scrap paper cacti wall art

this project was a really fun one... 

it's one of those 'paper, scissors, paste' crafts that always make me feel like i'm back in school.

simple materials and process combine to create a nifty piece of wall art

that ended up NOT on a wall at all... 

continue reading for the details and a quick 'how-to'!

this project was created the same way i did this paper pumpkin wall art last fall:

the dimension you see is a trick of shading and overlaid paper. it's really all flat!

to begin the current project, i gathered up some scraps of gift wrap paper that i had.

(honestly? all this stuff has been used in decorating parts of our Shasta trailer - 

because she's a sweet minty 'seafoam' green and her name is Dot.)

i cut out some simple shapes - 

a tall 'saguaro' cactus, rounds + squashed rounds, some spiky 'aloe' - 

and played around with the composition of them,

 on a piece of posterboard covered in old book pages (used on my former shop wall). 

once i liked the look of their placement, i used a glue stick to adhere them.

tip: if you use patterned paper, pay attention to the way the pattern runs...

i used the tiny dotted paper for the 'saguaro' cactus so that the lines of dots would evoke ridges.

(and yes, that small green circle with two white dots IS a nod to Baymax!)

next, i added in the details with a fine Sharpie marker,

working to create shadows, recesses, and 'spines' that gave dimension to the simple shapes:

while i could have used the art as-is on the paper background, i had another plan.
i measured a piece of fabric to fit into the 'frame' (which is actually a small cabinet door)

and used a glue stick to adhere it - that makes it removable in the future, if i desire.

i constantly re-use elements for new decor, so i like to keep things as temporary as possible.

i cut out the paper cacti on the poster board just outside the black outlines.

then i mounted them onto the fabric in the 'frame' using foam glue dots - 

which lifted them off the background ever so slightly, giving them even more dimension.

finally, i added a tiny 'blossom' to the top of the 'saguaro' that sits ON the frame,

paying special attention to the pattern placement to enhance the effect of 'depth':

i like the contrast here between the dark neutral background and the colorful cactus elements.

that adds to the illusion that this is not a flat work of art. even though it is!

a close-up of those 3-D details:

my plan was to display this piece as wall art in the guest bath...

and it looked great there, but this chair-side table in the guest room needed it more...

the colors and details of the paper used in the art 

combine PERFECTLY with the faux cacti in front of them!

(details on those in my next post)

links to previous posts mentioned above:

scrap paper pumpkin art

no-cost boho modern guest room makeover

shared online:

funky junk interiors | diy salvaged junk projects #541

thank you for featuring my project, Donna!