• 90 ideas
  • Checked October 2026

Paper Art Ideas

Three paper makes per press, each with the paper it takes and the first fold or cut.

Paper Art Ideas

Show all 90
  1. A papier-mache bowl shaped over a balloonNewspaper, 4 sheets, torn into strips. Dip each strip in thinned white glue and smooth it on.
  2. A thank-you card with a tab that slides a sun upCardstock, 2 pieces. Cut a slot in the front and glue the sun to a strip that runs through it.
  3. A birthday cake on three pop-up stepsCardstock, 1 piece. Cut three pairs of slits from the fold, each shorter, and push them through.

Next step Drawings for a small square sheetCut paper in black and white

All 90 ideas

Fold: no cuts 12

  • A corner bookmark with a monster face that bites the page Square sheet, 1. Fold to a triangle, then tuck both side points into the pocket.
  • A fan-fold bow tie pinched in the middle Printer paper, 1 sheet folded in half. Pleat it like a fan and give the center one tight twist.
  • A folded paper cup for popcorn, made without a single cut Square sheet, 1. Fold corner to corner, then bring each side point across to the far edge.
  • A lidded box made from two squares Square sheets, 2, one slightly smaller. Fold each to its center, then stand the sides up.
  • A paper fortune teller with eight flaps to write secrets under Square sheet, 1. Fold all four corners to the middle, flip it over and do the same again.
  • A paper heart with a pocket at the back Square sheet, 1. Fold in half both ways, then bring the bottom edge up to the middle crease.
  • A pinwheel wreath of eight folded points slotted together, no glue Square sheets, 8 small ones. Fold each into a kite shape and slot them around in a ring.
  • A sailboat with a triangle sail and a slanted hull crease Square sheet, 1. Fold to a triangle and turn the base up at a slant to make the hull.
  • A sitting rabbit with tall ears folded from a kite base Square sheet, 1. Kite fold first, then fold the narrow point back for the ears.
  • A spring-backed frog folded to leap off a tabletop Index card, 1. Fold the top corners into a point, then pleat the bottom half into a spring.
  • A star box: a folded dish with four pointed corners Square sheet, 1. Start from a square base and fold the flaps to the center line.
  • A window star from eight see-through kites Kite paper or tracing paper, 8 small squares. Fold each to a kite and overlap the points.

Cut 12

  • A chain of paper dolls with joined hands, from one accordion strip Printer paper, 1 strip. Accordion-fold it and cut half a figure with the hand on the fold.
  • A crown of zigzag points cut from two taped paper strips Construction paper, 2 strips taped end to end. Cut triangles out of one long edge.
  • A lace heart cut on the fold, pierced with diamond holes Red paper, 1 square. Fold in half, draw half a heart and snip small diamonds along the fold.
  • A lantern with slits that bulge when squeezed Colored paper, 1 sheet. Fold in half the long way and cut slits from the fold, stopping short.
  • A paper garland of linked rings without glue Colored paper, 2 sheets. Cut rings with one slit each and hook them through one another.
  • A row of zigzag mountains from one accordion strip Printer paper, 1 strip cut the long way. Pleat it evenly and trim the top edge into peaks.
  • A six-armed snowflake snipped from a circle folded in thirds Printer paper, 1 circle. Fold in half, then in thirds, and snip notches along both edges.
  • A skyline silhouette along a strip of black paper Black paper, 1 strip. Cut a row of rooftops in one pass and save the offcut for a second city.
  • A spiral snake that hangs and turns Printer paper, 1 circle. Cut round and round toward the middle and hang it by the tail.
  • A stencil of your initial for sponging through Cardstock, 1 piece. Draw a fat letter and cut it out, keeping the bridges that hold the middle.
  • A stretchy fishing net cut from one fan-folded sheet Printer paper, 1 sheet. Fold it into a narrow fan and cut slits from both sides in turn.
  • Pine trees that stand in a line, cut from one folded strip Green cardstock, 1 strip. Fold in half, cut a tree shape and leave the base joined.

Roll and curl 12

  • A caterpillar of five curled loops Paper strips, 5. Glue each strip into a ring and join the rings in a row.
  • A cone hat for a toy, with a curled feather Printer paper, half a circle. Bring the straight edges together and tape them into a cone.
  • A daisy of pinched teardrop coils around one tight center Paper strips, 7. Roll loose coils and pinch one side of each to a point.
  • A grape cluster of closed coils glued in a triangle Purple strips, 12. Roll every strip tight and glue the end before it loosens.
  • A lion whose mane is a fringe curled over a pencil Yellow paper, 1 sheet. Cut a fringe around a circle and curl each strip over a pencil.
  • A paper spring from two strips, a bouncy leg for a puppet Paper strips, 2 in different colors. Glue the ends at a right angle and fold one over the other.
  • A quilled snail with a loosened coil for a shell and a strip body Paper strips, 2. Roll one tight around a pencil, let it loosen, and glue the end down.
  • A rolled-paper picture frame with scroll corners Paper strips, 16. Roll tight coils for the sides and open S-scrolls for the corners.
  • A set of binoculars from two short tubes Cardstock, 2 pieces. Roll each into a tube, tape the seam and join them side by side.
  • A tube rocket that stands on three slotted fins, capped with a cone Cardstock, 1 sheet. Roll a tube, cap it with a cone and slot three triangles into the base.
  • An owl with loose-coil eyes and a pinched coil beak Paper strips, 6. Roll two large loose coils for the eyes and pinch a small one for the beak.
  • Paper beads rolled from long magazine-page triangles Magazine page, 1. Cut long thin triangles and roll each from the wide end around a paper straw.

