When I make wafer paper roses, I usually make them using a paper punch and a styrofoam ball, but those are a little less realistic.
To make them more realistic, you can add more details to them to give the impression of the petals being real.
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For this method, I use wafer paper card, which is basically a double thickness of AD grade paper. This gives it a little more weight, so you don’t have to be as concerned about tearing the paper when you vein it.
For a short video showing the sped-up process, click to watch here:
Shop for materials to make wafer paper flowers on Amazon (#ad):
- Wafer paper, white or colored
- Silicone flower center molds
- Petal veiners
- Petal dust
- Floral wire
- Tylose glue
- Fluffy paintbrushes
- Flower former
- Craft scissors
- Liquid Food Coloring
- Food-grade glycerin to make wafer paper conditioner
- Corn starch
- Flower paper punches
- Steamer to shape wafer paper
For another article with tips on making wafer paper flowers, click here
Some tips for making realistic wafer paper roses:
- Use wafer paper card to give the petals a little more stability, and to mimic the opaque appearance of a real rose’s petals.
- Make the petals individually to curl them using some wafer paper conditioner, then let them dry for a short time before assembling the rose. If you shape the smaller petals first, then work your way out to the larger ones, you’ll be able to assemble the flower starting with the smaller ones so that the larger ones have time to set up before you need them.
For an article about how to make a simple wafer paper rose, click here.
- You don’t need a paper punch to cut the petals out, just use scissors and cut out the petals in a rose petal shape.
- Cut out about 8 small petals, 8-12 medium petals, and larger ones depending on how large you want the rose to be.
- Don’t worry too much about using the “right” number of petals. Real roses don’t have specific numbers of petals. You should just add them evenly then fill in any extras that you need to make the finished flower look full and even.
- Use a thicker floral wire for this, an 18 gauge is fine but you can go to a 22. It just needs to be stiff enough to hold the flower up as you work on it.
- Try not to make the back of the flower too rounded, or it will be harder to fit it against the cake. If you know how the flowers will be arranged, you can tailor the shapes to the shape of the cake where they’ll be sitting.
