DIY Paper Fiddle Leaf Fig // Free Download

Fiddle leaf figs are still one of the most popular indoor plants. Well, on Instagram at least. Unfortunately mine is not doing too well and has officially dropped more dead leaves than it has grown since I got it. Whoops! Paper plants always seem to come to my rescue, so of course a DIY paper fiddle leaf fig was the next step. You can see my easy paper flower tutorial here and botanical paper leaves here.

The first paper fiddle leaf fig that I made was actually made as a birthday present voucher, with some cash stashed in the pot. After putting all the work into making the Silhouette cut file, it really wasn’t worth having it just sitting on my computer doing nothing. So instead, I’ve put together a full tutorial of my updated version and you can download the cut file for free from the supplies list below! There’s an SVG file too, for Cricut machines. Enjoy!

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What you need

Thin green card in the colour you want for the leaves
Silhouette sketch pens (optional), or regular dark green fine marker
Florist wire
Thin double sided tape
Skewer or small round object
Florist tape
Air dry clay
Silhouette Machine (or Cricut)

Free cut file – Download here

What to do

Start by preparing the fiddle leaf fig shapes using your die cutting machine. The Silhouette Cut File download (link included in the list above) is set-up to allow you to first sketch the leaf vein lines with a sketch pen and then cut out the outline with a blade. If you do not have sketch pens, you can simply cut the leaves out and draw your own vein lines. For detailed instructions of how to sketch and then cut see my step-by-step guide here.

Once the leaves are cut, use a skewer to roll the bottom end of the leaf (the “base”). Cut a piece of double sided tape roughly double the length of the base. Stick it onto the base, allowing the tape to extend out on one side.

Starting at the top of the florist wire, remove the backing of the double sided tape and wrap the base of the leaf tightly around the tip of the wire. Wrap the excess double sided tape around the cardboard stem that has been created by the base.

Continue adding more leaves onto the florist wire. Vary the leaf size, shape and orientation on the wire. Leave enough wire below the leaves to allow for main plant stem and an extra 10cm at the bottom for securing it into the pot.

Once you have enough leaves on one piece of wire, use florist tape to wrap up the stem. Start at the top, pull the florist tape gently to make it sticky and then wrap it tightly down the stem. This will secure all the leaves in place.

Repeat these steps to make two (or more) additional branches. Once you have all three branches ready, bend them slightly to create a curved branch. Then, using the florist tape, start wrapping slightly above where all three branches join. Wrap down the main stem, leaving 10cm free at the end.

Use a narrow, round household object as your pot mold. I used the end of a playdough roller. Roll a ball of airdry clay and push the mold into the centre. Gently shape the pot around it until you are happy with how it looks. You could of course do this all by hand, but I just found it easier to work with a solid object that the “pot” could be slid off once ready. Slide the pot off while the clay is still wet.

The next step is to create a base for your tree, that can be held securely in your pot. This is done by bending the extra 10cm of wire at the bottom of the stem into an upside down “T”. To make the “T”, bend the extra 10cm of wire to create an L shape with the stem. Depending on the size of your pot’s hole, bend the wire back on itself a few times, as seen in the diagram below. Allow the base to be roughly the size of your pot’s hole, or just slightly bigger.

Insert the base into the pot and fill up the pot around the base by rolling small pieces of airdry clay, dropping them into the pot and then gently pressing them onto the base with the flat end of the skewer. Finally, all you need to do is check that your paper fiddle leaf fig is standing up straight and then leave your pot to dry.