Weave and layer 12

  • A basket-weave bookmark locked together from four folded strips Paper strips, 4. Fold each in half and slot them into one another in a square.
  • A checkerboard fish with a woven body Colored paper, 2 sheets. Cut wavy slits in a fish shape and weave straight strips across.
  • A dahlia built from shrinking fringed discs Colored paper, 5 circles in shrinking sizes. Snip petals around each and stack with a dot of glue.
  • A layered paper burger with a frilly lettuce edge Colored paper, 5 scraps. Cut a shape for each filling and stack them with a dot of glue.
  • A paper quilt of folded triangles Scrap paper, 16 small squares. Fold each to a triangle and arrange them in a pinwheel block.
  • A pine cone of overlapping paper scales, glued bottom row first Scrap paper, 1 sheet. Cut rounded scales and glue them in rows from the bottom up.
  • A plaid pattern woven from glossy magazine strips Magazine pages, 2. Cut even strips and weave them over and under on a taped edge.
  • A shadow box scene of four frames spaced one behind another Cardstock, 4 pieces. Cut a window in each, a little smaller every time, and space them apart.
  • A sunset woven from warm strips with a black skyline Colored paper, 4 sheets. Weave reds through oranges, then glue a cut skyline along the base.
  • A torn-paper landscape of hills stacked from pale to dark Colored paper, 5 sheets. Tear a hill edge along the top of each and glue the palest at the back.
  • A woven heart basket made from two slit paper loops Colored paper, 2 pieces. Fold each, round one end and cut two slits up from the fold.
  • A woven paper bracelet that closes with a tab Paper strips, 3. Braid them flat, then cut a tab at one end and a slot at the other.

Pop-ups and cards 12

  • A birthday cake on three pop-up steps Cardstock, 1 piece. Cut three pairs of slits from the fold, each shorter, and push them through.
  • A card where a paper spring makes a bee jump out Cardstock, 1 piece, and 2 paper strips. Fold a spring and glue it between the card and the bee.
  • A dinosaur whose jaw is the fold of the card Cardstock, 1 piece. Fold in half, cut a zigzag across the fold and crease the teeth outward.
  • A flower card with a fan-fold bloom Cardstock, 1 piece, and tissue or thin paper. Pleat the thin paper and glue each end to a side.
  • A frog card whose tongue unrolls Green cardstock, 1 piece, and 1 red strip. Curl the strip around a pencil and glue one end inside.
  • A pop-up city of four box buildings Cardstock, 1 piece. Cut four pairs of slits of different lengths and draw windows on the tabs.
  • A pop-up heart glued across the crease so it spreads with the card Cardstock, 2 pieces. Fold a heart in half and glue its edges across the card's crease.
  • A staircase card with pop-up steps across the fold Cardstock, 1 piece. Cut parallel slits across the fold and crease each step the other way.
  • A talking mouth that opens with the card Cardstock, 1 piece. Fold in half, cut one slit across the fold and bend back two triangles.
  • A thank-you card with a tab that slides a sun up Cardstock, 2 pieces. Cut a slot in the front and glue the sun to a strip that runs through it.
  • A tunnel card with three framed layers Cardstock, 4 pieces. Cut a window in three and join them with pleated side strips.
  • A turning-wheel card whose window swaps sun for rain Cardstock, 2 pieces, and a paper fastener. Cut a window and pin a drawn wheel behind it.

Newspaper 12

  • A basket woven from rolled and flattened newspaper tubes Newspaper, 6 sheets. Roll each sheet around a pencil from one corner and flatten the tubes.
  • A fringed grass skirt for a costume Newspaper, 4 sheets. Fold the top edge over a string and cut strips up to the fold.
  • A gift bag folded from two sheets, with twisted paper handles Newspaper, 2 sheets. Fold a flat tube, crease the sides in and fold the bottom up twice.
  • A kite with a newspaper sail and tail Newspaper, 1 sheet, and 2 thin sticks. Cross the sticks, tie them and fold the paper edges over string.
  • A long newspaper snake that bends, from one rolled sheet Newspaper, 1 sheet. Roll it loosely, flatten it and cut slits almost through all along one side.
  • A newspaper skyline with headline windows Newspaper, 2 sheets. Cut tower shapes from the columns and glue them on a dark sheet.
  • A paper tree that grows when pulled Newspaper, 3 sheets. Roll them into a tube, cut four slits down from the top and pull the middle up.
  • A papier-mache bowl shaped over a balloon Newspaper, 4 sheets, torn into strips. Dip each strip in thinned white glue and smooth it on.
  • A papier-mache mask built on a paper plate Newspaper, 3 sheets, and 1 paper plate. Tape on a crumpled nose, then cover it all in pasted strips.
  • A pirate hat folded from one full spread Newspaper, 1 spread. Fold in half, bring the top corners to the middle and turn up the brims.
  • A plant-starter cup shaped over a small jar Newspaper, 1 strip. Wrap it around a small jar, fold the overhang under and slide the jar out.
  • Papier-mache fruit around crumpled cores Newspaper, 5 sheets. Crumple a ball for each fruit, tape it to shape and cover it in pasted strips.

