People have asked me for paper snowflake patterns, and I'm not quite sure what to tell them. When I make my snowflakes, I fold up the paper and lightly sketch a design in pencil to cut out.

I like to draw a tree or snowman along the long folded edge. Note that the long folded edge of the snowflake is actually the short folded edge of the paper when you fold a standard sheet of paper.  See the gingerbread man on the left?  I drew him on the long snowflake edge.

The gingerbread man is a good example of a place where I should have used a pattern. Somewhere in my home I probably have a gingerbread man cookie cutter that I could have used to trace a cuter gingerbread man shape.  I'm not good at those yet, which is why I tend to draw more snowmen and Christmas trees. I find them easier to sketch.

The triangle above is the only part of the flake you need to draw, and yours doesn't have to look like mine. If it helps, unfold the flake and draw whole figures (snowmen, trees...) and then erase the parts you don't need before you fold it back up and cut it out. The point is to have fun. There is no need to put shapes in your snowflakes, but I find that they make nice gifts and great conversation pieces. I enjoy trying different things even when the result looks better crumpled and tossed than it does on my window. Not every attempt is a keeper.

Here are a few more flakes I've cut out to help give you ideas for your own paper snowflakes.

There is no need to confine your imagination to holiday shapes. Your snowflakes can be whatever you want them to be. This next flake has computers in it.

Some of the shapes aren't perfect. Sometimes the paper slips, or the folds aren't precise, and I cut off something like the brim of the hat.

Don't sweat the small stuff. When there are a bunch of snowflakes decorating the window, the little details that only you know about aren't going to draw much attention.

I planned to make more snowflakes this year, but while  my little one isn't big enough for scissors, he is old enough to want them. Next year I'll try to get more creative, photograph them before I give them away, and absolutely use better backgrounds for the pictures!

Meanwhile, check out my Grandma's green cookies.

Afterthought: Tools

Regular scissors will work, but the more fine detail you add the more difficult it will become to cut out your snowflakes. I use a regular hole punch, a mini hole punch (great for eyes, buttons, dots on the tree, and the curve inside tiny candy canes) and these scissors:

If you can find an old pair, the grip was a softer material that felt better to hold, and the blades did a better job of cutting snowflakes without producing little tears in the corners. Designs change, so perhaps by the time you get your scissors they'll be different yet again. Both kinds work; the old ones just work and feel a bit better. I've seen them in craft stores and sold as pruning scissors.