Karen Bullitt, founder of Fauxtanicals, discovered her inner artist after turning fifty. “I never had formal art training,” she said. “But after exploring the art of creating paper flowers for a birthday party, I fell in love with the process.”
Karen explores the art of paper flowers by cutting each petal from Italian, German and fine crepe paper by hand. “This isn’t the crepe paper from your child’s birthday party,” she said. “I use an extremely heavy 180-gram durable crepe paper that holds its shape.”
This Dallas paper artist loves what she’s doing and can always be found cutting and pasting. “I have a twin sister who thinks she serves as my business manager,” said Karen. While the sisters have very similar personalities Karen enjoys pursuing the art of creation, while her sister helps with production, cutting and business details.
Her original sculptural designs and elegant wall art are gaining notice and Karen is still amazed when she is described as an artist. Many people purchase her work to decorate their homes and she sells her designs through Nordstrom Galleria and Nordstrom Stonebriar.
Currently, Karen doesn’t take custom orders. She doesn’t know what she is going to make from one week to the next. “I have to have a certain energy behind a piece to be invested in what I’m creating. That’s the freedom of being an artist.”
“At a certain age you begin doing things that fulfill you and make you happy,” said Karen. “And making these flowers does that.” Each one of her creations is unique and one-of-a-kind based on her first-hand experience with flowers that she sees in stores, photographs and nature.
Karen cites an exception to the rule with a multi-colored 3-dimensional freestanding flower that she recently created. “Not everything I create is found in nature, but I did see those colors in my mind!” She’s currently exploring designs that only present half of a flower mounted on a wall; extending from the wall the petals create a stunning effect.
There is life after 50 and sometimes that life brings a certain sense of artistry. “There’s something inside of me and I just want to bring it out,” said Karen. “I like to bring joy and happiness to people’s lives.”
To view Karen’s paper flower sculptures, visit her online store at myfauxtanicals.com.
