Update: The alphabet is now available as a beautifully printed book. Since it contains the letters already precut, it saves a lot of time.
A papercraft alphabet – 26 fine templates to print out, fold and glue into letters. Each one represents a thing (or animal, or people) starting with that letter.
This alphabet can be a nice and playful learning resource for kids – the younger ones will need some help in assembling the models.
In addition to being nice little toys (my son has instantly fallen in love with the letter A – or astronaut), you can write all kinds of nice messages with them, such as ‘I love you’ or ‘Please pay the rent ASAP’…
Works in English as well as in German (and, at least to some extend, probably in some other languages as well).
Here are the first three letters: A as in Astronaut, B as in Beaver, and C as in Chameleon:
Here is a tutorial on how to make the letters.
Here is a PDF file containing all letters.
And here are the individual letters, complete with downloadable PDF template:
- A is for Astronaut
So, here it is – the first letter of the papercraft alphabet. The astronaut:
Here is the template as a PDF file.
- B is for Beaver
Obviously, this beaver has eaten its share of water lillies.
Here is the template as a PDF file. And here is the rest of the alphabet.
- C is for Chameleon
This colorful C-shaped chameleon is part of the papercraft alphabet.
If you are interested in a more realistic looking chameleon (well, sort of), I have a full-fledged chameleon model as well – look here.
Here is the template as a PDF file.
- D is for Doctor
The doctor is in:
And not only does he administer absolutely painless treatments for all your health-related woes, he is also part of the papercraft alphabet.
Here is the template as a PDF file.
- E is for Elephant
And another letter animal – the elephant:
You will find the other 25 letters of the papercraft alphabet here.
Here is the template as a PDF file.
- F is for Fly
Ok, I admit I had struggled a bit with the animal for the letter F. Flies are not exactly my – or, I imagine, most people’s – favourite pet:
No need to even pretend this is cute, but hey – there aren’t too many animal names starting with the letter F both in English and German.
When ... - G is for Gorilla
The papercraft gorilla for the letter G:
You will find the other 25 letters of the papercraft alphabet here.
Here is the template as a PDF file.
- H is for Handshake
Probably the most abstract of the papercraft letters – the handshake:
I only realized after the fact that these guys have but one hand. Well, I think the letter still works as it is, but maybe this is a good candidate for a revised version sometime in the future.
You will find the other 25 letters of ... - I is for Indian (or Insect)
Enjoy the easiest to build letter – the Indian. He is wearing a sherwani, in case you were wondering.
Some people are worried about the ethnic / cultural reference, so in case you need to steer clear of such issues, here is an alternative: I for Insect:
You will find the other 25 letters of the papercraft ... - J is for Jester
The jester is relatively easy to build, however you should take care to glue a small weight (such as a cent coint) inside the base, otherwise he will fall over on his face.
You will find the other 25 letters of the papercraft alphabet here.
Here is the template as a PDF file.
- K is for Kangaroo
Technically, this letter is actually two animals – mother kangaroo and her joey in the pouch.
I should warn you that cutting out and assembling this letter is a bit challenging – the parts around the faces are quite small.
You will find the other 25 letters of the papercraft alphabet here.
Here is the template as a ... - L is for Lion
The animal to use for the letter L was obviously quite easy to decide: The majestic lion.
You will find the other 25 letters of the papercraft alphabet here.
Here is the template as a PDF file.
- M is for Monster
Beware of the fear-inducing monster that is the letter M:
You will find the other 25 letters of the papercraft alphabet here.
Here is the template as a PDF file.
- N is for Ninja
Congratulation: If you made all other letters in alphabetical order, you are now halfway there – this is the 14th of the 26 letters.
In typical ninja fashion, this guy is quite sneaky: If you approach him from the front, he looks just like a plain and inconspicuous letter N. Only if you look at the ... - O is for Orange
Making the orange ‘O’ is a bit difficult because of the inner ring. I suggest you start with gluing it to one side, then the outer ring to the same side, then cover everything with the other side.
You will find the other 25 letters of the papercraft alphabet here.
Here is the template as a PDF ... - P is for Parrot
The parrot is once again an easy template, except maybe for the curvature of the beak. Very importantly, don’t forget to glue a small weight into the base – such as a small coin. Otherwise, the parrot will fall over.
Here is how to make the P (the photos are a slightly updated version from the ... - Q is for Quetzalcoatl
Ok, I admit it wasn’t easy to come up with something representing the letter Q. Quetzalcoatl is the best I could do.
Quetzalcoatl is a mesoamerican god whose name means ‘feathered serpent’. He is one of the more important Aztec deities.
You will find the other 25 letters of the papercraft alphabet here.
Here is the template as ... - R is for Rainbow
What better thing to represent the letter ‘R’ than a colorful rainbow? I have to warn you that the ‘R’ is a bit difficult to build, what with the small inner space and the many angles.
You will find the other 25 letters of the papercraft alphabet here.
Here is the template as a PDF file. And ... - S is for Snake
The snake is vaguely modelled after the Garter snake (with different colors, obviously). It is once again somewhat difficult to build, with all the curvatures. Prepare to be patient with this model and glue segment for segment, making sure that each part is solidly sticking before moving on to the next one.
You will find the ... - T is for Tiger
The tiger is again easy to make. I realized soon after having finished the design, that he looks much more clueless and much less fierce than his relative, the lion. Sorry, tiger – you may be in for a redesign in the future.
You will find the other 25 letters of the papercraft alphabet here.
Here is ... - U is for UFO
Turns out there are surprisingly few concrete nouns in English starting with the letter ‘U’. And technically, UFO is not a noun but an acronym. Anyway, I think for the purpose of the papercraft alphabet, this works quite nicely:
You will find the other 25 letters of the papercraft alphabet here.
Here is the template as a ... - V is for Vampire
Vampires seem to be quite en vogue these days. Well, I prefer the old-school ones over their ‘new millenium’ counterparts.
I was slightly tempted to include a bit of blood tripping from one of the canines, but then I didn’t want to have to explain to my five year old daughter about the staple diet of ... - W is for Walrus
Walrus are strange animals, when you look at them closely. Even more so when they are turned into the shape of the letter W.
You will find the other 25 letters of the papercraft alphabet here.
Here is the template as a PDF file.
- X is for X-ray
This is what it looks like when you x-ray a letter – you did know that they are made of flesh and bones, right?
You will find the other 25 letters of the papercraft alphabet here.
Here is the template as a PDF file.
- Y is for Yak
This is basically the single one animal starting with the letter ‘Y’ both in English and German. If you have made all 24 letters coming before this one in the alphabet, you will be relieved to fnd that this one is very easy to make.
You will find the other 25 letters of the papercraft alphabet ... - Z is for Zebra
Here it is – the last letter of the alphabet. Congratulations if you made all 26 letters!
You will find the other 25 letters of the papercraft alphabet here.
Here is the template as a PDF file.