Welcome to the first day of this year's 12 Days of Holiday Crafts on Dwell Well! Throughout the next couple of weeks, I will post instructions and tutorials for twelve craft projects. I hope you follow along and let me know what you're making this year!

Today’s craft is perhaps the simplest of the bunch. You will only need two basic supplies, and it takes very little time. Newspaper snowflakes are also a fantastic sustainable decoration--bonus! (This is also a great craft for kids!)

See the slideshow for a photo tutorial.

You will need:
an old newspaper
Scissors (a nice pointed end helps)

1. Cut the newspaper into squares (I used 9”, 7” and 5” for variety).
2. Fold square in half diagonally (matching points) to make a triangle, then in half again.
3. Next, fold the triangle in thirds, being careful to make sure you have a clean point and the edges match. (This is the key—the thirds help you get a rounded snowflake rather than that square snowflake you made in elementary school). 
4. Cut off the top along the straight edge. 
5. Start cutting the snowflake. 
6. Unfold and iron flat to discover the snowflake within!
   

Tips:
-   The more you cut away, the more delicate and snowflakey your final product will be. You can draw out a pattern first, or cut freehand.
-   Cutting away one of the folded edges, making it shorter than the other, will give you more defined “points” to your snowflake. Cutting evenly along both sides will give you a very round flake.

Finished snowflakes can be taped to windows or hung with varying lengths of thread. I like the look of newsprint, but you could also use parchment or baking paper. Happy cutting!

 

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