Instructions for How to Make Beautiful Paper Snowflakes

Create paper snowflakes for holiday window decorations.

Beautiful paper snowflakes can be made from standard computer paper and a pair of scissors. Creating these snowflakes is a good holiday family activity for all ages, including young children using safety scissors. After the snowflakes have been made, they may be taped on to a windowpane. Once the basics of snowflake-making have been mastered, any number of designs is possible. You will find that no two paper snowflakes are exactly alike.

Things You'll Need

• White computer paper
• Ruler
• Pencil
• Scissors
• Clear tape

Instructions

1. Cut the computer paper into a 8 1/2-inch square with the scissors.

2. Fold the square in half, then in half again, carefully matching edges to create a 4 1/4-inch square.

3. Fold a diagonal line through the small square, matching corner points to create a triangle.

4. Mark a series of triangles or half-circles on each edge of the folded triangle with the pencil. Cut out the triangles and half circles.

5. Unfold the snowflake and attach it to a windowpane with clear tape.

Tips & Warnings

• Use aluminum foil to make shiny snowflakes, or trace the paper snowflake on poster board, cut it out, and add paint and glitter for a tree ornament.

References

• J. Garner: Paper Snowflakes
• KinderArt.com: Paper Snowflake Pattern