small petals together. Fold each petal over to make a crease at the top of the base of each petal. Take two petals that are across from each other and curl them together to create the center of the bud. Glue them in place. Take the other two petals and place them around the cone you just made. Glue them in place, leaving a small amount of space between the two layers.

Step 8: Put a dot of glue on the top of the stem of the 4 small petals from step 5 and glue them to the bottom of the bud.

Step 10: Place the bud in the center of your flower and glue down.

Note: To make a smaller flower, simply leave out the large petals.

Tip: Make several of these beautiful flowers and use to create a splash of color on your wall, or decorate a window or door! The variation in sizes and colors will make your backdrop more interesting, so embrace lots of variety.

Now you have enough seed paper blooms to create a floral garden on your walls and in your soil. If you’re heart set on a certain color scheme, choose from a variety of seed paper color options to match.

You can buy seed paper sheets for eco-friendly papercraft projects from Botanical PaperWorks. We have a variety of seed options, including wildflower, herb and veggie, and over 25 seed paper colors. Join our mailing list to receive emails with freebies, projects, coupons, green living tips, and decor ideas and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest