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  • Welcome to TPK! This is your first of 2 free articles. For unlimited access to tutorials and articles, join TPK Premium for less than the cost of a latte.

    Staggered Floral Trifold Card Tutorial by Phyllis Macaluso

    March 17, 2022

    by

    Lindsey Bugbee

    Birthday Cards, Floral Illustration Tutorials, Greeting Card Tutorials, Guest Post, Mother’s Day Cards, Thank You Cards, Tutorials, Watercolor

    In today’s tutorial, artist Phyllis Macaluso will show you how to make a gorgeous floral trifold card. If you’ve been wanting to learn how to use a wedge brush, you’ll especially love this project!

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    Staggered Floral Trifold Card Tutorial by Phyllis Macaluso

    When Phyllis Macaluso sets out to make out a card, she always comes up with something interactive and beautiful. Take the trifold card in that you’ll learn how to make in today’s tutorial: it’s the paper version of a bouquet! Interactive and gorgeous. Today, Phyllis will walk you through how to make this card through a series of instructions, photos, and a free printable.

    1. Gather Your Supplies

    You’ll need a small collection of supplies in order to create this trifold card; they are listed below with links:

    Supplies for Tiered Trifold Floral Card

    • 8.5″ x 11″ (~21.6 cm x 28 cm) piece of watercolor paper
    • Pencil + eraser
    • Ruler
    • Scissors
    • Bone folder
    • Watercolor palette of your choice + a wedge (aka “triangular”) brush (affiliate link)
    • Optional: pointed pen + ink to write a greeting
    • Phyllis’ project handout

    2. Divide + Cut Your Watercolor Paper

    First, orient your watercolor paper horizontally. Then, use your pencil and your ruler to divide the page into three equal parts. Next, draw a diagonal line that runs about 2″ (5 cm) from the top of the left side of the page to about 5″ (12.7 cm) from the bottom of the right side of the page. Cut along that diagonal line.

    Cut Watercolor Paper
    Your diagonal measurements don’t need to be exact! The numbers I’ve given you are just an estimate.

    3. Crease the Paper

    Now, use a bone folder to crease the watercolor paper like an accordion, as shown:

    Floral Tiered Trifold Card
    Making one crease that goes in and one crease that goes out helps the card’s parts to nest nicely into one another.

    4. Paint Flowers

    Now, use your pencil and a compass to draw half circles along the top of each third of the card. (If you don’t have a compass, you can free-hand draw the circles.)

    Making a draft for a floral tiered greeting card

    Then, use your wedge brush and the instructions on pages 5-6 in Phyllis’ handout to paint gorgeous floral bundles!

    Painting florals with a wedge brush
    Use your circular guidelines as guide to contour your flowers. (It’s okay to go a little bit past the circles, but not too far!) Again, instructions for drawing these flowers can be found in Phyllis’ handout.

    Keep on painting until the top half of your three sections are full of flowers.

    Florals on a trifold card

    Important: Make sure you paint florals on both sides of the card! Otherwise, when you fold the card up, one panel won’t have florals on it.

    5. Cut

    Now, use your scissors to cut the top of the card in an irregular pattern that echoes the contours of your florals and leaves.

    Cutting Out the Floral Cards

    Once you finish cutting, your card will look something like this:

    Staggered Floral Trifold Card Tutorial by Phyllis Macaluso

    6. Fold!

    Now, fold the three sections of your card neatly together, and secure the card with a piece of twine and a tag, if desired. Use a pointed pen to write the greeting of your choice on the tag!

    Phyllis is modeling one of TPK’s “Pretty in Pink” Brause EF66 obliques in the photo. Feel free to use your favorite pointed pen to write on the tag — perhaps in green watercolor calligraphy to match the card’s foliage!

    Modification Note

    If you’re in a bit of a hurry and you don’t want to paint flowers on both sides of your card, there’s a shortcut you can take. Grab the piece of paper you cut at a diagonal from the top of your paper in step 2, and paint flowers on one side of it. Then, cut out the flowers.

    Staggered Floral Trifold Card Tutorial by Phyllis Macaluso

    Next, glue the flowers onto the card. Alternate the direction that the flowers face to ensure that all of your pretty florals are visible when the card is closed.

    Staggered Floral Trifold Card Tutorial by Phyllis Macaluso

    Then, enjoy your lovely card!

    Staggered Floral Trifold Card Tutorial by Phyllis Macaluso
    The two cards shown without twine in this photo were created using the cut and glue method. The card in the foreground features flowers that are painted on both sides.

    This floral trifold card is a versatile piece that you could use for virtually any occasion. It would make a great birthday card, an elegant way to say “thank you”, or, if you’re thinking ahead, a lovely Mother’s Day card. You can do like Phyllis and make several at once so they’re on deck when you need a quick and pretty greeting card solution! Just write out a greeting on the tag, stick your card in a #10 envelope, and you’re all set.

    Thanks very much to Phyllis for coming up with such a gorgeous tutorial, and thank you for reading! Have a lovely and creative weekend!

    Warmly,

    If you liked this tutorial, you can view Phyllis Macaluso’s other TPK tutorials here. If you’re on Instagram, you can follow Phyllis at @fpmmac.

    *This post contains affiliate links to Amazon

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Hi, I’m Lindsey Bugbee, the illustrator, calligrapher, and author behind The Postman’s Knock (TPK). Since 2012, the TPK Blog has been a vibrant creative space filled with tutorials and lessons on modern calligraphy, hand lettering, and illustration. After publishing The Calligraphy Book, I wanted to elevate the quality of content even further—so I launched TPK Premium. You can join here to receive access to some of the internet’s best creative inspiration and project tutorials.

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4 responses

  1. Florette Avatar
    Florette
    July 7, 2023

    This looks amazing! Great job!

