DIY Paper Snowflakes Idea

DIY paper snowflakes idea

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This step by step guide will teach you how to make SIX pointed DIY paper snowflakes idea. Most people make (and most how-tos teach) snowflakes with four or eight points. Real snowflakes in nature form with six points (or occasionally three if they formed weird) so I choose to make my own with six points.
Be sure that you follow each step carefully. Each step is one fold, but some steps have two pictures shown to help explain things, so please read the description underneath.
Instructables.com doesn't always show all of the steps on one page, so hit "next" to go on to the next step. Steps 4-6 tend to be the trickiest, so step 6 has an extra image to hopefully help explain better for those who are having difficulty.
All you will need for this is paper and scissors. Some people like to use fancy paper, but I use plain white copy paper because somehow the simplicity of white is more beautiful to me.
If you want to view a gallery of my DIY paper snowflakes idea, see me on Flickr: Paper Snowflake Gallery.
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Step 1: Start With a Square
First, begin with a square piece of copy paper.
I have outlined the edges of my paper in blue to make it easier to follow along with the steps. As I fold, I keep the paper in place, so you shouldn't need to rotate or flip over the paper to follow along (unless otherwise stated). Just fold it exactly as it shows.
(TO MAKE A SQUARE: You can make a square from a rectangular piece of paper simply by folding one corner down to form an isosceles triangle and trimming off the excess paper. See second picture.)
I usually make two snowflakes for every 8.5"x11" piece of paper, so I first cut the paper in half, and then make a square from each half. This makes a snowflake about 5" across. If you're just learning to make snowflakes, using a full piece of paper for each DIY paper snowflakes idea may be easier to practice with.

Step 2: Fold in Half Diagonally.
Fold the square of paper diagonally to make a triangle.
(Note that I have marked the center of the paper square with a yellow star, as well as outlines of what the paper looked like before it was folded. This is just to help make a reference point for following along.)

Step 3: Fold in Half Again.
Fold this larger triangle in half to make a smaller triangle

Step 4: Fold One Third.
Imagine this triangle in thirds (as shown in the first picture), and then fold the right "third" over, as shown in the second picture. If you want to be precise and have a protractor, each "third" in this step is a 30 degree angle.

Step 5: Fold Again.
Fold the left third over. Try to get all of the folds to line up as close as possible for the most symmetrical snowflake.

Step 6: Cut the "top" Off at an Angle.
Flip your folded paper over so that you're looking at the back. Then, cut off the top of the paper at an angle. Make sure to cut if off so that all remaining layers of paper are equal. As you can see, I'm basically cutting off all of those excess blue edges.
Cutting at an angle is what makes the points of the snowflake. Eventually, you'll learn to cut at different angles to make snowflakes with points that are more or less sharp.
BONUS: The extra image shown in this step is from a worksheet I made for a class, which just re-explains steps 4-6 for those who may have a harder time visualizing the "fold in thirds" part. If you've already got the hang of it, just ignore the second picture and continue on to step 7.

Step 7: Shape It!
This is where your imagination comes in. Begin cutting away from the sides of the paper. Usually, cutting small triangles from the sides is easiest, but don't forget to try other shapes.
Be careful not to cut all the way from one side to the other, or else you'll chop your snowflake in half!