Tuesday, November 20, 2012

Sheet Music Spiral Ornament

This is a variation of the paper ornament found on this blog:  http://www.tinkerwithink.com/2011/12/xmas-blitz-day-18-paper-snowflake.html

I had started making this ornament with vintage sheet music, but the paper was too brittle and was breaking with every tiny crease and roll since each section is made with a 2 inch square. So I decided to make a much bigger version for hanging in windows or archways instead of on a tree. 

I started by cutting a 6 inch x 6 inch square of paper. 

Fold it diagonally. Start from the outside edge, measure in 1 inch and make a mark. Measure 1 more inch from that mark and make another mark, and then one more time. (You should have 3 marks). Then flip it over and start from the other end and do the same thing until you have 6 marks total. 

You will then cut a straight line, following the direction of the paper edge, starting at each mark you made. I found it easiest to do both of the outer most marks first and then work my way in. Cut until there is between 3/4 to 1 inch between the right and left cut lines in the center.  You do not want to go too far into the center or it will not stay in tact (just like the center fold on a paper snowflake). 




When you have all of your lines cut, it should look like this:
 

Next you will unfold the paper and find the small center square. Take a small piece of double sided tape and secure one corner to the other to create a small rolled paper loop.

Turn the paper over to the other side. Take the next center square and do the same thing, attaching the corners together with double sided tape.  Repeat this 2 more times, flipping the paper over to make the loops on opposite sides.

Voila! You can use a small paper punch to punch out a hole to loop string through to hang it from if you'd like. 

I hung 6 of these in a window at various lengths.