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  2. Jill Avatar
    Jill
    May 24, 2022

    These are beautiful and I can’t wait to give it a try!!

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  3. Katie Avatar
    Katie
    April 2, 2022

    This is so beautiful and amazing!! I’d love to try it for some upcoming birthdays and Mother’s Day.

    Is there a way to get similar results with the florals WITHOUT using a wedge brush? I have a bunch of brushes but not that one (yet) and there isn’t enough time to order one to make the cards. Off the wall question, I know, but really curious. 🙂

    Thank you for the tutorial and everything else you do!

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  4. Loan Avatar
    Loan
    March 19, 2022

    I love everything by Phyllis,; she is so talented. Thank you for this gorgeous tutorial.

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🖍️ We have a million crayons laying around be 🖍️ We have a million crayons laying around because my kids love to color (right now, their pages of choice are K-Pop Demon Hunter-themed). While I’m always down for some adult coloring, I also love to letter with crayons! In the latest TPK tutorial — link in bio — you’ll learn how to make this cozy ombré wax crayon calligraphy. 🍁 Switch up the color scheme if you’re not a pumpkin spice person! This technique looks great with light blue, dark blue, and dark purple; or light green, dark green, and dark blue. #crayoncalligraphy #crayolacrayons #waxcrayons #adultcoloring #autumnart #cozylettering #handlettering #lettering
A couple of days ago, I posted a clip from Lesson A couple of days ago, I posted a clip from Lesson 1 of the new Beginner’s Modern Calligraphy Online Course (seriously, join us — enrollment is a *steal* at $5/month, and you get complimentary tutorials [that happen to complement the course] — link in bio)! People seemed to like the story in that clip, so here’s another fun story from the same lesson. Sorry, I can’t confirm who the client was! That was a project with an NDA (Non-Disclosure Agreement). 🤐 Still: a very fun, very cool experience ... I’m grateful that calligraphy has given me cool adventures and connected me to such an amazing community. ✍️

#calligraphystory #moderncalligraphy #learncalligraphy #beginnercalligraphy #pointedpencalligraphy #calligraphy
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If you’ve been wanting to learn calligraphy, join us in this course. It is an absolute *steal* because it’s included with your TPK Premium membership ($5/month - cancel anytime). Once the course concludes in January, you can choose to purchase lifetime access to the videos; or just continue on with us to the next course. For more information, visit the link in my bio!

#learncalligraphy #pointedpencalligraphy #moderncalligraphy #pencilcalligraphy #blackwingpencil #pencilart #letteringart #handlettering #modernlettering #artisticletters #artisticlettering
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#mailart #moderncalligraphy #learncalligraphy #storytime #calligraphy #snailmail #snailmailrevolution
Some recipes aren’t just instructions — they’re memories on a page. 💛 I spent some time illustrating one of my favorites, and it turned into the sweetest (literally) keepsake. Calligraphy, watercolor, and a little patience bring the story of a dish to life.

If you’d like to try illustrating your favorite recipe, too, I shared the full process (with helpful printables) on the TPK Blog — link in bio. ✨

#illustratedrecipe #calligraphyart #watercolorillustration #creativeproject #keepsakeart #slowcreativity #handletteringlove #moderncalligraphy #calligraphyinspiration #watercolorart
As much as cooking is an art, illustrating a recip As much as cooking is an art, illustrating a recipe takes it one step further. ✨ In TPK’s latest tutorial (link in bio), I’ll show you how to create an illustrated chocolate lava cake recipe using watercolor. You’ll find helpful PDFs and step-by-step instructions so you can follow along — or use the layout to bring one of your own favorite dishes to life.

Frame it as keepsake art, or give it as a thoughtful handmade gift this holiday season. 🎁

#illustratedrecipe #watercolorart #calligraphycommunity #foodillustration #arttutorial #watercolortutorial #creativeprojects #handmadegifts #keepsakeart #thepostmansknock
✨ One of the most beloved assignments from Lesso ✨ One of the most beloved assignments from Lesson 5 of Hand Lettering 101 was this playful project: design an artistic alphabet where no two letters look the same.

The idea? JUST PLAY. 🎨 I used watercolor and a paintbrush, but many students grabbed markers, pens, or anything colorful on hand. The results were incredible — @adriennelovesletters gave it her own flair, Isabel C. made it three times, and Laura M. created a stunning version too. (You can peek at more inside the TPK Premium Discord!)

If you’re ready to try this project yourself, you’ll find the Hand Lettering 101 eCourse waiting in the TPK Catalog. Just head to the link in my bio to be taken to the TPK website. 💌

#handlettering #watercolorlettering #moderncalligraphy #letteringpractice #creativeplay #calligraphycommunity #artinspiration #calligraphyart #watercolorart #letterlove #tpkpremium #handlettering101
Had the best time writing the latest tutorial on t Had the best time writing the latest tutorial on the TPK Blog — “Drawing Lesson: Elegant Swallows” (🔗 link in bio). If you’ve never drawn birds before, swallows are an excellent place to start. Their shapes are simple once you break them down! ✍️ 

In the tutorial, you’ll find:

🪶 Step-by-step visual instructions for drawing swallows in four different movements
🪶 The “Hand-Drawn Swallows Cheat Sheet” PDF
🪶 A detailed tutorial for making the mail art shown here

On another note, I want to extend a huge THANK YOU to TPK Premium and Premium Plus members ... your support allows me to write cool detailed tutorials like this one. 🙏 You all are amazing, and I’m so proud of our community.

#mailart #snailmail #illustration #illustrationtutorial #drawingtutorial #drawinginstructions #birdart #swallowsart #calligraphy #moderncalligraphy #pointedpen
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