How to Make an Origami Pinwheel

This pinwheel is a simple origami project that can be made in any size or color. Choose bright-colored paper and mount the pinwheel to make a toy that will spin in the breeze.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• White Paper
• White paper

1. Begin with one corner of a square sheet of paper pointing toward you. Fold the bottom corner to the top corner. Crease and unfold.

2. Rotate the paper so that the left corner is now pointing toward you. Fold the bottom corner to the top corner. Crease and unfold.

3. Fold all four corners to the center. Crease and unfold. Turn the paper over with any edge facing you.

4. Fold the left and right edges to the center, using crease lines as a guide.

5. Fold the bottom edge to the center. Crease and unfold.

6. Push the bottom right corner in toward the center until the point comes to the center line. The diagonal crease you made in step 6 will "tent" up and a fold will be made at the bottom horizontal crease. The right corner point will now be lying flat along the center line. Repeat for the bottom left corner.

7. Grab both of the flaps you just made and gently pull them taut. The points will face outward and the bottom point will come up to lie flat.

8. Turn the paper 180 degrees and repeat steps 5, 6 and 7.

9. Fold the top right flap up along the existing crease line so that it points up. Fold the bottom left flap down along the existing crease line until it points straight down.

Tips & Warnings

• Paper made especially for origami is available at most art and craft stores.
• Practice on plain, inexpensive paper until you have the techniques down.
• Unless otherwise noted, all creases should be made as sharply as possible. Sharp creases are needed to make later folds and will often be referred to as guidelines.
• Try running a pencil over folds to sharpen the crease.
• Mount your pinwheel by placing a thumbtack through the center of the wheel and attaching it to a pencil end, straw or thin stick.
• Besides being dangerously sharp, thumbtacks can be a choking hazard. Keep these away from young children and infants, and supervise other children.

[AmoenaLillium]

on 10/1/2007 ...also, pictures/diagrams would be quite helpful.

[AmoenaLillium]

on 10/1/2007 this was difficult to follow