Butterfly Ornament
Easy to make origami butterfly.
Supplies
What you need:
A piece of wire at least 4 inches long (this can be a pipe cleaner, jewelry wire... anything you like)
2 Lucky red envelopes (any type of paper is a good substitute. such as wrapping paper or origami paper)
Red envelopes can be bought in places like Chinatown and are quite cheep (usually a pack of 20 for a dollar)
If you choose to use some form of paper, use either a square (3 x 3 inches) or a rectangle (2.5 x 3.5 inches).
The longer the wire is, the longer the antennas will be so it's up to you, but better too long than too short (you can always cut it later).
A piece of wire at least 4 inches long (this can be a pipe cleaner, jewelry wire... anything you like)
2 Lucky red envelopes (any type of paper is a good substitute. such as wrapping paper or origami paper)
Red envelopes can be bought in places like Chinatown and are quite cheep (usually a pack of 20 for a dollar)
If you choose to use some form of paper, use either a square (3 x 3 inches) or a rectangle (2.5 x 3.5 inches).
The longer the wire is, the longer the antennas will be so it's up to you, but better too long than too short (you can always cut it later).
Fold
The envelopes make up either the bottom two wings, or the top.
For the bottom wings, you will fold the envelope accordion style parallel to the edge of the envelope (if you are using rectangle envelopes, you can fold along either the short end or the long end depending on how wide you want the bottom wings to be. I usually fold the envelope so that the long end is scrunched up)
For the top wings, you also fold accordion style, however instead of folding parallel to the edge, you fold parallel to the diagonal.
For the bottom wings, you will fold the envelope accordion style parallel to the edge of the envelope (if you are using rectangle envelopes, you can fold along either the short end or the long end depending on how wide you want the bottom wings to be. I usually fold the envelope so that the long end is scrunched up)
For the top wings, you also fold accordion style, however instead of folding parallel to the edge, you fold parallel to the diagonal.
Assembly
Fold the wire in half.
Find the center (approximately) of both the top wing and the bottom wing. Pinch the center so that the accordion folds fan out from where your fingers are. Place the top wing above the bottom, so that you are pinching them together.
Take the folded wire and wrap it around the pinched centers. You can wrap it more than once for aesthetic effect, but once around should be good enough to hold the wings in place. Twist the two ends of the wire together so that they are secure.
You can curl the ends of the wire or leave them straight. You can also softly flatten the ends of the folds to make the wings bigger.
Find the center (approximately) of both the top wing and the bottom wing. Pinch the center so that the accordion folds fan out from where your fingers are. Place the top wing above the bottom, so that you are pinching them together.
Take the folded wire and wrap it around the pinched centers. You can wrap it more than once for aesthetic effect, but once around should be good enough to hold the wings in place. Twist the two ends of the wire together so that they are secure.
You can curl the ends of the wire or leave them straight. You can also softly flatten the ends of the folds to make the wings bigger.
The Hanging
Thread a string through the wire and tie it into a loop. This will allow you to hang the butterfly.
And you are done!
And you are done!