How to start origami

Origami is the art of folding paper into shapes without cutting or gluing. All it takes is a square of paper, a flat table and a little patience. This guide covers the paper, the words and the main fold symbols you will meet in the other guides on this site.

Which paper to use

• Origami paper (kami) is thin, crisp and usually coloured on one side and white on the other. A 15 cm (6 in) square is the easiest size for small hands.
• Double-sided paper is coloured on both sides, so the inside of a fold shows a second colour. Our double-sided origami paper is good for cranes, hearts and frogs.
• Patterned paper turns a plain model into a gift. Try our patterned origami paper for boats and cranes.
• Glitter and foil papers hold a crease very well but do not like being unfolded many times, so save them for models you know. Our iridescent glitter paper is thin enough for a crane.
• Printer paper works for practice. It is thicker, so press each crease firmly.

Words you will see

• Edge is a straight side of the paper, corner is where two edges meet, and point is any corner of the folded model.
• Crease is the line a fold leaves behind.
• Flap is any part of the model you can lift and fold on its own.
• Base is a starting shape that many models share, such as the square base used for the crane.
• Repeat behind means do the same fold on the back of the model.

Step by step

1. Step 1

   Pick a square of paper

   Origami paper is thin, holds a sharp crease and is usually coloured on one side and white on the other. Most diagrams start from a square, and they tell you which side should face up.

2. Step 2

   Make a square from a rectangle

   No origami paper? Fold the top edge of a sheet of printer paper down to lie along the left edge, making a triangle. Cut off the strip below the triangle, then unfold it. You have a square.

3. Step 3

   Valley fold

   Fold the paper towards you so the crease sinks down like a valley. In diagrams it is a dashed line, and the arrow has a solid head. Line the edges up first, then press the crease flat with your fingernail.

4. Step 4

   Mountain fold

   Fold the paper away from you, behind, so the crease stands up like a mountain. In diagrams it is a line of dashes and dots, and the arrow has an open, one-sided head. It is a valley fold made from the other side.

5. Step 5

   Fold and unfold

   An arrow with a head at each end means fold, crease well, then open the paper again. The crease you leave behind, drawn as a thin line, is a guide for a later step.

6. Step 6

   Turn the paper over

   An arrow with a loop in it means turn the paper over, like turning the page of a book. The white side comes up and the creases now run the other way.

7. Step 7

   Inside reverse fold

   Fold the square in half to a triangle. To reverse fold the top point, first fold it down and unfold to make a crease. Open the layers a little, push the point down between them along the crease, and flatten. The hollow arrow means push here.

Tips for clean folds

• Fold on a hard, flat table, not on your lap.
• Line up the corners and edges exactly before you crease, then press from the middle out to the ends.
• If a step looks confusing, look ahead at the next drawing to see the shape you are aiming for.
• Small hands: start with bigger paper. Grown-ups can pre-crease the tricky folds.

What to fold next

Try the origami heart or the paper boat first; they use simple valley folds. Then move on to the fox face, the jumping frog, and the paper crane when you are ready for a reverse fold.