One year ago I made a paper butterfly heart canvas that I just ADORE! I keep it out in my craft room year-round and it always makes me smile. So many of you liked it and made it that I thought it would be fun to do another canvas like this with simple paper shapes … this time with flowers! And this time around I’ve made a design that goes on your canvas in vinyl first to make it a little easier for you. This pretty paper flower dress canvas is surprisingly easy to make, too! The wall art is part of our MAKE IT EASY Craftalong Challenge, filled with fun and EASY daily themed projects!
Watch me make this fun craft live here!
Here’s what the easy paper flower dress canvas looks like before you add the flowers — you are welcome to keep it just like this!
But I think it looks REALLY amazing once you add the simple paper flowers to it in various shades:
Here’s a closer look at those pretty little paper flowers on her dress:
The great thing about this paper flower dress canvas is how it is so much easier than it looks. All you really need is one or two sheets of permanent vinyl for your flower girl design, along with a way to transfer it (like a sheet of transfer tape).
In addition to that, you’ll want about four sheets of cardstock — I’m using several sheets of paper from a solid core pack I got at Michaels. I cut out my paper flowers — there are about 250–300 of them — using my Cricut cutting machine, but you could also use scissors of course (though it might take a while). There are actually four different sizes of paper flowers in this dress. All of the flower designs are free on my blog for you to use!
You’ll also need a canvas, board, or sign to which to attach your flower girl and paper flowers. I’m using a 16″ x 20″ stretched canvas. You’ll also want to seal it with something before you attach your vinyl — you can use paint, Mod Podge, or spray adhesive. Just be sure to let it dry before you apply your vinyl.
And finally, you’ll need a way to attach your paper flowers to your canvas. You all had several different ideas on how you might attach them, so I experimented with three different methods — hot glue, raised zots, and tacky glue. I’ll show you which method turned out to be both the fastest and most reliable in this tutorial!
Isn’t this paper flower dress just SO PRETTY? Let me show you how to make this! This post contains some affiliate links for your convenience (which means if you make a purchase after clicking a link I will earn a small commission but it won’t cost you a penny more)! Read my full disclosure policy.
Materials to Make an Easy Paper Flower Dress Canvas
View my Amazon shopping list with the exact items we used to make this project!
Permanent adhesive vinyl (I used one 12″ x 12″ sheet of purple vinyl) 8.5″ x 11″ 65 lb. or 80 lb. cardstock — I used four sheets in four different shades of lavender A way to transfer your vinyl onto your canvas (such as StandardGrip transfer tape) A frame-stretched canvas (or something else to put your design on) (Optional) A way to seal your canvas so it’s easier to get the vinyl to stick (like paint, Mod Podge, or spray adhesive) A way to glue your flowers onto your canvas, such as tacky glue, glue dots, or hot glue Weeding tool Scraper Tweezers A way to cut your vinyl and cardstock (I used the Cricut Explore cutting machine, but you can also use a Cricut Maker cutting machine, scissors, or a craft knife) The free SVG design files (available in my free resource library—get the password by filling out the form at the bottom of this page) Easy Paper Flower Dress Canvas Yield: 1 canvas Prep Time: 30 minutes Active Time: 1 hour Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes Difficulty: Easy Estimated Cost: $10
Step-by-step directions to make the easy paper flower dress canvas wall art!
Print Materials Permanent adhesive vinyl (I used one 12" x 12" sheet of purple vinyl) 8.5" x 11" 65 lb. or 80 lb. cardstock -- I used four sheets in four different shades of lavender A way to transfer your vinyl onto your canvas (such as StandardGrip transfer tape) A frame-stretched canvas (or something else to put your design on) (Optional) A way to seal your canvas so it's easier to get the vinyl to stick (like paint, Mod Podge, or spray adhesive) A way to glue your flowers onto your canvas, such as tacky glue, raised zots, or hot glue The free SVG design files (available in my free resource library—get the password by filling out the form at the bottom of this page) Tools A way to cut your vinyl and cardstock (I used the Cricut Explore cutting machine, but you can also use a Cricut Maker cutting machine, scissors, or a craft knife) Weeding tool Scraper Tweezers Instructions Step 1: Get my free Flower Girl & Simple Paper Flowers Design
My free flower girl outline and paper flowers for this project are free for you to use. You can get them either as a printable PDF or as an SVG cut file to use in a cutting machine like a Cricut. The pattern file contains the design to make a pretty paper flower dress canvas. Download the Paper Flower Dress design from my free resource library (get the password to the library in the form at the bottom of this post).
