Make a Ninja Star from Square Paper

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Originally, metal ninja stars, or Shuriken, were used as throwing weapons in Japanese variations of martial arts. Using the Japanese art of paper folding, origami, you can make a replica ninja star from paper. Folding ninja stars with paper is an easy and fun project that can be used as a decoration or craft piece when completed.

Steps

Preparing Your Paper

  1. Get two pieces of square paper. If you have computer or A4 paper, you can make it into a square easily.
    • Lay your rectangular paper flat in a horizontal position. Take one corner of the paper and fold it over until it meets the opposite edge, forming a triangle. You should have a triangle shape and and a rectangular portion left over. Remove the rectangular portion of the paper by tearing or cutting it.
    • Origami paper also works well, and is easier to fold.
    • If you are using the same color paper to make your ninja star, you don’t need two pieces of paper. You can simply cut two rectangles from one square piece of paper.
  2. Fold each piece of paper in half to form a rectangle. Press down on the fold to make a crease. Then unfold the paper.
    • If you are using paper that has one colored side, start with the color side facing down.
    • If you are using the same color paper, you may want to draw a different design on each piece of paper, or make some markings to help you differentiate.
  3. Cut or tear along the crease to make two rectangles. You should now have four rectangular pieces of paper. You will only need two rectangular pieces to make your star. This article shows two differently colored rectangles to make things easier, but you can use the same color rectangles if you wish.
    • If you are using different colored paper and currently have four rectangles, put two of them aside. You can save them for making a second ninja star.

Making the Ninja Star

  1. Fold the rectangles in half on a vertical fold (hot dog style). This is called a book fold.[1] If you’re using computer paper and want to make a smaller ninja star, you can shorten your folded rectangles by cutting or tearing part of the paper off.
    • Keep in mind that the more paper you have, the easier the ninja star will be to make.
    • Make sure that both folded pieces of paper are the same length.
  2. Fold the rectangles in half on a horizontal crease (hamburger style). Then, unfold. This fold will create a crease to use as a guideline, making the next folds easier.
    • You should now have two folded rectangles with a valley fold running horizontally in the center of each.[2]
  3. Cross-fold your rectangles. Make sure to fold the two pieces of paper opposite one another.
    • Take the bottom right corner of your (blue) paper, folding it up and to the left to meet the crease. Take the upper left corner, folding it down and to the right to meet the center crease. You should have a backward “Z” shape.
    • Take the lower left corner of your other (orange) piece of paper, folding it up and to the right, meeting the center crease. Now grab the upper right corner, folding it down and to the left to meet the middle crease. Your paper should now look more like a “Z”.
    • If done correctly, you will have two mirroring “Z” shaped pieces of paper
  4. Flip both pieces of paper over. The folds you just created will now be facing down.
  5. Fold the top squares of both pieces of paper inward to form a triangle. On each piece of paper, take the top, outermost corner and fold on a diagonal to make a triangle.
  6. Fold the bottom squares to create a triangle. Take the bottom, outermost corner of each piece of paper, and fold upwards on a diagonal.
  7. Fold the left triangle of both figures inward. Fold the triangles along the center crease so that the fold lays over the parallelogram (the slanted rectangle) portion of your paper.
  8. Fold the right triangle of both figures in. You should now have two parallelograms with two triangles overlaid on top.
    • You will now have two pieces of paper that look like diamonds.
  9. Flip the (orange) figure over. One piece of paper will now have the triangular flaps facing upwards while the other will have the flaps facing downwards.
  10. Open the flaps of both pieces of paper. Rotate the (blue) paper so that it resembles a “Z” shape with the flaps pointing up. Place the (orange) paper with the flaps pointing down on top. The two pieces of paper should be perpendicular to one another.
    • Your two pieces of paper should be making a cross.
  11. Tuck your triangles into the opposite folds. Take the tip of each (blue) triangle portion that’s pointing up and tuck it into the top pocket of the (orange) paper.[3]
    • You should see two pockets on the top piece of (orange) paper that you can slide the triangles of the (blue) paper into.
    • Once you fit the tips of the triangles into the pockets, press down on the edges to create a crease to hold everything in place.
  12. Flip the ninja star over. Repeat the process fitting the remaining two (orange) triangles into the (blue) pockets.
    • The order in which you fit the tips in doesn’t matter, but you may have to shift your paper around slightly to get everything in place.
    • If you're finding it difficult to slide the paper in, try pinching the sides of the pockets to open up space.
  13. Draw designs on your star to make it yours. If you used white paper, or even colored paper, you can add a bit of flair to further customize it.
    • To throw your ninja star, hold it by one of the points vertically. With the back of your hand facing the direction you wish to throw, flick your wrist and release the star.

Tips

  • If you use blank paper, try decorating it!
  • Try making this with aluminum foil for a more realistic look.
  • After you make the paper ninja star, cover it in duct tape if you want to throw it repeatedly without damaging it. It will fly better.
  • When you make a ninja star, try to use origami paper or thinner paper to make folding easier.
  • You can also use a Post-it note, as it’s already a square!
  • Fold slowly.

Warnings

  • If you don't fold the two paper figures so your pieces of paper aren’t mirroring each other, this won't work.
  • Don't throw your ninja star at people as this can hit someone in the eye or cut them.

Things You'll Need

  • 2 square pieces of paper
  • Scissors
  • A nice, flat surface for folding

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Sources and Citations

  1. ↑ http://www.origami-instructions.com/origami-book-and-cupboard-fold.html
  2. ↑ http://www.origami-instructions.com/origami-valley-and-mountain-folds.html
  3. ↑ http://www.origamiway.com/origami-ninja-star-3.shtml
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