Bluebells
LARGER THAN LIFE AND ALWAYS IN SEASON
you will need As cherry blossom, substituting: Bluebell templates* (previous page) Lilac or indigo paper Bone folder Florist wire (22-gauge)
1 Photocopy 12 bluebell flowers and 10 leaf templates onto your chosen paper or transfer all templates onto card and cut them out, then draw around them on your chosen paper. These are oversized – if you’re feeling like a challenge, the templates can be copied and halved in size to create something more realistic.
2 Take the flower shape and score along the lines shown, including the small tab at the side. Fold each score line so that the scored side of the paper is facing outwards.
3 Using a skewer, curl the short, pointed edges of the flower outwards. These will be the petals.
4 Apply a small amount of glue to the tab at the side and attach to the opposite side so the flower forms a tube.
5 Place a 22-gauge wire inside the bell shape, making sure the wire doesn’t stick out past the curled petals. Gather the long thin strips on the flower together, pinch tightly around the wire stem and hold it with one hand. With the other hand, take some green florist tape and wrap it tightly around the long thin strips and wire stem, ensuring the flower head is attached securely to the stem. Undo and repeat if necessary, as this can be tricky. Repeat for all the flowers.
6 Bend each flower head over to one side. Then, for one stem, group the flowers in two groups of 3 and 2 and join these together using florist tape. Place the bunch of 2 behind but above the bunch of 3 and secure them using florist tape. Now place 1 single flower behind but above the bunch of 2 and attach to create a tiered effect (using 6 flowers, total). Repeat for the second bluebell stem.
7 Using a bone folder, curl the leaves at the top pointed edge. Place and attach the leaves onto the stem using florist tape. Adapted from The Paper Florist: Create and Display Stunning Paper Flowers by Suzi McLaughlin (Kyle Books, out 25 February).