Saturday, February 5, 2011

Pleated Circles - Paper Craft Technique

I've been seeing these pleated circles everywhere and I can't get over how cute they are!!


Recently, I read an article about how to make them and couldn't wait to try it out. I had to play with them a bit but I finally got it down. I really liked the creative liberties you can take with these circles. I listed some of the variations in the tips section. 


Tools Needed:

  • Hot glue gun & glue sticks
  • 12 x 12" card stock
  • Paper trimmer
  • Scoring tool or popsicle stick
  • 1" Circle punch
  • Brads or stickers 


1. Cut card stock to 12 x 1-1/2"
2. Using the guide of a paper trimmer and scorer or popsicle stick, score the strip every 1/2" and fold it accordion-style. 

3. Using a hot glue gun apply a small line of glue and connect the edges together; you will have something that looks like a pleated cylinder.
4. Punch a circle from scrap stock and have it ready. Working on a smooth surface press the edges into the center until they meet in the middle, making a little tee pee. Continue to press down until your tee pee is flat, forming a circle. 
5. Hot glue a circle to the back of your flower to help stabilize it. Flip it over and squeeze a little more glue in the middle. 
6. Embellish the center of your circle with brads, smaller circles or stickers. I used 3 different brads on my example. I felt the easiest way to attach the brad was to clip the prongs off the brad and hot glued it to the front. 

Tips:
- I used my circles to make a card, however in the magazine they had sewn many circles together to form a garland. It was awesome, but I don't have that kind of time!! If you do, simply punch one or two holes on both sides of each circle and stitch them together. 

- For smaller circles, cut the strip 12 x 1/2" up to 12 x 1-1/2"

- For large circles, you will need to cut 2 wider strips of card stock (for example, 12 x 2-1/2" up to 12 x 4"), glue the strips together after you accordion fold them. 

- Your accordion folds can be as wide or narrow as you wish.

- I don't think I would recommend this project for kids. I ended up with 2 blisters on my fingers from the hot glue. Ouch!!

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