How to Make 3 Different 3D Snowflakes Out of Paper

3D paper snowflakes look magnificent hanging in a window or on a wall, and add a bit more pizazz than regular flat paper snowflakes. Not to mention they’re easy to make, and can be put together with supplies you probably already have at home. We’ll show you how to craft 3 different, simple styles of 3D snowflakes to add some wintry cheer to your home.

Things You Should Know

Fold a square piece of paper diagonally down the center, then again to create a small triangle.
Cut 3 slits into the triangle’s large, central fold. Then unfold the paper.
Bring the corners of the innermost cuts together and fasten them with tape or glue. Flip the paper over, and fasten the next pair. Flip and repeat for the remaining cuts.
Repeat the process to create 5 more snowflake arms, then fasten the arms together at the center to create a basic 3D snowflake.

Method 1

Method 1 of 3:

Basic 3D Snowflake

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1
Fold a square sheet of paper in half diagonally, twice. Take one corner of the sturdy square paper, and fold it to meet the opposite corner to make a triangle. Then, fold the triangle in half to make a smaller triangle.^{[1]
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- If you’re using a rectangular piece of paper, position it vertically and fold the top left corner down to meet the right edge of the paper, then cut off the excess paper peeking out from the bottom to make a square sheet of paper.
2
Cut three slits in the triangle. Position the scissors along the large fold, parallel to the longest edge of the triangle. Cut almost all the way to the other edge, leaving about 1 in (2.5 cm) of space. Then, move the scissors toward the point of the triangle, and make a parallel cut that also stops about 1 in (2.5 cm) from the other edge. Repeat this cut once more, to make a final, smaller cut. Then unfold the paper completely.^{[2]
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- For a more intricate snowflake, make 1-2 more evenly spaced cuts.
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3
Roll and tape the first 2 innermost corners together to form a tube. Position your unfolded square so that it resembles a diamond. Then, take the middle corners nearest the center fold, and overlap them. Tape these two pieces together.^{[3]
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- Alternatively, secure the corners together with glue for a cleaner look. Just be sure to hold them together with your fingers until the glue dries.
Turn the paper over so that the tube you just made faces the table. Take the next two paper strips and pull them together and tape together as before, securing the strips on the opposite side of the snowflake as the first pair. Your 3D snowflake is starting to take shape!^{[4]
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Turn the paper over again, and join the next 2 corners. Repeat with each pair of strips until they’ve all been joined, turning the paper over between each pair. You now have the first point of your snowflake. Set it aside for later.^{[5]
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Repeat the steps, folding, cutting, and joining the corners of 5 more sheets of square paper, until you have 5 identical points for your 3D snowflake.^{[6]
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7
Staple 3 of the points together at the tip. Join 3 of the completed, folded sections together at one end, and staple them so that they’re secured. Then do the same for the remaining 3 pieces. Now you have 2 large pieces consisting of 3 points or "arms" each.^{[7]
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- For smaller snowflakes, it may be easier to use double-sided tape or white glue in place of staples.
8
Staple the 2 large pieces together. Join the 2 large pieces at the middle, where each of the 3 smaller pieces have already been stapled. Now all 6 points of your snowflake are joined, but we’re not done just yet. Staple the outer sections where the arms touch to make the snowflake sturdier. Ta-dah! Your 3D paper snowflake is complete.^{[8]
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- Fasten your 3D snowflake to lollipop sticks using a push pin to make a pinwheel.

Method 2

Method 2 of 3:

Flowery Snowflake

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Place the paper on a flat surface and fold it in half so that one corner touches the opposite corner, creating a triangle. Then, fold the triangle in half to create a smaller triangle. Finally, repeat the fold to make an even smaller triangle.^{[9]
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Using a pencil, mark the center of the folded side of the triangle. Then, draw a curved line from that point to the far corner of the folded triangle. Use a pair of scissors to cut across the line, creating a petal shape.^{[10]
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Starting at the long, straight edge of the paper, draw an arc that follows the rounded edge of the petal, and stops about 0.25 in (0.64 cm) away from the long edge. Make a similar line beneath it, so that both lines resemble an incomplete rainbow. Then, use scissors to cut along both lines.^{[11]
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Once unfolded, your snowflake will resemble a flower with 4 petals, each of the petals cut into 3 smaller petals. Add a pea-sized dab of liquid craft glue to the center of the flower.^{[12]
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Working 1 at a time, gently take hold of the center petals of each of the 4 larger petals, and press their tips onto the dab of glue. Hold all 4 in place for 30-40 seconds, or until they’ve been secured by the glue.^{[13]
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Repeat the process to create another 3D flower. Then, glue the backs of both flowers together with another pea-sized dab of glue. Let it dry for a couple minutes and, voila! Your super-cute, flowery, 3D snowflake is complete.^{[14]
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Method 3

Method 3 of 3:

Accordion-Style Snowflake

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To fold a piece of paper into thirds, first bend it so that the opposite edges touch, and press a finger into the bend to make a partial fold, or “crimp.” Then unfold the paper and fold the opposite edges toward the center. For this snowflake, make the edges overlap slightly, then use a glue stick to glue 1 edge onto the other to make a tall rectangle.^{[15]
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Fold the paper so that the shorter edges come together. Then unfold it and apply glue along the center seam, where you glued the paper before. Press the 2 halves together to complete the hamburger fold, creating a smaller, layered rectangle.^{[16]
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Cut a jagged pattern out of the rectangle. Starting from the bottom of one long edge, make large, triangular cuts out of 3 of the rectangle’s sides, sort of like you would when making a regular paper snowflake. Improvise and get creative, but make your cuts relatively simple, and avoid cutting into the large fold at the bottom of the rectangle.^{[17]
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- If you’re unsure of how to cut, trace a christmas tree design into the rectangle and use that as a template for your paper snowflake pattern.
- This piece of paper will serve as the first part of your snowflake, and you’ll use it as a template for the rest of the pieces.
4
Cut and fold 4 identical rectangles. Repeat the folding and gluing process to make 4 more paper rectangles. Then, using the first rectangle as a template, trace its pattern onto the other 4 rectangles, and cut out the same shape as before.^{[18]
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- You’ll now have 5 identical pieces to your snowflake.
Make a line of glue vertically down the center of the first piece, and then another line along the bottom fold. Take another snowflake piece and press it on top of the first, so that the shapes line up evenly. Repeat the process until all 5 snowflake pieces are glued together.^{[19]
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Glue the front of the stack to the back of the stack. This is where the magic happens: Apply glue to the top of the paper stack as you did before. Then, pick up the stack and gently bring the top face around to the back, unfolding and revealing your 3D snowflake! Press the faces together to secure them.^{[20]
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- Experiment with different cutting patterns on your next snowflakes to make a unique and mesmerizing snowflake each time.

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Why do we have to make 7 more parts to make a snowflake?

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This answer was written by one of our trained team of researchers who validated it for accuracy and comprehensiveness.

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The snowflake is made out of 7 joined pieces of folded paper. You can use more or fewer to make a larger or smaller snowflake, but we wouldn't recommend using any fewer than about 5 pieces.

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Do you have to use a stapler?

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Nope! You can secure the snowflakes using glue or tape if you don't have a stapler on-hand.

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What is the math involved in this?

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This answer was written by one of our trained team of researchers who validated it for accuracy and comprehensiveness.

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You don't have to perform any calculations, simply eyeball it for evenly spaced folds and cuts. Any imperfections will be mostly hidden and unnoticeable once the snowflakes are assembled.

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Tips

Use different sizes of paper for a larger or smaller snowflake.

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Try scrapbook paper with different patterns on each side for an interesting look.

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