Paper Angel Template

How to make a paper angel

1. Print at 100%. Choose “Actual size”, not “Fit to page”, and lay a ruler on the 50 mm bar at the foot of the sheet. If it measures 48 mm the printer shrank the page, and a 40 mm cone comes out 38 mm.
2. Pick the paper. 160 to 200 g/m² card (60 to 75 lb cover) for the tree topper and the hanging angels; ordinary 80 g/m² copy paper rolls too, but the cone dents. The nativity wings want 250 g/m² card or the printout glued onto a cereal-box panel, because they are worn and bumped.
3. Cut, then fold. Solid lines are cuts, dashed lines are folds, grey areas take the glue. Each sheet repeats its own steps at the top.
4. Build it. Tree topper: roll the dress so its left edge lies on the dashed line of the grey tab and glue; fold the head over the tip of the cone; glue the halo stalk behind the head and the wings over the seam. Hanging angels: fold both pieces of an angel in half, lay a 25 cm thread in the fold, and glue the halves back to back. Plate angel and wings: see below.

Tree topper sizes

The cone has to be wider than the tree’s top shoot so it slides down over it; the shoot then runs about halfway up inside the cone, which is what holds the angel upright. Measure the shoot 10 cm below the tip and add 15 to 20 mm, or start from this table:

The cone grows with its opening: a 40 mm cone is 116 mm tall, and with the head and halo the angel stands about 15 cm. Artificial trees often have a thinner top pole (8 to 12 mm), so the small size suits most of them.

Nativity wing sizes

The wings are as wide as the child’s back from one shoulder tip to the other, so they show from behind and from the side without catching on the next shepherd in a crowded line, and they stand a little taller than they are wide (1.05 times), from above the shoulders to the small of the back. The back widths are typical ranges for each age, rounded to whole centimetres; if your child is between sizes, measure across the back and type it in.

Each loop of 6 mm elastic goes in through the top hole, over the shoulder, under the arm and back out of the lower hole on the same side, then is knotted behind the wings (the lengths include 2 cm for the knot). Put a reinforcement ring or a square of tape over each hole before punching, or the elastic tears through card within one rehearsal. A wing pair prints on four sheets (two A4 sheets for ages 3 to 4); tape the sheets together on their blue lines before cutting.

Questions

Is the paper angel template free to download as a PDF?

Yes. The PDF is made on your own device when you press Download, with no sign-up, no watermark and no limit. The same sheet comes as a 300 dpi PNG for a photo printer, and as SVG and DXF cut files at true size for a Cricut or a Silhouette (the free Silhouette Studio opens DXF, not SVG): cut lines on one layer, folds on another.

What is the easiest paper angel pattern for children?

The hanging angel at 12 cm: two identical flat pieces, no tabs, and the only fold is down the middle. Children from about five can cut it with scissors, and the colour-in print gives them the outlines to colour first. The tree topper has smaller parts (a 40 mm cone’s head is 26 mm across) and suits children from about eight, or an adult doing the head.

How do I make a paper plate angel?

Choose Paper plate and type your plate’s diameter: a 9-inch plate is about 23 cm, a 7-inch one 18 cm. Fold the plate in half, lay the printed guide’s straight edge on the fold and draw round it, then cut through both layers. The body is the 150° wedge at the bottom; rolled with a 1 cm overlap, a 23 cm plate makes a cone 9.3 cm across and 10.5 cm tall. The two 105° pieces above become the wings, with scalloped feather edges. For a class, type the children’s names: each gets a head, a halo and a name banner, while one guide is enough for the whole table. A round paper doily works the same way: type the doily’s diameter instead and you get a lace-edged angel.

Is there a paper angel wings template for a nativity play?

Yes: Wings to wear sizes them to the child (table above), in six designs and in colour, gold or colour-in. For a whole class, type every child’s name and each pair is printed with its name on the back panel, so the costumes do not get swapped backstage.

Why does the angel have no face?

On purpose: a faceless angel looks right from across a room, suits any child who colours it, and is easy for small hands. Hair and skin each come in several shades. If you want a face, draw it on before you fold.

Do you have a star tree topper template?

Not on this page. For a star on top of the tree, the Paper Star Template makes folded 3D stars at any size.