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Cost: $ $ $ $ $

Difficulty: • • • • •

Time: 30 mins

Pinwheels in the wind
I haven’t been to a fair day in years, but aren’t pinwheels so evocative of childhood visits to the Royal Easter Show and annual school fetes? You can almost smell the fairy floss just by looking at them.
Make a stack of pinwheels in a basket for a small child’s birthday party and watch them marvel at the everyday miracle of paper turning in the wind. And don’t forget to make each one from the same materials to avoid arguments!

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Step 1
Use your ruler and pencil to rule a square onto your paper. It can be any size you like — but about 20 cm ( 8 in) square is a good size. Rule diagonal lines across the square from corner to corner in both directions.
Step 2
Cut along each diagonal line about two-thirds of the way to the centre of the square, dividing each corner into two points.
Step 3
Fold alternate points into the centre, one after the other so that the points overlap.
Step 4
Push a drawing pin into the centre point through each of the layers and wiggle it around to make the hole a little loose around the pin — this will enable the pinwheel to turn more freely.
Step 5
Remove the drawing pin, then push a mapping pin through the hole to attach the wheel firmly to your stick, and start blowing. The pinwheel should spin effortlessly in a good gust of wind.

Tip
The double-sided cardstock that scrapbookers use is perfect for these pinwheels, but you can also use spray adhesive to glue two pretty papers together. If you’re having trouble getting the wheel to spin, make sure your pin is not pushed in too tightly. You can also thread a small metal or cardboard washer or even a small bead onto the pin to keep things loose.