Learn how to do an origami Christmas snowflake Things you will need 6 evenly sized squares of paper - for that extra sparkle try our range of James Cropper speciality papers. The size of your paper square can vary from 4” to 10” (10cm - 25cm). The paper should be of a good strength to hold up the snowflake structure. •

Paper

•

Scissors

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Tape

•

Stapler

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Liquid glitter (optional)

•

Glue

Steps

1 2

Assemble the materials. Refer to “Things You’ll Need”, at the beginning of this tutorial.

Fold each of the 6 pieces of paper in half, diagonally. If the paper you are using does not make a perfect

triangle, cut off the rectangular edge that sticks out and make it align perfectly.

3

Cut 3 lines on each side of the triangle from the folded edge; make sure not to cut through the unfold-

ed paper edges. The cut lines should be parallel to one another each side and come close to meeting in the middle but not touching; leave a small space between them. To make this easier, you can fold the triangle in half. This way you’ll cut both sides at once, making a symmetrical snowflake. This might not be suitable for thicker paper, since the number of layers makes it difficult to cut through.

4

Unfold your paper and turn it so that the diamond shape is facing you for working with.

5

Still keeping your paper diamond side-up, roll the first two innermost paper lines together

to form a tube. Tape these two pieces together. You should see triangle shapes on each side of the roll.

6

Turn the diamond over to the other side. Take the next two paper lines and pull them togeth-

er on the opposite side of the tube and tape together as before. This will be a more rounded shape and wider than the first tube.

7

Keep turning the paper and joining the paper lines together on opposite side until all paper

lines have been joined.

8

Repeat steps 3 - 7 with the remaining 5 pieces of paper. You may also now cut the

paper en masse.

9

Join 3 of the completed rolled pieces together at one end and staple together using the other

hand. Do the other 3 pieces the same way. Now you will have 2 pieces consisting of 3 strands or “arms” each.

Staple the two new pieces together in the middle. You are almost done!

Lastly, staple where each of the 6 arms meet. This ensures that the snowflake shape is pulled into place. See illustration at top for the finished snowflake.

Tips store very well (easily crushed) and you might be throwing them out. Of course, you can always pull off the additional decorated pieces and keep for another time or craft. Be patient. This is not a craft to be rushed but it is easy to make if you proceed slowly and carefully. For extra special results, mirror two pieces Larger snowflakes: If you want larger

next to each other.

snowflakes, use larger paper. You will probably need to cut more lines though;

WARNINGS

work it out from how large your piece of paper is. Don’t try enlarging your snow-

Be patient when cutting the parallel lines,

flakes until you are comfortable with the

so that you don’t over cut to the other

method of making them with the suggested

edges or accidentally cut into the line on

paper size first.

the opposite side; if this happens, start again with a new piece of paper.

Paper colour variations: Experiment by mixing different James Cropper Paper col-

If you want a “perfect” snowflake, make

our variations to match your home decor.

sure the lines you cut are identical for each square.

Decoration ideas: If you want to “jazz up” your snowflakes, put liquid glitter on the

Work slow and steady. Rushing could lead

snowflake along various parts of the paper

to a ruined snowflake, or your hands being

lines. Silver, gold, red or green are probably

cut up by scissors.

the most suitable colours to use. Or you could think of other additions; the author tried tiny buttons and stick-on costume gems one year and they looked exquisite. Just remember though, that these do not