Origami Ideas for Valentine's Day

In Japan, where the art of origami originated, it is customary to give each other paper crafts for good luck. Why not adopt this tradition and make your loved ones an unusual gift for February 14th. All you need is paper and a little patience.

This article provides detailed step-by-step instructions with diagrams through which you will learn how to make a gift box, origami valentine, lotus flower, envelope with a heart-shaped decoration, and a voluminous modular rose. Such ideas will be interesting both for children who want to please their mothers with colorful crafts, and for adults who want to complement their gift with cute little things.

To make your Valentine's Day gift truly memorable and look original, you need to figure out how to pack it beautifully. If you have any difficulties when choosing a gift box in a store, it does not matter, because you can make such packaging yourself. Moreover, it is very simple and will take no more than 5 minutes of your time.

So, you will need 2 square sheets of paper - one for the box and one for the lid. You can use either plain white or specialty scrapbooking paper with a fancy design.

The only condition - the sheet for the bottom of the box should be 1 centimeter smaller than for the top, so that the lid fits freely on the bottom. For example, let one square be 30x30 cm and the other 29x29 cm.

• First, sketch out the diagonals by folding the opposite corners of the square. Then fold the opposite sides, marking two more lines. You should get a picture that resembles a snowflake.
• Bend all 4 corners of the square, connecting the ends at the point where the marked lines intersect. It turns out something like a square envelope.
• Bend the sides of the envelope along the previously marked centerlines. Then open and repeat the same for the other side.
• Now lift the upper and lower triangles of the envelope, fold the blank along the two marked long lines on the sides and straighten it in the desired direction as shown in the diagram.
• Using your fingers, pull both sides of the workpiece towards each other, forming the sides of the future box - thanks to the outlined lines, this is easy to do. We bend the petals and straighten them inside the bottom of the box. You can apply a little glue to fix them. That's all. One part of the box is ready, the second is done in the same way.

For information on how to properly fold the box, see the next video.

And in order to match the box with Valentine's Day, fold origami in the form of the traditional symbol of the holiday - a heart as a decoration for the lid. You can also decorate a postcard with such origami, or just present it as a valentine.

Step-by-step instructions and a diagram of its implementation of the heart.

• Take a sheet of red (or any other color) paper measuring 15x15 cm. Fold it in half and unfold it to outline the lines. Repeat on the other side. The square is now divided into 4 parts.
• Take the side of the square closest to you and fold it over to the middle.
• Turn the workpiece over. Fold the top corners towards the middle as if you were starting a paper airplane.
• Turn the workpiece over again. If you did everything correctly, then a small pocket has formed in the resulting corner. Now bend the right and left sides of the workpiece towards the middle.
• Take the bottom right corner and stretch it towards the intended fold. Repeat the same on the left side. It turned out to be a rhombus.
• Take the bottom corner of the rhombus and pull it towards the top. Now you see that there are two pockets at the bottom, resembling shorts in appearance. Insert your finger into the middle of each "leg" of these "shorts" and gently press down on the top. It turned out something like a bow with voluminous corners sticking out in the middle. These same corners must be pressed so that the workpiece becomes flat.
• Open the workpiece. Tuck the bottom corner into the pocket.
• Now we need to work on the upper part of the heart. Fold the corners to the seam. Fold the resulting two sharp ends in half, forming rounded parts.

How to make this adorable heart without glue and scissors, see the next video.

Lotus is one of the most popular origami stories for beginners. According to Japanese beliefs, a lotus figurine presented as a gift brings happiness. It is very easy and quick to make such a souvenir yourself.

• Take a square sheet and sketch out the diagonal lines, bending and unbending the corners.
• Fold all 4 corners to the middle of the future lotus.
• Bend the corners of the resulting rhombus towards the middle, forming a square.
• Bend the corners towards the middle again.
• Flip the workpiece over and fold the corners from four sides to the center.
• Fold the small triangles towards the center of the workpiece.
• Turn the shape over and carefully turn the petals out according to the diagram.
• Turn out the bottom petals.

If you decide to give your loved one a certificate, money, or just write a touching letter for him, you cannot do without an envelope. On the eve of February 14, it will be appropriate to make a valentine envelope with a touching heart with your own hands. All you need is a rectangular piece of paper, a glue stick and our step-by-step instructions.

• Fold the sheet lengthwise. Unfold it and fold the top corner on the left side.

• Fold the right side in the form of a triangle to the left. Unfold the sheet and turn it over at the same time. Fold the left side to the right in the direction of the previously marked fold.

• Expand the workpiece, then you need to fold the left side to the fold you just made. Turn the workpiece over to the other side. On the left side, fold the top and bottom corners to form a triangle.

• Turn the product over again and bend the triangle to the fold outlined across. Then you should turn the sheet over to the other side and turn the workpiece towards you 90 degrees.

• Fold the corners at the bottom and straighten them, forming triangular pockets. Fold the right and left corners additionally. Bend the corners slightly at the bottom to form round heart shapes.

• Turn the workpiece over. The heart is ready, it remains to make an envelope. To do this, turn the sheet over again and bend its sides by about one centimeter. Fold the bottom up, forming an envelope. Glue the sides. The Valentine's Day envelope is ready.

Creating such a craft will be an excellent option for an interesting pastime with children. First you need to make modules. Here is a simple step-by-step diagram for creating a basic triangular part.

• For one module, you need a small paper rectangle. It is required to fold it in half lengthwise, and then bend and unbend, thus marking the center lines.
• An angle is applied to the marked centerline, forming a triangle.
• Turn the workpiece over. Lift the edges up.
• Bend the corners, bending them over the large triangle, and unbend them again.
• Small triangles are folded along the outlined lines and bent up. Fold the product in half. The finished part has two corners and two pockets, with the help of which the modules can be inserted into each other, like parts of a constructor, forming various products.

For information on how to do this correctly, see the next video.

Now let's start making a rose. To do this, we need 95 modules of red, pink, yellow or any other shade suitable for the flower.

• Form three rows of 15 modules. The first and third rows with the short side of the models up, the second with the long side up.
• Put on the modules with three tails. Make 3 rows of 10 modules. It turned out to be a voluminous bud.
• Insert 10 modules, simulating a bud stem. To prevent the product from falling apart, it is better to glue them.
• In order to make the stem, you will need a plastic drinking straw. Wrap the straw tightly with long strips of green paper, securing them with glue. Then form the top of the stem from the same strips, corresponding to the size of the bud. Cut leaves out of paper and glue to the stem.
• It remains only to glue the bud to the stem and the flower is ready.

This rose will never fade and will delight you for a long time, reminding you of the holiday.

In the next video, you will find a step-by-step guide to creating this beautiful rose.