Flower Power

Guest post by Sophie Nash-Jones

The Fine Art of Paper Flowers is a book written by the talented and renowned specialist of life-like botanical sculptures, Tiffanie Turner. A true labour of love, bursting with inspiration, this practical book offers a guide to the craft of the most realistic paper flowers. In it, readers will find complete step-by-step instructions to help them make their own artworks; from which tools and materials to use, to basic techniques for more than 30 of Turner’s widely admired and equally unique creations.

The book covers everything from English roses, bougainvillea to zinnias and also guides readers through the making of her signature giant paper peony. These long-lasting creations can be made simply from inexpensive materials with the book’s detailed tutorials and photography, allowing the reader to achieve dramatic and life-like botanical creations that they can make at home. Ideal for decorating parties and weddings, making as gifts or simply to display on the mantelpiece, readers can enjoy the vast variety of flowers that this book offers.

Turner is undeniably a specialist in the craft of crepe paper creations, stating ‘I am a botanical sculptor who depicts different plants in paper, using both realism and preternaturally large, sometimes metastasised forms.’ Each piece that she creates can take between 200-400 hours to complete, working with the rhythms and patterns discovered in nature, paired with the irregularities that occur with the natural process of decay, rot and wilt. Turner creates pieces that celebrate the unnoticed details, like the simple shape of the smallest floret.

The Fine Art of Paper Flowers aims to pass on these skills with the tutorials focusing on the details that are important to Turner – the most important of which is the realistic portrayal of the flower, by way of ‘grooming’, crumpling or stretching petals. The intricate photographic detail brought together with the extensive instructions make this is a truly inspiring book...

You can find out more about The Fine Art of Paper Flowers here: www.papelsf.com/book