How to Make Your Own Diamond Kite

A diamond kite is the most well known design of all kites. This is mainly due to its very simple structure, making it one of the simplest, easiest and most common craft projects. The most important thing when making kite is to make sure everything from the frame to the paper sail is tightly wrapped together and the kite is balanced. This is all need for the kite to actually fly.

Things You'll Need

• Two dowel or bamboo sticks
• Thin garden twine or butcher cord
• Glue
• Scissors
• Knife
• Strong paper
• Ribbons

Instructions

1. Take two strong dowel or bamboo sticks--one 90 centimeters long and the other 102 centimeters--and tie them together with butcher cord or garden twine to form a cross. The sticks should meet at the very center of the short stick and a third of the distance of the long stick. Cut a notch into the ends of each stick with a knife.

2. Wrap string in a loop at the top of the cross and then run the string from one tip of each stick to the other, forming a diamond around the sticks. Fit the string into each notch, make another loop ate the bottom of the cross and wrap the end of the string around the top stick. Make sure the string is tight without bending the sticks.

3. Lay the kite frame on top of a sheet of strong paper that is 102 centimeters square. Cut away the excess material to form a diamond, making the diamond sheet two to three centimeters wider than the actual frame. Fold the extra margin of paper over the string and glue it tightly in place.

4. Tie a piece of string about 122 centimeters long to both loops on the frame to form the bridle. Tie the actual kite string to the bridle; if you don't have an actual kite string on a reel, use several meters of string and wrap it around a short dowel stick.

5. Make a tail for the kite by taking one more piece of string--about 100 to 150 centimeters--and tying small ribbons to it about 10 centimeters apart. Tie this tail to the bottom poop on the kite. A tail isn't necessary, but it can help balance the kite.

Tips & Warnings

• You can decorate the front end of the kite any way you want with paint, markers or crayons. Hold the kite upside down by the tail and see if it's balanced. If the kite leans to one side, cut and paste more paper to the sail until it is balanced.

References

• Jen's Skratchpad - Make Your Own Kite