DIY Paper Flowers – Anouk Böhmer

Paper Flowers

DIY Paper Flowers by Anouk Böhmer

Materials:

• Werola Gloria Doublette
•  Floral Tape
• Styrofoam ball 2cm
• Green coated wire (in this example I have used 1.2 mm thick)
• Tacky glue
• Scissors

Instructions:

1. Cut from the orange paper a long strip of paper 12 cm long and 2.5 cm wide.  Cut out the template of the petal and use this to cut out 5 petals from the pink paper.
2. Cut fringes in the yellow paper. Cut to the middle and try to make very thin fringes.
3. Glue the styrofoam ball on the wire (put some glue on the wire and stick this in to the ball). Use the floral tape to wrap around the ball so the ball is covered with the tape and is green. Now you have your center.
4. Put some glue on the yellow paper and glue this on the ball. Put it around the ball so it makes the stamen of the flower.
5. Cut out the leaf petals, and if you like, use a pencil to create some shading. You can choose any colour you like to create some shading.
6. After colouring the petals, you need to cup the petals. Put the petal between both hands and hold the petal with thumb and indexfinger. Gently stretch the paper and press your thumbs so the petal will start to cup. This is how you get a nice shape in your petals. Then put some glue at the bottom off the petal.
7. Glue all the petals on the centre. Start with the first and go all around the centre. The five petals will cover the whole centre.
8. After gluing all the petals, the flower will look like this.  No worries! Use your floral tape to cover the wire and bottom of the flower in a green color. Stretch the floral tape and cover the bottom and wire by turning the wire while putting on the floral tape.
9. Open the flower by bending the glued petals. You will see your beautiful bloom. Sometimes the yellow stamen are also not open. You can gently push them into a good position.

If you fall in love with this DIY, buy some more paper and make the anemones in all different colours.  Hope you have enjoyed this DIY! And to end with my motto: A flower is not giving by hands but with the heart.  – Anouk

Hi Anouk Böhmer! 

Would you briefly summarize for our readers who you are, where you come from and what you do?

Hi! I am Anouk, 33 years old and live in a small town in The Netherlands. I have the best job in the world because I am a paper florist. So every day I can work with my hands and create flowers for people to make them happy.

What did you want to be when you were a kid?

I wanted to be an actress, and dreamed about acting in big movies. After hearing about the hard admission to get into an acting school, I had to change my game plan and have played in a drama club in my hometown with lots of other kids and always loved it very much! And every time we had a performance I felt like a true actress.

How long have you been making paper flowers and when did you start sharing your creations on Instagram as well?

For three years now. I had my own shop but due to physical problems I had to stop with that dream. I was sitting at home feeling sick about ending my dream and read about paper flowers. I ordered some paper and started creating. After a while I started to post some flowers on Instagram, and because of the encouragement from people online I shared it more and more.

When did you start your web shop and what can people find there?

In January 2020 I started my paper flower business and also the web shop. After a week almost everything had sold out, so then I felt the power to pursue my paper flower dream. In my web shop you will find little bouquets, flowers for props in photography and my own stationery products.

What did you do before? What were your different steps until you got to what you do today?

I have worked as a store manager in retail for many years, and that’s a job I have always loved. I like to be in contact with other people. I have worked as a store manager in clothing stores, a drugstore and in a supermarket. Then had my own store for a short period. After that I started with my flowers. I have followed a short study in marketing and that’s something that is helping me every day. But I think the most helpful part is that I have always worked with people so it’s easy for me to connect.

What is your favourite flower and why?

My favourite flower is the poppy because when spring and summer start, I love that this little bloom is blooming in big fields and in the side roads. It’s a true survivor, and I love that it’s so fragile.

What do you wish for the future? What new projects might you have coming up? Is there anything you’re particularly looking forward to?

I really hope to start the first paper flower store in the Netherlands, where I can sell my blooms and paper and art materials. For now it’s wishful thinking, but I know that it always starts with that, so I’m confident that someday it will happen.  For know I am starting with my own DIY kits and hope to give people some inspiration to make flowers and hope after covid to teach paper flower making! And hope to take some time off to make very detailed flowers to exhibit, so I can show people what you can make out of paper.