Scrapping by Design

Iris folding is a beautiful paper craft technique in which one uses folded strips of  colored paper to form a design.  The artisan follows a pattern to lay the design. The “iris” in this case refers not to a flower, but to the unusually shaped space that remains in the middle of the pattern after the paper folds are in place.

In the Halloween card to the right, the iris is the red shape in the middle of the witches pot or cauldron.  You can fill the iris with a small picture, which is a lovely touch for scrapbooking, or you can fill it with a contrasting paper. In the witches card, I have used a contrasting color of paper and added a dot of silver dimensional glue, which matches the “glue” bubbles on top of the pot.

Iris folding patterns are readily available. Amazon has several books containing iris folding patterns and papers, and you can also find the patterns for sale or for free on the Internet.

Iris Folding @Circle of Crafters is my favorite site for free patterns. You can sign up to receive a free pattern every month by email. plus you can help yourself to the archived patterns. You can not, of course, sell any of these patterns to others. They are for your own use only.

The video demonstration below shows how I made a Halloween card using iris folding.

Iris folding designs can be fun and quirky or elegant and stunning. They work for every season and every occasion, and they’re fun to do. Enjoy!