Paper Craft

Click on the pictures or the text links to take you to the instructions for original designs, or to linked Web sites. Feel free to share the designs marked as 'original' (see the Creative Commons license at the bottom of the page for details).

	Wreath Did you know that if you tie a strip of paper into a knot very carefully, then flatten it, the knot forms a perfect pentagon? This original design for a little no-glue 7-sided wreath makes use of that fact. Tie 7 strips of paper (I used strips cut from colored 3x5 cards), then slip them together. Fold and trim the loose ends, then tuck them in, and you end up with this little wonder. (Click the picture for numbered instructions that walk you through the steps for one edge - just repeat 7 times.)
	Pentagon Box Another no-glue original design. Cut out both pentagon designs, fold, and tuck white tabs into side edges (as shown in photo at left). One side will probably be a little bigger than the other, so use the bigger one as the lid.
	Paradise (1) Print. Ordinary printer paper is fine, though heavier paper is probably better. (2) Cut out. (3) Cut along the 4 red inside edges. (4) Fold along all edges. (5) Tuck in the flaps. (No glue required.) Now you've got a pair of dice. Hint - no flap overlaps another, except the last one. This one's an original design.
	Agreeable Sheep Follow the link to the incredible Flying Pig website, where you'll find phantasmagoric mechanisms made out of paper. Yes, paper. Most are for sale, but this Oh-So-Agreeable Sheep is free. Download, print, cut, paste, and turn the handle, and he agrees with your every statement. If you're more of a kitty-cat fan than a sheep aficianado, you'll probably prefer the free Cat-o-Log model below. Also free from Flying Pig is the...
	Origami Envelope I've been trying to come up with an original design for folding an 8 1/2" x 11" sheet of paper to make its own envelope, but I gave up after seeing this elegant and simple design on the Flying Pig website. Follow the link and download the instructions to make your own. (Seal it with a sticker.) It's cool, and it saves a tree. NEW! My subnmission of this envelope was accepted for publication in issue #5 of MAKE magazine! Woot!