SnipFold

Gladiolus upright flower spike

A straight tall gladiolus with five alternating pink six-tepal flares, larger upper hoods, pale lower lips, tapered buds and long sword leaves on a joined square paper stem.

Materials

  • 200 gsm green cardstock for stem, splice collar and mounting shelves
  • 120-140 gsm pink and pale peach paper for flowers; green paper for leaves and buds
  • PVA glue, scissors, scoring tool, ruler and protractor
  • External padded craft clamp fixed upright to a stable desk (required display support)

Finished size: Nominal illustrated paper envelope: 78.0 wide x 51.1 deep x 359.2 high mm (XYZ), including the lowest 30 mm held in the clamp; 329.2 mm above clamp jaws. External clamp excluded

Steps

CutValley foldMountain foldGlue area

  1. Cut and score at actual size

    Print at 100%; check the 50 mm ruler. Cut one of every numbered piece. Use 200 gsm green card for stem, collars and shelves; 120-140 gsm for flowers. Score dashed folds before assembly. S1 and S2 are 36 mm wide nets: four 8 mm faces plus a 4 mm seam.

  2. Make the straight 350 mm stem

    Valley-fold S1 and S2 by 90 degrees at x=8,16,24,32 mm. Glue the final 4 mm lap inside the first face to form two open square tubes. Dry flat and straight. Butt S2 above S1 at height 180 mm. Fold J1 the same way around the joint, covering heights 165-195 mm, and glue its inner faces to both tubes plus its 4 mm seam. Wrap J1 around the real card thickness rather than crushing the stem. Let dry fully. Hold the lowest 30 mm in an external padded upright craft clamp fixed to a stable desk; the clamp is required, not included in the paper template or preview.

  3. Attach the long sword leaves

    L1/L2/L3 have 12 mm basal tabs and blade-tip distances of 178/158/130 mm from their lower edges. Valley-fold each blade 12 degrees forward at the tab line. Glue the flat tabs onto the front stem face with lower edges at 32/40/52 mm respectively. L1 leans left, L2 right, L3 slightly left. Overlapping tab ends are intentional. Dry before adding blooms.

  4. Mount bloom 1 at 144 mm

    On M1, fold the 8 x 8 mm back tab downward 90 degrees from the trapezoid shelf, and the 32 x 8 mm front lip upward 90 degrees. Glue the back tab to the front stem face from height 136 to 144 mm. The shelf projects 20 mm horizontally forward. Keep it level and let dry. Its front lip is the real flower mount.

  5. Flare and attach six tepals of bloom 1

    Each F1_1 through F1_6 has a 6 x 6 mm basal glue tab. Valley-fold the blade 35 degrees out of the tab plane along its 6 mm hinge; do not curl or stretch. On the front of M1, mark a center 9 mm left of its midpoint and 4 mm above the shelf. Place each tab with its base-edge midpoint on this mark, extending radially outward. Point F1_1 upward, rotated 14 degrees clockwise when viewed from the flower front. Relative to that hood, arrange lobes 2/3 at +65/-65 degrees, 4/5 at +125/-125 degrees and lip 6 at 180 degrees (positive is counterclockwise). Glue tabs to the green lip and to adjacent tabs where they overlap; some tab ends project beyond the lip. Keep the blades free. Glue the pale lower lip last. Hold until set before proceeding upward.

  6. Mount bloom 2 at 184 mm

    On M2, fold the 8 x 8 mm back tab downward 90 degrees from the trapezoid shelf, and the 32 x 8 mm front lip upward 90 degrees. Glue the back tab to the front stem face from height 176 to 184 mm. The shelf projects 20 mm horizontally forward. Keep it level and let dry. Its front lip is the real flower mount.

  7. Flare and attach six tepals of bloom 2

    Each F2_1 through F2_6 has a 6 x 6 mm basal glue tab. Valley-fold the blade 35 degrees out of the tab plane along its 6 mm hinge; do not curl or stretch. On the front of M2, mark a center 9 mm right of its midpoint and 4 mm above the shelf. Place each tab with its base-edge midpoint on this mark, extending radially outward. Point F2_1 upward, rotated 14 degrees counterclockwise when viewed from the flower front. Relative to that hood, arrange lobes 2/3 at +65/-65 degrees, 4/5 at +125/-125 degrees and lip 6 at 180 degrees (positive is counterclockwise). Glue tabs to the green lip and to adjacent tabs where they overlap; some tab ends project beyond the lip. Keep the blades free. Glue the pale lower lip last. Hold until set before proceeding upward.

