This Folded Paper Heart Craft is fun and easy to make, and a great Valentine’s craft for kids of all ages. Unlike some origami paper hearts, these folded hearts are made with a simple accordion fold, so they’re easy enough for even the youngest crafters to make. You can string them into a garland or your kids can give them to friends and classmates for Valentine’s Day.
My daycare kids are all about making heart crafts this week what with Valentine’s Day coming up. I got the idea to make these folded paper hearts last week when we were making our 3D accordion snowflakes.
Easy enough for young crafters
Now, there are loads of origami hearts that older kids can make if they want a craft that’s a little more challenging, but the process I’m sharing today is perfect if you have younger children at the craft table.
You may also like our folded paper flextangles and our folded paper fortune cookies.
If want to make marbled paper…
We’ve used some of our leftover homemade marbled paper to make our hearts, and even though the hearts are very simple, the colours and patterns of the paper make them truly beautiful.
You can see how to make our marbled paper here if you want to use some to make your hearts.
Be warned… the process is addicting!
The process for making these hearts is really quick and easy, so they’re quite addicting to make. If your kids are like mine, they’ll have a whole flurry of hearts made in no time. That’s ok though because they’re perfect for decorating your home or classroom or to give to friends on Valentine’s Day.
I’ve made a step-by-step video to show you how to make these hearts, or you can simply follow the written instructions below.
I hope you have as much fun making them as we did!
Watch the video tutorial:
How to Make a Folded Paper Heart
Supplies:
- paper
- scissors
- pencil
- glue stick
How to Fold Your Heart:
- Trace a circle on a piece of paper. Regular paper or scrapbook paper works well. Card stock also works but if you go any thicker than that, it will be difficult to get a crisp fold.
- Cut out your circle.
- Fold your circle in half and cut off about 3cms from the rounded edge. Note:You can fold it in half again like we have in the photo above and use the straight center fold as a guideline.
- Open your circle back up and make sure your cut edges are even with each other.
- With the good side of the paper face-down, fold each straight edge, accordion-style, to the center of the circle.
- You’ll now have a narrow, folded strip. Fold this strip into a “V”, and pinch to form the point of your “V”.
- Run a little glue along the narrow strip, and pinch the two halves together.
Voila! A perfect folded heart!
Aren’t they sweet?
Go ahead and get as creative as you want with them. Your kids can make them in all different sizes, and even pre-decorate their paper before folding their hearts!
Happy Valentine’s Day!
More Easy Heart Crafts for Kids:
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Jackie is a mom, wife, home daycare provider, and the creative spirit behind Happy Hooligans. She specializes in kids’ crafts and activities, easy recipes, and parenting. She began blogging in 2011, and today, Happy Hooligans inspires more than 2 million parents, caregivers and Early Years Professionals all over the globe.
