DIY Paper Ornaments are Perfect for Parties (in Any Season)

Party decorations

Artist Patricia Zapata created these hanging ornaments to decorate a hotel room where her family was staying during the holidays by cutting strips of red and white paper and attaching them in two different combinations: all the same length for a wider tear shape, and in progressively longer loops for a dropped look. The finished product brightened up their hotel room and did double duty as tree ornaments when they got home.

But you don't need to put these up just for Christmas: use your school colors and make a bunch of them to use as a garland at a graduation party; hang colorful ones in your windows for a cheery summer look, or have your kids help you choose the colors and suspend them in the playroom. And don't limit yourself to plain construction paper, either; try strips of magazines or newspaper, scrapbooking prints, old greeting cards, or even brightly-hued landscape photos for an even more personal touch.