Nur’s Nook: Make Your Own Mini Zine
“Let us cooperate in love and through spiritual reciprocity enjoy eternal happiness and peace.” —‘Abdu’l-Bahá
I’m so excited about Brilliant Star’s 50th birthday! Over the last 50 years, friends around the world have worked together to create about 300 issues of this fun magazine.
For a cool way to celebrate, let’s make homemade mini magazines (zines). Like the Brilliant Star team, we can consult and brainstorm about a theme for each zine, like friendship or helping the environment. Mine is about arts and crafts! We can create covers and put activities, stories, or puzzles on the pages.
Follow the steps below to make mini zines with your friends. Work together on one, or ask everyone to make their own. Have fun trading or sharing them. I’d love to see your amazing zines, too!
You’ll Need:
One piece of 8½" x 11" (21.6 x 27.9 cm) paper, scissors, 8 pieces of 2¾" x 4¼" (7 x 10.8 cm) paper, markers, glue stick, optional: decorative paper, printouts, photos, and photocopies
What You Do:
Step 1: Fold larger paper in half so long edges meet.
Step 2: Fold paper in half so short edges meet.
Step 3: Fold it in half again so short edges meet.
Step 4: Open paper and fold so short edges meet. From folded edge, cut along center crease and stop at intersecting crease.
Step 5a: Open paper and refold as in Step 1. Push short ends of paper toward each other so opening forms a diamond shape in paper’s center.
Step 5b: Continue pushing paper ends toward each other until diamond closes to form a plus sign shape.
Step 6: Fold each section of plus sign together, so zine is closed along left edge for its spine, and on bottom edge of back cover. Press zine flat to reinforce creases.
Step 7: On smaller papers, create cover and zine pages about your topic. You or your team can draw pictures and write text, or glue on pieces of decorative paper, printouts, photocopies, or photos.*
Step 8: Glue a finished page to each folded zine page.
Step 9: Unfold zine. With marker, add lines along all edges to help you when duplicating your zine.
Nur’s Craft tips: Make photocopies of zine at 95% of its size. Or scan it into a computer, or photograph it taped flat. Print out copies. Cut zines out using lines as guides. Put zine’s cover right-side up on each copy. Follow Steps 1-6. Now they’re ready to trade or share!
*Ask permission before sharing other people’s words, pics, or art.
For a printable version, download a PDF.
Nur152 Paper39 Arts84 Arts and Crafts222 Crafts213 Consultation43 Cooperation106 Magazine7 Reading8 Creative Writing30