Paper straws 12

  • A firework stamp from a straw end snipped into a fringe Paper straws, 3. Snip one end into a fringe, bend it out, dip it in paint and stamp.
  • A hanging mobile on a straw cross Paper straws, 2. Tie them in a cross and hang a paper shape from each of the four ends.
  • A necklace of cut straw beads Paper straws, 4. Cut them into short lengths and thread them with paper circles between.
  • A pan flute of eight stepped straws Paper straws, 8. Trim each a little shorter than the last and tape them in a row. For show only.
  • A picture frame of stacked straws with log-cabin corners Paper straws, 8. Stack two per side, overlapping at the corners like a log cabin.
  • A raft of straws that floats in a bowl Paper straws, 8. Lay them side by side and tape two straws across as beams.
  • A row of paper tulips on slotted straw stems Paper straws, 5. Snip a slot in the top of each and slide a paper flower into it.
  • A star of six paper straws tied at the middle Paper straws, 6. Bundle them, tie the center tightly with thread and spread the ends.
  • A straw glider with two paper hoops Paper straws, 1, and 2 paper strips. Tape a small ring to one end and a large ring to the other.
  • A sun with straw rays around a paper plate Paper straws, 10, and 1 paper plate. Tape the straws to the back so they fan out past the rim.
  • A tower built from straw triangles Paper straws, 12. Thread three on a string for each triangle and tie the corners together.
  • A woven mat of paper straws with paper strips threaded across Paper straws, 10. Tape them side by side at one end and weave strips over and under.

Easy 6

  • A countdown chain of numbered paper loops, one torn off each morning Printer paper, 1 sheet. Cut it into strips, number them and loop each through the last.
  • A mask with cut eye holes and a paper beak Printer paper, 1 sheet. Fold in half, cut half an eye shape on the fold and add a folded triangle.
  • A mosaic rainbow of torn scraps Printer paper, 1 sheet, and color scraps. Draw the arcs and fill each with torn pieces.
  • A paper airplane with a blunt nose Printer paper, 1 sheet. Fold in half the long way, open it and bring the top corners to the crease.
  • A paper helicopter with two blades that whirls to the floor Printer paper, 1 strip. Cut halfway down the middle, fold the two blades opposite ways and drop it.
  • A puppet that sits on a fingertip Printer paper, 1 small rectangle. Roll it around a finger, tape it and draw a face near the top.

How it works

These 90 paper art ideas need paper, scissors and glue and little else. They are sorted by the move: fold, cut, roll and curl, weave and layer, or pop up.

Read the full guide

Art and craft ideas with paper, by the move

Fold: no cuts is origami, the art of folding paper. Many in Cut start from a folded base, as kirigami does, so one snip gives a symmetrical shape. Roll and curl starts with coiled strips, the move quilling is built on, and goes on to tubes and cones. Most pop-ups begin at the fold of the card.

Newspaper and paper straws

For art and craft ideas using newspaper, choose Newspaper: a hat, a roll that grows into a tree, and papier-mache, which is paper pasted in layers that dry hard. Paper straws holds straw art ideas such as a tower of triangles. Nothing is blown through a straw.

  • Crease every fold with a fingernail or the side of a ruler. Soft folds drift.
  • Newsprint ink rubs off on hands and on pale paper. Cover the table first.

Questions and answers

What are simple paper art ideas?

The 22 marked Easy. Most take one sheet: a paper airplane with a blunt nose, a paper helicopter that whirls to the floor, a corner bookmark with a monster face, a spiral snake that hangs and turns.

What is the difference between origami and kirigami?

Origami folds paper. Kirigami starts from a folded base and adds cuts, which are opened and flattened into the design, such as a snowflake. Fold: no cuts and Cut split this list the same way.

What can you make out of newspaper?

Twelve things here: a pirate hat from one full spread, a basket woven from rolled and flattened tubes, a kite, a gift bag with twisted handles, a plant-starter cup shaped over a small jar, and three papier-mache makes.

What is quilling?

Quilling is rolling strips of paper, shaping them and gluing them together into designs. Roll and curl has coils to start with: a quilled snail, a grape cluster and a daisy of pinched teardrop coils.

More tools

Show 5 more

Browse Drawing Ideas