Origami Instructions

Origami is the Japanese tradition of paper folding.

You have probably folded a paper airplane or fortune teller before, but those paper arts are a little more simple than origami. The Japanese have perfected the art of paper folding over the centuries. Some of the more impressive creations are showcases in origami museums such as the one in Tokyo's Narita Airport. Although your first origami projects will probably not encompass an entire tabletop or portray historical war scenes, you can start learning simple origami shapes.

Things You'll Need

• Origami paper

Instructions

Learn Origami

1. Gather the necessary materials, such as origami paper that is available at many office supply stores or online retailers. Some sellers also provide origami activity books which include paper and instructions.

   Alternatively, you can cut a piece of printer or notebook style into a square (3 by 3-, 6 by 6- and 10 by10-inch squares are common) to practice origami.

2. Find instructions for simple origami shapes. Purchase a book from a bookstore or rent one from the library, if you are more comfortable. You can also type "beginner origami" into your search engine of choice to find free origami instructions online.

3. Pick a simple origami shape and follow instructions from a book or web page to create the piece. Sources which offer images in addition to text are especially helpful. Some simple shapes to consider are the fan, the hopping frog or the whale.

4. Practice basic origami folds that will help you improve your skills. These folds include squash folds, triangle folds, valley and mountain folds, book and cupboard folds and inside and outside reverse folds.

Tips & Warnings

• Origami paper is especially easy to manipulate because it is lightweight.

• Paper that you have folded before will be more difficult to make into a new shape.

References

• Origami Instructions: Simple Origami
• Origami Fun: Origami Instructions

Resources

• Origami Resource Center:Free Origami Instructions