Technique is essential in creating edible wafer-paper flowers with ease. This simple wafer-paper sweet pea flower tutorial will have you hooked! Try to add petal dust colors in natural daylight. Refer to images of/real flowers when dusting flowers and foliage with color for a more realistic final look.

Edibles:

• Wafer paper (thickness 0.35mm) 
• Wafer-paper card (thickness 0.70mm) 
• Petal dusts: pink and green 
• Gel colors: plum and foliage green 
• Vodka 

Equipment:

• Round-nose pliers 
• Cutting pliers  
• Double-sided silicone sweet pea veiner  
• Leaf veiner 
• Fine scissors 
• Paper punch: 2cm circle and 1.5cm calyx  
• Floral wire: 24, 26, and 30 gauge 
• Floral tape: green 
• Paintbrushes  
• Dimple foam pad 

Make the Keel

1. Mix vodka with the gel color of your choice for the petals and green for the leaves. 
2. Cut a 26-gauge floral wire into 4 and make a big open hook with round-nose pliers. 
3. Cut a small strip of wafer paper. Apply alcohol on both sides of the paper. Wrap around the hook to make a nice cone.  
4. With the help of a paper punch, cut out some circles from the wafer paper. 
5. Use colored alcohol and brush on both sides of each circle. Stick around the wafer-paper cone. 

Create the Petals

1. With the wafer paper, cut out wing and standard petals. Your petals must fit the silicone mold you are going to use. 
2. Apply the colored alcohol on both sides of the wing petals and place into the veiner.  
3. While the wing petals are still wet, fix at the base of the keel. 
4. Repeat the same procedure with the standard petal.  
5. Wrap the wire with ¼-width floral tape. 

Add a Calyx

1. Using the paper punch and thin wafer paper, cut out small calyxes. 
2. Apply green-colored alcohol on both sides and quickly apply at the base of each flower. 
3. Cut a small strip of thin wafer paper. Treat with green-colored alcohol on both sides and apply at the base of the calyx. Smooth with your fingers. 

Add Wafer-Paper Leaves

1. Using a wafer-paper card, cut out freehand leaves. Cut 30-gauge floral wire into 4.  
2.  Using green-colored alcohol, apply to both sides of the leaf, and with sharp scissors, make a cut at the base around 1/3 of it. 
3. Place the wire as close to the edge and overlap just a little. 
4. Place into a leaf veiner. Take out, give some movement, and leave to dry over the dimple foam pad. 

Finish with a Dust of Color 

1. Use dust colors to add realism to your flowers and foliage. Try not to over-dust the elements. 
2.   Use 24-gauge wire and ½-width floral tape to assemble.

This tutorial originally appeared in the January/February 2020 issue of American Cake Decorating.