Fold an Origami Cube

Origami is the Japanese art of paper folding. Few origami constructions require more than a piece of paper, making origami a wonderful hobby that is accessible to almost everyone. These instructions cover one of the most exhilarating pieces of art. The cube is a simple construction and should take no more than ten minutes to complete. The instructions include basic folds and abase that is common to many constructions.

Steps

  1. Orient the paper into portrait alignment.
  2. Fold the bottom right corner upward so that the bottom edge is aligned with the left edge, and unfold. Then, repeat for the left corner.
  3. Fold the top section of the paper down along the horizontal line formed by the tops of the Step 2-3 creases, and unfold.
  4. Cut along the Step 4 crease. Alternatively, lightly lick along the Step 4 crease and then carefully tear. You will not need the long rectangular strip.

The Water Bomb Base

  1. Flip the paper over so that the Step 2-3 creases from the previous section are facing down and the paper is somewhat convex.
  2. Fold the bottom edge to the top edge, and unfold.
  3. Push the left and right edges toward the center until they meet, forming a tent-like shape. Flatten the tent-like shape along the existing creases.

The Compressed Cube

  1. Fold the right vertex to the top vertex.
  2. Fold the right vertex of the resulting triangle to the center line.
  3. Insert the flap near the top vertex into the pocket along the top edge of the triangle formed in Step 3, and fold to secure.
  4. Repeat Steps 2-4 for the left side.
  5. Flip the paper over.
  6. Repeat Steps 2-5 for the now-front face.
  7. Fold the top triangular section down, and unfold.
  8. Fold the bottom triangular section up, and unfold.

The Magic Final Steps

  1. Hold the paper's bottom vertex and spread out the four edges so that they are perpendicular to each other.
  2. Blow into the hole at the bottom vertex until the cube takes shape.
  3. Finished.



Tips

  • Press creases with your thumbnail to ensure clean folds.
  • If you are unsure what a step means, look closely at the accompanying image. Dotted lines indicate where a fold should be made.
  • If one of your folds is off, simply unfold and try again.
  • If the cube doesn't blow up easily, try, in step nine of 'The Compressed Cube' to fold the top and bottom triangle sections both forward and backwards (fold it both ways). It should ease the blowing up process.

Things You'll Need

  • 1 Piece of 8.5" x 11" printer paper (Feel free to use square origami paper. Then you can skip the first section, though you will need the folds from Steps 3-4.
  • Scissors (optional)

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