Crepe Paper Succulents

Hello everyone! Lately I have been seeing succulents everywhere! They’re very trendy right now and I’ve seen some cute weddings with succulent favors and decor. I think this is great because they’re drought-resistant, which is a huge plus for me in California right now.

Today I have a tutorial for you for succulents that are not just drought-resistant, but drought-proof! When I first came up with the idea to make a crepe paper succulent tutorial, I knew I had to mimic their thick leaves otherwise they would look like water lilies. However, crepe paper is very thin, so it took me a while to come up with an idea. I couldn’t make the leaves thick throughout, but the tip of the leaves are folded over, giving the impression of thick leaves. This was one of my favorite tutorials to make so far, because it was really easy and I enjoyed making the fake planters to display the succulents as well.

Let’s get started!

Supplies:
1) Green crepe paper – 2) Scissors
3) Glue
4) Cardstock cut into a small circle about 3″ diameter – to use as the base

First, you’ll need to cut 25 strips of green crepe paper. I made mine .75″ x 3.5″. The size does not need to be exact, but you just want to keep a general 1:3 ratio. Make sure the crinkles of the crepe paper runs parallel with the length of the strip.

Please ignore any tape that is visible in the photos. It is only there to aid in photography. Take one strip and twist it in the middle, then fold the strip in half. Now there should be a little knot at the tip of the leaf from the twist. You can apply a little bit of glue on the sides to keep the leaf folded in half.

Now trim the leaf so that it is shaped like a deflated balloon with a neck.

Using the pad of your thumbs, slightly stretch the top of the leaf so that it creates a cup. Repeat all these steps for all the strips of crepe paper. Now arrange the leaves so you have a row of 9, 7, 5, 3,  and 1. This will help you remember the layers.

Using your cardstock as a base, Begin gluing the leaves in layers. The first layer should consist of 9 leaves.

This is what the first completed layer will look like.

Continue with the second layer of 7 leaves. You may need to bend the leaf a little so curves away from the bottom layer.

Add your 5-leaf layer and then 3-leaf layer.

For the last leaf, glue the two sides together so that it forms a tube.

Attach the tube to the center.

And you’re done!

You can use the same general technique to create other types of succulents. For example, I used a darker green crepe paper and cut my strips to .5″x3″. This created longer, narrower leaves.

Make a small cut bottom of the petal and glue one flap on top of the other. By doing this, your petals will stand up straighter.

As you can see in this picture, the petals stand up straighter than the previous light green succulent.

You can experiment with different colors and shapes to achieve a variety of succulents. The key is to twist and fold the strips to mimic the thickness.

I hope you’ve enjoyed today’s tutorial! As always, if you ever have any questions, please feel free to contact me through the comments or my contact form. I’d also love to see your creations!

I think these succulents could make a really cute escort card holder for a wedding or event. How would you use these crepe paper succulents?