Malaysian crafter creates 3D paper roses as wide as ceiling fans

Soo derives inspiration from nature, animals and food as well as social media platforms. Photos: Soo Wai Yan

Paper flower artist Soo Wai Yan, 31, loves how paper can be crafted and transformed into beautiful flowers with just a few cuts, folds, and rolls. The crafter from Petaling Jaya is fascinated by the versatility of paper and how it can be used to construct realistic blooms and unique arrangements that can last for years.

“The endless possibilities of paper is what inspired me to become a paper artist. I love to manipulate paper in fantastically varied ways. The power of paper as a medium is that it can be constructed into literally anything by skillful hands,” says Soo in an email interview.

So passionate is Soo about crafting paper flowers that she left her job as an accounting clerk in a manufacturing company in 2017 to launch her creative design studio specialising in making paper flowers and installations.

“I was never happy when I was pursuing my degree in food science or in the corporate world.

“I read many motivational articles and then I decided to dabble in my hobby of making paper flowers. I started doing it on a part-time basis before deciding to turn it into my full-time career. I believe this is my calling in life... to pursue my dream,” she shares.

Soo is glad she made the leap to pursue her passion for crafting flowers.

Now, Soo couldn’t be happier that she made the entrepreneurial leap to pursue her passion, as it has enabled her to focus on a job that brings her so much joy.

“I think it’s important to be passionate about your career,” she says. “If you love your job and treat it as a hobby, it’ll always remain a hobby. To really discover ‘how deep is your love’ – you will need take the plunge first and see what happens,” says the mother of two young daughters.

Like many businesses, however, Soo’s craft business has been affected by the pandemic. To stay afloat, she’s been conducting virtual workshops and has introduced her DIY Home Kits for those who want to try their hand at making paper flowers while staying safe at home.

Each kit comprises all the items required to craft a few different types of flowers, including colour papers, bouquet wrapping material, and access to an online tutorial on how to make the product.

“Since the first movement control order, I haven’t been able to conduct face-to-face workshops. As an alternative, I came up with the DIY kits that enable customers to make their flowers from the comfort of their homes,” says Soo, who shares photos of her creations on her Instagram page.

Soo is fascinated by how paper can evolve into unique artworks with a few cuts, folds and trims.

Blooms of happiness

Paper flowers, which are believed to originate in China in the 17th century, are often used as decorations for the house or installations and backdrops at weddings and events. Paper blooms are a popular alternative to real flowers because they are affordable and do not need watering or sunlight. And they are long-lasting, without the worry about petals or leaves withering or dropping.

Soo, like many craft enthusiasts, improved her paper crafting skills, by watching videos on social media platforms like Pinterest and YouTube.

“Social media is a great place to learn new hobbies and crafts. I learned to make paper flowers from YouTube video tutorials in 2014. During my university convocation, I wanted to give flowers that were everlasting to my close friends.

“The paper flowers I made were something unique, and my friends loved them. Soon, word got around and people started ordering paper flowers from me. I realised that there was a market for them. So I just kept making paper flowers,” she says.

Soo shares that she’s actually been passionate about paper craft since she was in kindergarten. At the time, she’d make items from paper for her family and friends.

“When we were young, my sister and I made lots of paper crafts like cards and dolls because paper and colour pencils were the most common art supplies in our house.

Soo’s wedding bouquet is still looking good after six years.

“I love the precious feeling of handmade items. In secondary school, I was in charge of the school’s bulletin board for six years. At the time, printing was quite expensive, so I’d cut and craft things by hand to go on the board. Eventually, it enabled me to improve my paper cutting skills.

“I think it was quite natural that I gravitated towards working on paper-based arts and crafts,” shares Soo, who also enjoys painting and journaling in her free time.

She loves working with paper for her faux blooms because of its flexibility, which allows it to be manipulated into all sorts of shapes.

Soo’s paper-crafted botanicals come in different sizes, from tiny thumb-sized blooms to gigantic ones that are the width of a ceiling fan, which is about 122cm.

Her preferred material is cardstock paper and also crepe paper which she shapes into lifelike flowers like roses, gerbera, and dahlias, to name a few.

It was only natural for Soo to feature her handcrafted paper flowers for her big day.

“Paper flowers are everlasting, compared to fresh flowers. They can last for years. My paper flower wedding bouquet is still looking good after six years,” she shares.

“However, I can’t say that one is better than the other. Flowers, fresh or crafted, are beautiful,” she says, adding that her work is inspired by fresh blooms.

“I take inspiration from beautiful fresh flowers for my paper flower art. Although, sometimes I’d make the paper flower extraordinarily huge, or in an uncommon colour as... my own take on the fresh flowers,” she shares, adding that she also derives inspiration from nature, animals and food and gets ideas from social media platforms on arts and craft, fashion, interior design and photography.

Her all-time favourite flower is the rose.

“The rose was the first paper flower I made to cheer up someone I love,” she says.

Lots of research and planning goes into creating Soo’s stunning creations.

As a tribute to that very first flower she made, she decided to make the rose her business logo.

To create simple flowers, she uses just three tools - scissors, hot glue gun and an awl, a small pointed tool used for piercing holes. Her 3D paper flowers however require her to take out her flower kit which has an extensive range of tools and material (including pliers, wires and also cardboard).

Soo, applies techniques such as folding, bending, weaving, quilling (forming the paper into rolls) to create her exquisite blooms.

One of her most famous works is wall backdrops featuring the David Austin rose, known for its distinctive neat and flat blooms.

“This flower has a lot of folded petals at its centre. It is time-consuming to cut and shape each and every petal. The real David Austin Rose took 60 years to create via cross-breeding. Even though it’s hard work, I enjoy crafting the flowers because it gives me a sense of calm.”

Lots of research and planning goes into creating her stunning backdrops. Some projects can take up to a month, depending on the complexity of her design, she reveals.

“First, I do research on the theme. I then create a board comprising inspirations of patterns, colours, and drawings. I draw inspiration from fashion, interior design, food, and photography. The next step is creating a concept visual or draft of the paper installation design.

“The concept visual, which is scaled to the installation size, helps us to estimate the quantity and size of paper that we need to create the art. Then, I will create a prototype and improvise on it to my satisfaction,” says Soo.

Soo's handcrafted creations have been used as headpieces for photoshoots. Photo: Clash.Donerrin/Instagram

It takes her about 20 minutes to craft a simple, small flower and it can take an hour to create a large 3D flower.

Soo uses lower grammage art paper for small flowers (about 120-180 gsm) as these allow her to mimic the delicacy of natural flowers; paper with higher grammage (180gsm and above) is ideal for huge flowers because of its durability.

“Crepe paper can create realistic and soft looking flowers because of it can be stretched, which makes it easier to shape and mould. However, only specific alcohol-based dyes, powder dye or paint spray can be used on crepe paper because of its crinkly texture.

“Cardstock paper, on the other hand, has no limitation. It has a flat and smooth surface which allows it to absorb most dyes.”

As an crafter who works with paper, Soo is conscious of the paper waste that is inevitable in creating her blooms.

As such, she makes it a point to use Forest Stewardship Council certified paper from an environmentally responsible source to lessen her carbon footprint.

She also uses plantable “seed paper”, a biodegradable eco-paper made with post-consumer materials.

“We also collect all our trash paper and send them to a recycling centre every week. We make donations to local tree plantation organisations too,” she says.