  8. Mount bloom 3 at 224 mm

    On M3, fold the 8 x 8 mm back tab downward 90 degrees from the trapezoid shelf, and the 32 x 8 mm front lip upward 90 degrees. Glue the back tab to the front stem face from height 216 to 224 mm. The shelf projects 20 mm horizontally forward. Keep it level and let dry. Its front lip is the real flower mount.

  9. Flare and attach six tepals of bloom 3

    Each F3_1 through F3_6 has a 6 x 6 mm basal glue tab. Valley-fold the blade 35 degrees out of the tab plane along its 6 mm hinge; do not curl or stretch. On the front of M3, mark a center 9 mm left of its midpoint and 4 mm above the shelf. Place each tab with its base-edge midpoint on this mark, extending radially outward. Point F3_1 upward, rotated 14 degrees clockwise when viewed from the flower front. Relative to that hood, arrange lobes 2/3 at +65/-65 degrees, 4/5 at +125/-125 degrees and lip 6 at 180 degrees (positive is counterclockwise). Glue tabs to the green lip and to adjacent tabs where they overlap; some tab ends project beyond the lip. Keep the blades free. Glue the pale lower lip last. Hold until set before proceeding upward.

  10. Mount bloom 4 at 264 mm

    On M4, fold the 8 x 8 mm back tab downward 90 degrees from the trapezoid shelf, and the 32 x 8 mm front lip upward 90 degrees. Glue the back tab to the front stem face from height 256 to 264 mm. The shelf projects 20 mm horizontally forward. Keep it level and let dry. Its front lip is the real flower mount.

  11. Flare and attach six tepals of bloom 4

    Each F4_1 through F4_6 has a 6 x 6 mm basal glue tab. Valley-fold the blade 35 degrees out of the tab plane along its 6 mm hinge; do not curl or stretch. On the front of M4, mark a center 9 mm right of its midpoint and 4 mm above the shelf. Place each tab with its base-edge midpoint on this mark, extending radially outward. Point F4_1 upward, rotated 14 degrees counterclockwise when viewed from the flower front. Relative to that hood, arrange lobes 2/3 at +65/-65 degrees, 4/5 at +125/-125 degrees and lip 6 at 180 degrees (positive is counterclockwise). Glue tabs to the green lip and to adjacent tabs where they overlap; some tab ends project beyond the lip. Keep the blades free. Glue the pale lower lip last. Hold until set before proceeding upward.

  12. Mount bloom 5 at 301 mm

    On M5, fold the 8 x 8 mm back tab downward 90 degrees from the trapezoid shelf, and the 32 x 8 mm front lip upward 90 degrees. Glue the back tab to the front stem face from height 293 to 301 mm. The shelf projects 20 mm horizontally forward. Keep it level and let dry. Its front lip is the real flower mount.

  13. Flare and attach six tepals of bloom 5

    Each F5_1 through F5_6 has a 6 x 6 mm basal glue tab. Valley-fold the blade 35 degrees out of the tab plane along its 6 mm hinge; do not curl or stretch. On the front of M5, mark a center 9 mm left of its midpoint and 4 mm above the shelf. Place each tab with its base-edge midpoint on this mark, extending radially outward. Point F5_1 upward, rotated 14 degrees clockwise when viewed from the flower front. Relative to that hood, arrange lobes 2/3 at +65/-65 degrees, 4/5 at +125/-125 degrees and lip 6 at 180 degrees (positive is counterclockwise). Glue tabs to the green lip and to adjacent tabs where they overlap; some tab ends project beyond the lip. Keep the blades free. Glue the pale lower lip last. Hold until set before proceeding upward.

  14. Finish the tapered bud tip

    Fold B1 and B2 outward 18 degrees at their 6 mm tab lines. Glue their basal tabs to the front stem at heights 324 and 339 mm; point B1 18 degrees right and B2 18 degrees left of vertical, seen from the front. These narrow closed-bud silhouettes finish the straight spike. Leave the external clamp on the bottom 30 mm for display. Let all joints cure before moving.

Notes

The 3D model shows each piece in its finished, idealized shape; the exploded view only spreads the pieces apart. It is not a paper-physics simulation: curved shapes are forming guides, not exact physical folding or proof of developability, and intermediate fold shapes are not supplied.