This paper Dahlia might be the favorite paper flower I’ve made so far.

It looks so complicated but it’s actually not. I’ve structured the template to minimize having to finagle too much when assembling the whole thing together.

For how complicated it looks, it was relatively fast and efficient to put together. I’ve seen some tutorials online with paper dahlias where you have to roll and glue each individual tubes. I have no patience for that.

I know real life dahlias don’t come in metallic dusty rose colors but I couldn’t help myself to use shimmery cardstock for this project.

I hope you enjoy making this paper flower as much as I do!

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Materials for Paper Dahlia Flower

Cardstock – I would recommend a medium weight cardstock for this paper flower with a colored core. Thinner paper works but it won’t hold the curl as well. Here are some of my favorite brands:

• Assorted Starter Pack – Basic assorted colors, great starter pack, perfect weight for most papercraft projects
• Cricut Joy Insert Card Packs – You don’t have to use these with the Cricut Joy, they are nice material kids for cardmaking.
• Cardstock Warehouse Brand on Amazon – I love the quality of all the matte-colored cardstock with Cardstock Warehouse. It is my go-to brand for individual matte colors that I might need
• Poptone Assorted Variety Pack – This is the perfect peppy assortment of colors of heavy cardstock. It’s a heavy cardstock assortment with colors I actually use frequently for cardmaking.
• Seasonal Assorted Variety Pack – This is a slight variation on the Poptone assortment and has a quite few neutrals that complement almost any accent color.
• Stardream Metallics Line – For paper crafts, the Stardream line is the go-to for a metallic shimmer finish. It is the perfect sheen to make any project pop. The core is also colored is which hard to find for metallic paper.

Glue – I highly recommend the glue for this paper flower but tacky glue also works if you are willing to take your time with it.

• Art Glitter Glue – All-purpose non-toxic polymer glue with a fine tip, dries fast with minimal paper warping.
• Hot Glue Gun – My favorite cordless hot glue gun, an essential for fast petal to petal gluing

Cutting Machine – I use a Cricut. Check out my recommendations for Cricut machines and accessories for beginners for more info.

Templates – This paper dahlia flower template is available both in SVG and printable formats for free in my resource library.

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How to assemble the Paper Dahlia

Step 1: Cut out the templates

I use a light grip blue mat for this set of templates.

The templates are sequences from the top most layer being the single piece cutout set to a sequence of petal strips that increase in petal count and size.

Step 2: Curl the petals

I found a chopstick or straw or thinner pen works great for this step. I just roll the petal vertically along the barrel of the stick. It ends up looking like a pine cone chip.

Step 3: Start with the base petal strip

This one has 11 petals on it. Glue it in a loop. Do the same with the rest of the petal strips. Be sure to keep them in sequence so you don’t get confused later.

Step 4: Glue the layers on top of each other

I like to start with the largest loop, apply a little dot of glue on a couple of petal edges (on the side), then gently placing the next layer on top.

I try to offset the petals but if it doesn’t line up perfectly, it’s ok. This is actually a very forgiving design.

I continue doing this for all the loops.

Step 5: Assemble the single piece layers

I like to take the smallest cutout and glue it into a bulb. Then I glue it to the next layer and secure each petal into place with more glue.

Step 6: Glue the cap on to the layered loops

Again, I just apply another couple dabs of glue to the side of a couple of petals on the topmost loop and then place the cap on.

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