Matryoshka dolls, more commonly known as Russian Nesting Dolls, are usually made from carved and intricately painted wood. A small doll nests inside a larger doll, which nests inside an even larger doll. A set is made of five dolls. This version of Matryoshka dolls are made from paper, though.
Materials
- 5 sheets of paper cut to these sizes:
- Doll 1: 8 ½” x 11” paper
- Doll 2: 7 ½” x 10” paper
- Doll 3: 6 ½” x 9” paper
- Doll 4: 5 ½” x 8” paper
Doll 5: 4 ½” x 7” paper
- Ruler
- Pencil
- Scissors
- Coloring materials
Instructions
1. Lay one sheet of paper horizontally.
4. Fold the right side (the rectangular part) in one-third of the way. Repeat so the entire rectangle portion of the paper is folded.
7. To make the smaller dolls, trim an inch off the paper size of the previous doll both vertically and horizontally. Repeat steps 1-5 with each paper to make a set of dolls. When all of the dolls are folded, color them!
2. Take the bottom right corner and fold it up diagonally to create a triangle. There will be a small strip of extra paper to the left of the triangle.
5. Repeat so the entire rectangular part is folded.
3. Fold the paper in half horizontally by bringing the bottom edge up to the top edge. Turn over.
6. Fold the triangular flap to the right, over the rectangle. In the corner, there should be a pocket. Tuck the flap into this pocket. Turn over. This is the largest nesting doll.
Source
- Book: "Handmade Tales: Stories to Make and Tell" by Dianne de Las Casas