Here’s what the uploaded SVG cut file will look like once uploaded to Cricut Design Space:
Tip: If you’re not sure how to upload an SVG cut file to Cricut Design Space, watch this helpful video training series I made. If you’re on an iPhone or iPad, here’s how to download and upload SVG files to the Cricut Design Space app.
Tip: If you're going to seal your canvas before you apply your vinyl (so the vinyl sticks better), this is the time to do it. You can paint it with acrylic paint, cover it in matte Mod Podge, or cover it with spray adhesive. In all cases, be sure to let it dry. The fastest method is to use spray adhesive, as that dries in under an hour. (This is the method I used.)
Step 2: Cut out your flower girl vinyl and paper flowers
I have the flower girl decal and the paper flowers already sized to look good on stretched canvases that range in size from 11" x 11" (which is what my purple girl is on) up to 16" x 20" (with the optional sentiment "Bloom where you are planted). I recommend you keep everything at the same size as you find it in my files for the best results.
Cut four copies of the paper flower designs on four different sheets of cardstock (I recommend you pick four shades of the same color). Use the "Medium Cardstock" setting for these paper flowers. It will seem like a lot of flowers, but you'll probably use most of them.
Cut your permanent vinyl on the right side (don't mirror it) and use the "Premium Vinyl" setting.
Once your vinyl is cut, weed out the areas you won't transfer to your canvas (so everything around the flower girl). I designed this decal to be SUPER EASY to weed -- you can get most of it in just one big section.
Transfer your vinyl to a transfer sheet or transfer tape. I recommend you reduce the tack on your transfer tape first by sticking it to your shirt or a paper towel -- this will make it less sticky and easier to remove when you put it on your canvas.
Step 3: Put it all together into a beautiful canvas
First, transfer your vinyl to your sealed canvas. To do this, I first centered the transfer tape with the decal onto my canvas and pressed down. Then I put a paperback book underneath the stretched canvas so there was support underneath and then used my scraper on all areas with vinyl to adhere it well to the canvas. Finally, I carefully removed the transfer tape -- I only had to coax the vinyl off in a few places.
You can stop here and just have a pretty flower girl on a canvas ... or keep going!
Gently crease the petals on each flower with your fingernail (I just pressed my fingernail in the center of each petal and curled it around) to give your petals some shape, then scrunch up each flower to give it some depth.
Place your flowers on your canvas in the way you think you'd like them BEFORE you glue them so you have an idea of what design looks best. I put my paper flowers on my canvas with the darkest color at the top and graduating down to the lightest colors. You'll get a more gentle mix between the layers if you add a little of each color above and below its layer.
Once your paper flowers are in the general arrangement you'd like, glue them all down to the canvas. I found it easiest and fastest to use tacky glue, but you can also use hot glue or glue dots.
Step 4: Show it off!
When you're all done, hang it on a wall to admire or give it to someone special!
Notes
SVG DIMENSIONS IN DESIGN SPACE
Paper Flower Dress: W 11.738" x H 15.924"
Paper Flowers Simple: W 7.999" x H 9.894"
SIZE OF FINISHED PROJECT AS SHOWN
11" x 11" canvas used for project without quote
16" x 20" canvas used for project with quote
© JenniferMaker Project Type: Paper Craft / Category: Cricut Need more projects for today’s craft challenge theme?
Today’s MAKE IT EASY Craftalong Challenge is “CAN DO” by making something with a can of paint, an easy desk organizer, or something with a “can” (I went with a CANvas). If you are looking for other ideas, we have you covered!
Cricut Tool Holder & Organizer: Cricut Tool Bench Ultimate Pegboard Organization Guide DIY Drawer Dividers How to Spray Paint Plastic Planters Best Copper Spray Paint for Amazing DIY Projects
We’d love to see YOUR paper flower dress canvases! Please share a photo in our Facebook group or tag me on social media with #jennifermaker.
This project is a part of our MAKE IT EASY Craftalong Challenge with fun and EASY projects you can do to learn how to use your Cricut! You can share your photos in our daily challenge theme thread here!
Love,
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