Getting creative with paper

Flight of fancy

• Make these gorgeous birds into a mobile or make as individual invitations.
• Cut out the shape from the sturdy cardboard.
• Make an incision in the wings using a craft knife and insert the body.
• Attach a piece of string. 

What you will need:

1. Paper
2. Double-sided tape
3. Sellotape
4. Glue
5. Scissors
6. Craft knife
7. Felt markers or felt-tip pens
8. String
9. Alphabet stickers                                            

All my love in a letter

• This beautiful Origami heart makes a stunning invitation that your guests will keep and display long after the event.
• While some may find Origami too fiddly and time-consuming this pattern is surprisingly easy.
• You will need to be patient when making the first few.
• Once you have the hang of it, you will find it a rewarding, creative task.
• Make your own see-through envelopes so that the intricate design can be seen by the recipient.
• Other uses for these gorgeous hearts are scented sachets (just tuck a few sprigs of lavender into the folds and hand the hearts among your clothes) or use them to make a gorgeous mobile for your baby's room.

Difficulty rating:

5, but will get easier with every try.

Go old school

Do you remember this paper design from your school days? Most of us have had our fair share of turns choosing a "number" just so we could have our fates decided by what was written on the underside of one of the flaps.

Stll a fun idea, they're fabulous oarty invitations. For the very creative the options are endless. Different stickers and textured papers, stamps or embelishments can be hidden under the flaps to surprise your guests when they look for your messages.

Difficulty rating:  2

Time: 5-10 minutes to fold and write by hand or decorate with stickers.

How to do this:

1. Cut a piece of paper into a square.
2. Start with one of teh corners and work ina  clockwise direction (so the folds are in the right position) folding the corner to the centre of the paper, forming a new, smaller square.
3. Turn the square over so that the folds face downward.
4. Repeat step number 2 with the smaller circle.
5. Turn the paper square over one more time so that the folds face downwards.
6. Four pockets will have formed at the back. Push your left and right thumbs and each forefinger in each and press the corners towards each other. Using the traditional technique of numbers on the outer flaps, place the info for your party on the inside corners (what, where, when, what to bring) and under the flaps (details, date and time, address, etc.)