A wall of giant paper flowers looks like it cost a fortune and costs almost nothing. This one is a single 18-inch crepe paper peony with a flat paper-plate back, so it hangs flush against a wall. Make one as a statement piece or a dozen for a wedding or party backdrop. The method comes from Smile Mercantile: cut petals from folded crepe, cup them by hand, hot glue them in rings from the outside in, and finish with a rolled fringe center.
Take your time on the cupping. That curve is what turns a flat pile of paper into something that reads as a real bloom from across the room.
Crepe paper or cardstock?
Crepe stretches, so it cups and ruffles like a real petal. Cardstock giant flowers hold a crisp, graphic shape and survive being stacked in a car. Use heavy crepe (180 gram, often sold as Italian crepe) rather than party streamer crepe, which tears when you stretch it. Neither likes rain or damp grass. For an outdoor ceremony, cardstock holds up better in humidity, and crepe should go up as late as you can manage.
Petal sizes and counts
| Finished bloom | Large petal | Small petal | Petals total | Base |
|---|
| 12 inch | 5 in tall | 3.5 in | 18-22 | dessert plate |
| 18 inch | 7.5 in | 5 in | 28-34 | dinner plate |
| 24 inch | 10 in | 6.5 in | 38-45 | cardboard cake circle |
Cut 10 percent extra. A torn petal mid-ring is the usual reason a flower stalls.
Stretching with the grain
Crepe has fine ridges running one way. Cut every petal so those ridges run from base to tip, then stretch across them in the middle with your thumbs. Stretch along the ridges and nothing happens. Stretch across the wrong way on a badly cut petal and it splits.
Hanging it without wrecking the wall
- Command strips on the plate back for painted walls. Two medium strips hold an 18-inch bloom.
- Clear fishing line through two holes in the plate for hanging from an arch, a beam or a curtain rod.
- Foam board panel for venues that ban anything on the walls. Glue the flowers on and lean it on an easel.
Colour plans for a backdrop
Three colours is plenty. Blush, ivory and a deep rose works for most weddings. Mustard, terracotta and cream suits fall parties. Make one or two giants in the lead colour, five or six 12-inch blooms, then fill gaps with crepe paper flowers on stems and a few paper rosettes for texture.
Common mistakes
- Grain running sideways. The petals will not cup and tear when pushed.
- Too few layers. If you can see plate between rings, add a ring.
- Too much glue. Heavy beads soak and warp the crepe. Glue the base of each petal only.
- Flat inner rings. Tilt each ring more upright than the last or it reads as a pinwheel.
Smaller blooms for the gaps use the same folding trick. Try how to make paper flowers for standard stems, or go softer with tissue paper flowers.
