by Jane Rosemarin
Edited by Sara Adams

The original Winter Star from 1999, folded from rag paper decorated with Caran d'Ache water-soluble crayons and metallic acrylic paint.

It can be awe-inspiring to see a flat sheet of paper transformed into a splendid three-dimensional origami design. Going from flat to flat is more mundane. But it has its place: the mailbox, for example.

The Star in Star variation folded from hand-printed letterpress paper by Brookfield.

I’ve been designing models to send as holiday greetings for two decades, and I joined an origami artist trading card group a few years ago, so there are many flat models in my portfolio.

The Windmill Star also decorated with water-soluble crayons and metallic acrylics.

One of my earliest flat designs is the Winter Star (so named because it was designed in winter). Over the years, I’ve made and mailed several versions. Diagrams for the original and three variations accompany this article, and some even have an alternate 3D finish.


Click on the photo to download folding instructions for the Winter Star and variations.

Click to watch the video tutorial by Sara Adams.