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Colorful knitting, crochet, latch hook and macrame from craft book author & designer Heidi Gustad.

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How-to: Make a Perfect Paper Pinwheel

December 18, 2012 2 Comments

How-to: Make the Perfect Pinwheel | HandsOccupied.com

Pinwheels are a great way to add some vintagey flair to a Christmas present, birthday party or wedding decor, and they’re actually really easy to make. In today’s post, I want to share how I get mine folded just right every time.

Supplies

12″ scrapbooking paper/cardstock

paper scoring tool or a ruler and pencil

heavy duty packing tape

double sided tape

scissors

paper cutter (optional)

Directions

To achieve the perfect pinwheel, I always use my paper scoring tool (it was only $12 at JoAnn’s) and a paper cutter. If you’re really careful, you can use a pencil, ruler, and scissors in place of these tools. It will take longer, but it’s an alternative to buying specialized devices. All of the instructions in this tutorial will refer to the scoring tool, just bear that in mind. 

How-to: Make the Perfect Pinwheel | HandsOccupied.com

Cut your paper exactly in half by scoring it at the 6 inch point and cutting it with a scissors or paper cutter.

How-to: Make the Perfect Pinwheel | HandsOccupied.com

^^It was really hard to make the scoring lines visible in the pictures. Sorry about how saturated they are!^^

Then, cut one of those halves in half again at the 3 inch mark.

How-to: Make the Perfect Pinwheel | HandsOccupied.com

Then, score all all the way down the long (12 inch) side of each 3 inch wide piece of paper. Make a mark every half an inch.

How-to: Make the Perfect Pinwheel | HandsOccupied.com

Fold both pieces of paper accordion style, beginning as shown, with the colorful side folded back to start.

How-to: Make the Perfect Pinwheel | HandsOccupied.com How-to: Make the Perfect Pinwheel | HandsOccupied.com

Cut four thin strips of packing tape and stick them someplace handy. Fold each accordioned piece of paper into a fan shape and secure with packing tape.

How-to: Make the Perfect Pinwheel | HandsOccupied.com

Then, use double sided tape (I prefer to use the double sided tape that comes on a roller) to stick the centers of each fan together. Flip the pinwheel over.

How-to: Make the Perfect Pinwheel | HandsOccupied.com

How-to: Make the Perfect Pinwheel | HandsOccupied.com

Place a thin piece of packing tape as shown below. Fold the tape over the gap between each fan piece and tape to secure the edges of each fan together. Repeat on the other seam of the pinwheel.

How-to: Make the Perfect Pinwheel | HandsOccupied.com

How-to: Make the Perfect Pinwheel | HandsOccupied.com

Ta da! Knowing how to make a good pinwheel comes in more handy than you’d think. Here are a few projects I’ve done using pinwheels:

How-to: Wedding Fascinator | HandsOccupied.com

ribbon pinwheel wedding fascinator

Peppermint Schnapps Swirl Cupcakes | HandsOccupied.com

peppermint pinwheel decorations for a party

The picture at the top of this post shows how I wrapped a Christmas present using the pinwheel from the tutorial photos, adding just a bit of baker’s twine to secure the pinwheel accent!

 

Filed Under: DIY Wedding, How-to, Parties Tagged With: decor, diy, How-to, paper crafts, parties, pinwheel, wedding

About Heidi

Heidi Gustad is a craft book author & content creator in love with primary colors & vintage vibes. She specializes in knitting, crochet, latch hook and macramé, and her first book, Latch Hook: 12 Projects for the Modern Maker, is out now!

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Comments

  1. jackie mabbott

    December 10, 2013 at 10:47 am

    absolutely lovely, and so well explained, thank you.

    Reply

Trackbacks

  1. Bone Folder v. Scoring Board | WhimseyboxWhimseybox says:
    January 10, 2014 at 11:00 am

    […] Paper Pinwheels via Hands Occupied […]

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Heidi Gustad from Hands Occupied / Craft Book Author and Knitting, Crochet, Latch Hook and Macrame Designer

Hi! I’m Heidi (she/her/hers), a craft book author & pattern designer specializing in knitting, crochet, latch hook & macrame. Really anything with yarn! ❤️  My work combines vintage and modern design elements, featuring bold colors and graphic motifs.

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Sneaking in a few stitches in the shade. 😎 Sneaking in a few stitches in the shade. 😎
Another morning of filming! One of the knitting vi Another morning of filming! One of the knitting videos I’d like to release soon is a big overview of how to swatch and why - if you have any questions or favorite tips, let me know. 
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To be honest, I want to be able to link to this video as a resource when I get angry gauge questions, so please don’t hesitate to share your best tips. Together, we can tame the knitting Karens. 😆
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A big issue I've had in the last year is putting t A big issue I've had in the last year is putting together new design work but not doing any independent releases of them. Chalk it up to anxiety, burn out, or whatever but here we are. 
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Last week I turned 35, so in honor of that here’s 3 things: 
❤️ a picture of me at my most stylish 
💛 a little glimpse at some of the design things I've recently been working on
💙a promise that I will be releasing some of the pictured designs this year. Getting back in the swing of things after taking it easy is hard 😆 - wish me luck!
Like a riding a bike! June guarded the neighborhoo Like a riding a bike! June guarded the neighborhood while I shot a new crochet tutorial today. With any luck, editing will go smoothly & I’ll be posting new videos to YouTube regularly soon! Got any requests for tutorial topics? 
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Pattern: modified #soldotnacrop sweater / yarn: various from my stash
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