When you see a sunflower, what do you think of? I think of warm summer days, blue skies, bird seed, butterflies, bees, and Vincent Van Gogh’s vibrant paintings. I also visualize the intense and lyrical energy of Tour de France cyclists passing through the French countryside and field after field of blooming sunflowers.
This multi-piece sunflower, of my own creation, is based on a traditional six-petal flower presented previously on Origami Spirit. This origami sunflower features sixteen petals, each made with a few extra folds.
For this model, I created an octagonal center, made with a separate piece of paper, which is joined to the petals by a short piece of wire. Additionally, I designed a leaf to be attached to the stem to complete the model. On its own, this sunflower can be used as an ornament, attached to a hat, or worn as a hairpiece.
The following video demonstrates how to make my sunflower (petals, center and leaf) and how to assemble these parts to make the flower.
Materials to make an origami sunflower
- Four squares of yellow paper (6 x 6 inches – 15 x 15 cm.)
- One square of dark paper for the center (6 x 6 inches – 15 x 15 cm.)
- One square of green paper for the leaf (6 x 6 inches – 15 x 15 cm.)
- A piece of 26-gauge wire to tie the petals and center (about 8 inches)
- A piece of 18-gauge wire for the stem (about 12 inches)
- Florist tape (about 12 inches per flower)
- A small clothespin as a tool
Tips and suggestions for making the sunflower
- The yellow squares will be cut in half to make eight rectangles in a 2:1 proportion.
- In the video, the sunflower is demonstrated using kami paper, a thin paper made especially for origami.
- Regular office paper or fancier papers such as “Tant” are also good choices to make the sunflower.
- It isn’t necessary to use paper with a different color on each side.The finished petals and center show only one side of the paper.
- For the leaf, use paper that’s green on both sides.
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Origami sunflowers arranged on a wreath
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With stem and leaves this sunflower can be presented alone or used in a floral arrangement
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This variation from the sunflower has more petals, and they are folded in a slightly different manner.
This origami sunflower variation is taught in another video.
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