Cutting Using a Cricut Vinyl Cutter
This project was inspired by the Giant 3D Lotus project available on the Cricut Design Space. If you have a Cricut vinyl cutter, you can download that project, resize it to your desired size and cut the shapes.
To perfectly fit the Circuit Playground Express, I sized this project down to 50% by selecting ALL shapes at once and dragging the handles until the petals were about 2" across instead of 4" across.
I ended up making a 75% size as well, and then making the full sized version and nested all three to make my giant lotus flower. But any one of these options is beautiful on its own as well!
I also cut out two of the hexagonal shapes instead of just one, as in the project directions, in order to make a pocket for the Circuit Playground. I cut the flower's yellow center out of construction paper.
Cut Settings
To cut the 30 gauge vinyl, I used the "Non-adhesive Vinyl - 20 g" setting and edited it to do four cut passes instead of two. If you don't know how to do this, here's a video showing how it's done.
Cutting By Hand
For young makers, it's sometimes easier and more fun to use scissors to cut out the shapes. This can also lend a more organic look to your finished flower since there will be slight variations in the petal shapes -- just the way nature does it.
Download the template below and print it out. Cut out the petal shapes and then trace them onto your vinyl using a fine point dry-erase marker. Or if your vinyl has a sheet of protective plastic acetate on it, you can use a sharpie on the acetate before you peel it off.
Cut:
- 12 of the larger petals
- 12 of the smaller petals,
- 2 copies of the hexagonal shape
- 2 copies of the flower center
The flower center can be a tricky thing to cut out neatly, but hey -- the shape is organic, so it doesn't need to be perfect. Cut it from yellow construction paper so it doesn't matter if you cut on the lines or not. Or, find a little bit of maribou or garland to use as the flower center.
Start by making all the petals 3D by slightly overlapping the two halves of the petal at the bottom. Secure each petal with tape. I found it worked best to wrap the tape around the bottom of the petal so both sides are secure.
Organize the petals into two piles, with the larger petals in one pile and the smaller petals in the other. Place the 3 large petals on the outside edge of one of your hexagons, using every other side, and tape them down.
Place 3 more large petals in the remaining spaces so all six sides have a petal. Set this piece aside.
Make another of these 6-petal sections using the second hexagon, but this time place the petals just a little bit closer to the center. Continue with the small petals until all the petals are used up.
Place your flower center into the middle of your flower and tape it down with a loop of tape.
Add the Lights
Plug it into the wall with your USB cable, or use a USB battery pack to make it mobile!
Put a circle of tape on the back of your Circuit Playground and tape it right in the center of the first 6-petal panel you made. Plug in the USB cable and thread it out between the petals.
Put another circle of tape on the back of the second 18-petal panel and place it inside the first panel, centered over the Circuit Playground.
Press the center of the flower to turn your lights on and off. Beautiful!
Page last edited August 25, 2025
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