Hey there! Here are some tips for making my 1:12 scale miniature paper crocus kit! For more general info about assembling miniature paper flowers, see the basics here.
My kits can be purchased here! Kits include a laser-cut sheet as shown below, some wire, and a square of foam or felt to help with shaping the petals.
Supplies
Supplies you will need in addition to your kit:
- Acrylic paints / paintbrush
- Pointy tweezers
- Small scissors (I like embroidery scissors)
- Mini stylus tools for shaping
- Wire cutters
- Clear-drying craft glue
- Flower pot/dirt/whatever you’re attaching them to
Shaping
First, you will want to paint your sheet. Apply paint sparingly and layer it thinly as needed. Don’t glop it on, or you’ll have a bad time. For basic flower tips/photos, see here!
Next, you will punch the flowers out of the sheet and begin shaping them.
- Pic 1/2: To curl the petal, start from the outer edge and press in toward the center.
- Pic 3: You will need to glue two pieces together for each flower. After that, the flower can be glued to the stem as-is with a dot of glue. No need to try to poke a hole in the center (too small)!
Stamens
Crocus flowers have distinctive yellow insides that can be created with thread.
- Pic 1: Untwist the fibers of some sewing thread. I used yellow thread, but white will be okay because we’re painting them.
- Pic 2: Use your fingertips to coat the threads in yellow paint. This will add vibrancy and help stiffen the threads, which makes them easier to work with.
- Pic 3: Before and after paint. After the paint dries, you can trim the thread into tiny pieces using pointy scissors. Watch out – they will try to fly away!
Glue
- Pic 1: Put a dot of glue on to the tip of your stylus. Use it to pick up 3 bits of thread.
- Pic 2: Using tweezers, bunch them together and stick to the center of your flower.
- Pic 3: If you find that your threads weren’t cut short enough, you can trim them once the glue dries (you may even do this on purpose because it can be pretty hard to handle such tiny threads!).
Leaves
- Pic 1: Trim across the bottoms of the leaves to easily remove them from the sheet.
- Pic 2: Stick some to the bases of the flowers, and use the rest to fill out your little bunch once you start arranging in your pot/vase/etc.
Thank you!
Thanks for checking out my little tutorial. Feel free to let me know if this was helpful, or if it was missing something! I always welcome constructive feedback.
