DIY: Star Wars Christmas Heart Baskets
eller, sometimes even in English!
Prototyping
Last year, I felt I was severely lacking something essential, so I sat down to create Star Wars themed Christmas ornaments. The result was half a day of fooling around, which lead to a shoddy R2-D2:
(For dei som føretrekk norsk tekst / For the ones preferring Norwegian text)
Taking into consideration that it was two days before Christmas Eve, and that I still hadn’t finished the Christmas shopping, there’s no wonder it sort of stopped by itself. So, I promised myself that I’d pick up the pace next year, and make some pretty Christmas baskets…
Half a year later, I’m left with this.
But, you didn’t click the link to bask in the glory of my baskets. Most likely, you’re here to learn how to make Star Wars Christmas baskets (or any christmas basket) for your own.
RTFM
In this guide, I’ll assume that you have a certain understanding of how to fold and weave a normal Christmas basket (if you don’t, here’s New Mexico State Universitys recipe for Christmas baskets.
I’ll also take for granted that you have the following:
- Several coloured sheets of paper, preferrably A4-format (and not too stiff)
- A printer that prints A4 sheets
- A hobby knife (preferrably a scalpel or some sort of exacto knife, I wouldn’t recommend using a pair of scissors)
- A love of making weird stuff made from paper
- Patience and fandom
For the Christmas baskets I’ve chosen a split of three. This gives some room for freedom in choosing pattern, at the same time it’s not too hard to weave (especially for beginners). The pattern should be quadratical (almost), and to make it easier it should be symmetrical (it’s possible to make non-symmetrical patterns as well, but it takes more work, and I can’t be bothered to find out how).
Because it should be symmetrical, it’s also an advantage if it’s not very organic (but this isn’t a demand). Star Wars characters fit this bill like a charm, because the most recognizable shapes are often uniform helmets and robots. The three I’ve chosen to show here are Darth Vader, C-3PO and a Stormtrooper helmet, but in principle you could do most things, as long as it fits the “formula” (why yes, even non-Star Wars motifs!).
(Click for larger versions)
How to make the baskets
- 1. Print a pattern on two sheets of paper of different colour
- Two “ways” of choosing colour: Christmas colours, or the “correct” colours (matching the characters you’re making)
- Warning: Lines printed on black paper is horribly hard to see. Darth Vader was a lot of work…
- 2. Fold along the stapled line, to make the pattern show on the outside of the folded sheet
- For you origamiers, I’ve marked this one down wrongly, this should be a socalled mountain fold
- 3. Cut along the black solid stripes
- Darth Vader has a line going straight through his face, this should NOT be cut (it was a mistake on my part when making the pattern).
- Have patience, this is the most important part of the process.
- 4. The pink fields should only be cut from one of the two sheets
- If you cut them from both, it’ll look funny. Assess which colour ou want to shine through the other, and cut from one of them. E.g. In the Darth Vader one, I’ve cut the pink fields from the black sheet only.
- 5. Weave the two parts together
- Easy to say, hard to do. Be careful and try not to tear the sheet!
- Tips: Use a pincer to pull the parts through hard openings.
Do you want to make your own basket?
If you want to make a basket — Star Wars or not — you can use this template:
(Click for larger version)
- You’ll need a bicoloured, simple symbol — quadratical-ish in shape — which i 6-7cm wide (for this template, you could scale up or down as you please).
- For simplicities sake it should be symmetrical, but with some work asymmetrical motifes work as well (it only requires some mirroring).
- The line of symmetry is the diagonal line of the document.
It’s your turn, use the Force
Make your own, Star Wars or not, and put them in the comments! I’d love to see what you can do.
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