Susan Beech - A Petal Unfolds

Beautiful by name and beautiful by nature. ‘A Petal Unfolds” created by Susan Beech, is literally a blossoming business! Creating gorgeous bespoke paper blooms...and now, offering workshops in the art of flower making. With a degree in Fine Art Printmaking and a photographer by trade, Susan knows well how to capture & style the delicate petals and flower arrangement that she creates by hand.

A Petal Unfolds

Susan Beech has the hands of an angel, she is the creator behind ‘A Petal Unfolds’ a small business creating delicate paper flowers by hand. I spoke to Susan about her flowers, her life and her wonderfully styled images...I asked Susan to tell me where it all began?

Two years ago I came across an article in a craft magazine on paper flowers. I had never seen anything like them before and I thought they were so beautiful, I was instantly drawn to them. I felt the need to start making art with my hands, rather than digitally. At first I took an online class, then I found a vintage flower book on Ebay and I taught myself more of the techniques. So, I then just started making all the templates and then I created my own flowers. I love working with crepe paper and how you can manipulate it into sculptural shapes. It is so satisfying to take a flat piece of crepe and transform it into a petal for a flower.

The flower making workshops so far have been dedicated to the making of Peonies, and I hope to bring these workshop eventually to Brighton. I now spend more time on my photography and the styling of all the flower arrangements. I am influenced by ‘Romanticism and the Sublime’ and I think this is coming through my work now! I love fashion and would love to one day work with a fashion house and I also hope to get my own book on paper flowers published! And,Susan...your favourite flowers? Dahlias, ranunculus and peonies, they’re all so rich with such complex colours. Susan’s paper flowers will be featured in a book called Paper Craft published by Dorling Kindersley this month and she shows nine paper tutorials, step by step flower making. Certainly one to get!