How to Fold a Paper Star (Step by Step With Video)

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Learn how to fold a five point paper star with step by step instructions and a video, plus easy ideas for using folded paper stars in your Christmas decorating.

Some people doodle. I fold. Put a square of paper in front of me during a slow evening and my hands start going before my brain has signed off on anything. Usually it’s these five point stars. They have been my recurring paper habit for years now.

The stars you’ll see in this post are folded from thrifted music book pages, because old sheet music and I have a long history. The folds don’t care what the paper is. That’s the lovely thing about them. Give me a minute and I’ll show you how it goes.

If the photos ever go too fast for you, don’t give up. The video I made of the process shows every single fold in real time, with nothing skipped.

Folding these origami paper stars is a lot easier than you might think. Once you have the hang of it, it goes surprisingly fast. I made a whole set of them in one episode of Bones (for the afficionados: “Dancing Phalanges”).

Anyway let’s get on with it. Here are the instructions for how to fold five point paper stars. I have written them out but if you want to you can also watch the video for more precise instructions.

How to Fold A Paper Star: Step 1: Make a pentagon

1. Start with a square piece of paper that is easy to fold. I have tried making these stars with heavy craft paper and it was much harder to do. Put a a pair of scissors close by.
2. For the first step fold your square in half. At all times make sure you make nice strong folds.
3. Next bring the lower left corner up to the top. Line it up with the top line.
4. Unfold your paper and fold the upper left corner down to the bottom.
5. Open it up again. You will have a cross of folds on the left side.
6. Fold the lower right corner exactly into the center of that cross. Patt it all down nicely.
7. Now you fold the part that you have just made in half. Make sure the little corner at the bottom is nice and tight and line up the sides on the right.
8. Follow this up with folding the left part of the paper by bringing the lower left corner up. Allign the paper with the fold you have just made. Again help the corner at the bottom to be nice and tight.
9. Now turn it all over.
10. Fold in half. Almost done with making the pentagon.
11. Cut along the straight line so you have a perfect little folded triangle. 
12. Open up the paper and you will have a perfect pentagon, with folds across all the diagonals. 

f you want to skip this part of folding and cutting your pentagon. You could use a template of a pentagon and cut that out. You would then still have to make all those folds on all the diagonal lines, because we will need those later. I prefer to just fold and cut my pentagon as I go as it is just as fast as cutting and folding a printed one.

HOW TO FOLD A PAPER STAR: STEP 2: Fold the Star

1. With your pentagon unfolded we can start making our star. In the middle you will have a straight fold down, and you have several folds going outward. Bring the bottom up to the two outward going lines as shown in image 1. Make sure your middle fold lines up, that way you will know your fold is level. Again make sure your creases are strong. Turn the pentagon and make this fold five times on every side
2. When you have made these five folds, move on to the next one. Fold the left side in along the crease. Fold the bottom up but push the corner on the bottom left side out. You will feel that the paper will want to follow fold lines. Help it along and when it is lined up fold it down. You will be making a small diagonal crease.
3. Open up, rotate the paper and do this five more times on every side of the pentagon.
4. Next we are going to form our star. Pinch all the corners and try to hold them all at the same time. Push in the inside folds.
5. Like magic the star will fold into itself. This sounds complicated but try it, you will see that the star will take shape. If this step is difficult check if all your folds are strong.
6. The star is taking shape. For the final step turn it over. 
7. You will have a small pentagon in the middle.
8. Fold every pointed corner into the center. 
9. The last one will need a bit of help because the center will be inside the first fold. Tidy all your folds.
10. Your origami paper star is finished. 

What Paper to Use for Paper Stars

The paper matters more than you’d think. Not because you need anything fancy, but because the wrong paper will fight you on every fold.

You want square paper that folds easily. Regular origami paper is the obvious choice, but honestly, almost any thin paper will do the job. If it creases cleanly and holds the fold, it’s a winner. Pages from old books, sheet music, wrapping paper, even pretty scraps left over from other projects.

The one thing I would skip is heavy craft paper. I tried it once, thinking the sturdiness would help. It did not. Thick paper is much harder to fold, the creases refuse to stay sharp, and your star ends up looking like it lost an argument. Thin paper wins, every time.

My favorite is vintage music paper. The staff lines and faded notes show through the folds in the prettiest way, and every star comes out a little different. The ones in this post were folded from worn-out recorder music books I found at the thrift store. Nothing rare, nothing special, and all the better for cutting up.

No sheet music at home? You can find images of old music pages online and print them. Just keep the printer paper on the thinner side and it folds like a dream.

If all of this sounded complicated and a bit much, it might help if you see me do it ‘live’. Click the image below to be taken to my video, where you can see me fold the stars and hear me explaining as I do it.

What to Do With Folded Paper Stars

Once you have a little pile of stars, the fun starts. I have used one or more stars in my DIY decorating and in craft projects. Let me show you some ways to use your origami stars.

The first project I did with them was for a Christmas project. I attached them to fishing line and hung the little garlands from my staircase banister.

The fishing wire was almost invisible making the stars look like they were hovering in midair. It really added a nice touch to an otherwise scarcely decorated Christmas staircase.

You can hang a single star wherever it can really be seen. Up close, you can see how crisp the folds are and how the paper’s pattern shows.

These paper stars also a wonderful craft supply. I used one when I made a set of vintage-style ornaments from old Christmas cards. The folded paper star blended in perfectly with this vintage craft project.

A little paper star makes a nice little accent in any decorating vignette. One Christmas I topped a lantern with one. It was just one little vignette in my Christmas living room that was just too simple to make. (btw if you like making little Christmas vignettes than check out my inspiration post).

But using folded paper stars during the Christmas season is not a must. You can use them all year long. That is why I also made a paper star wreath that looks good in any season. There’s a full tutorial for this DIY paper star wreath too.

Now I’d love to hear from you. What paper would you fold your stars from? Old book pages, wrapping paper, the kids’ leftover craft stash? Tell me in the comments, and pin this tutorial so you have it the next time a square of paper lands in front of you.

WANT TO REMEMBER THIS? SAVE THESE INSTRUCTIONS FOR HOW TO FOLD PAPER STARS TO YOUR FAVORITE PINTEREST BOARD!

Have fun making paper stars! Let me know if you are going to make them and how you are planning to use them. I’d also LOVE to see the final product.

Thank you for sharing my content!