Wish Upon a Star

Growing up, I was never really able to wish upon a star. There weren’t many visible in the sky where I lived. There were always too many lights and buildings in the way. I, therefore, made my wishes on origami lucky stars. Every time I had a wish, I would write it on a strip of paper, fold it into a star, and add it to my star jar.

In this blog, I’ll take you through how to make these lovely little origami stars that can be used as decorations, add colour to a room, or make a wish jar to let someone know you’re thinking of them.

Materials

☐Paper strips (printer paper, A4 paper, letter paper, patterned paper, coloured paper, or origami paper)

☐Ruler

☐Scissors

☐Glass jar

Instructions

Cut the Paper

Cut the paper into strips that are about 10 to 11 inches long. Each strip can be as wide as ¼ inch, ½ inch, or ¾ inch. Thinner strips make smaller stars while fatter strips make larger stars

Write your message

Write a one-line heartfelt message for the loved one you're thinking of. Check out our "How to write a heartfelt message" blog for some ideas!

Start folding the strip of paper

Start with the strip of paper coloured side up if you are using coloured or origami paper.

Bring the right end of the paper strip over and then downwards.

Bring the bottom end of the paper strip up and then over the left end.

Now that you have formed a loop, feed the top end of the strip behind and then through the hole.

Continue to pull the end of the paper strip through the loop, and then gently pull the bottom end to tighten the knot.

Make the knot of the star

Keep wiggling and pulling the knot tighter while flattening it at the same time. Gently move the knot to the side as you flatten so that the end of the paper strip on the left ends up being much longer than the end on the right.

Fold the excess end behind. You can also cut it off if it is still too long.

Fold the edge on the left end of the strip behind, keeping the bottom edge aligned with the bottom edge of the pentagon shape created in the middle.

Continue wrapping the pentagon and then fold the strip on top, over to the top left.

Keep Wrapping the Pentagon

Continuing to wrap the pentagon, fold the strip down and behind to the bottom.

Fold the paper strip up and then over to the right.

Fold the paper strip over behind to the left. Then continue until you only have a small section remaining

If your strip is too long, tear it off or cut it

Finish Tucks and Inflate the Star

Insert the end of the paper strip inside the created pocket.

Inflate the star using your index finger and your thumb to pinch in one of the points of the star.

Rotate the star and gently proceed to do the same on all the rest of the points.

You can achieve different results by pinching more or less in this step.

Remember, your first attempt at making an origami star may not come out as well as expected, but keep practicing and you’ll get it in no time!

Fill Jar

Fill your glass jar with all your stars until it is full. Add a cute tag and deliver it to your loved one to let them know you're thinking of them!