Paper Holly Leaf Christmas Ornament

Cut one strip of paper the full length of the paper for each holly leaf. The width of the strips can be as thin as 1/2 inch or as thick as 1 inch. There are 3 leaves in the photo above.

Holly leaves with their bright red berries have become a symbol of Christmas. You can make these paper ones as a stand up decoration next to a picture frame or pencil stand. Or you can hang it on a real tree as a Christmas tree ornament, or make lots of paper ornaments to make into a big “tree” on the wall.

If you plan for a classroom of kids to make these, cut out strips of paper with a paper cutter ahead of time, then in class, all the kids have to do is fold and glue them. If you don’t have a paper cutter, use lined notebook paper as a guide, but cut on every other line rather than every line, since the strips would be too narrow if you cut every line. Save time by cutting 3-4 sheets of paper at a time with the same effort as cutting one. You do need a good pair of scissors to do this. The sheets of paper do tend to slide, so readjust the sheets after every few cuts.

Fold each strip into uneven thirds--two sections are the same length, but the third section should be slightly shorter. The shorter section becomes the vein down the middle, and the two sections that are longer will be the outer edges of the leaf. Make two folds in each of the longer sections to make the leaves look like holly leaves.

Between these folds, pull the paper through your thumb and finger while pressing with your thumb to form the curved edges of the leaf. Glue each leaf with the vein in the middle. Glue 3 or more leaves together.

Make holly berries by rolling strips of red paper around a skewer, toothpick or nail. Remove the skewer and glue the “berries” to the holly leaves. The weight of the berries can flatten the leaves, so if you put one on top of a leaf, put another one on the inside, too, to help the leaf hold it’s shape.

Crafts > Crafts for Adults by Season > 15 Paper Christmas Tree Ornaments > Paper Holly Leaf Christmas Tree Ornament

Download Holly Pattern for U.S. letter (8 1/2 x 11) sized paper

Download Holly Pattern for A4 sized paper

NOTE: the three shorter strips are for making the berries, and the three longer strips with dotted lines, are for making the leaves. The round dots indicate the 2 folds that divide the leaf into thirds (or nearly thirds, anyway!)