How to Make a Origami With Paper

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Origami is the art of paper folding. Most origami artists use special lightweight paper that comes in small squares. However, sometimes this paper can be difficult to find. If you don't have specialty paper on hand but still want to practice your folding, there are a number of ways you can repurpose more common types of paper. Making your own paper also has the advantage of being completely customizable. You can decorate it however you want!

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   Gather normal copy or printer paper. Copy paper is extremely common, cheap, and easy to obtain. If you're fine with using paper that isn't blank, you can often get large amounts of used paper for free. The only thing keeping printer paper from being "origami paper" is the fact that it is rectangular, not square. You will need to trim some away for proper origami paper.

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   Make your first fold. Properly folding the printer paper will allow you to cut it into a perfect square without using a ruler. Take the top right corner and fold it down until it touches the left edge of your paper. The entire top edge of your paper should now be even with the left side.^[1] Make a crisp crease along the fold. Your paper should now look like a sailboat with a folded right triangle "sail" sitting on top of a single-layer rectangle.

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   Make your second fold. Take the point in the top left corner and fold it down so it is equal with both the left side and the base of the triangle. Your paper should now look similar to a house. The top will now be a right triangle with a centered point and the bottom section a rectangle.^[2]

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   Fold the bottom flap. Take the rectangle at the bottom and fold it behind the triangle. Make a sharp crease along the edge. Now you can unfold the triangle.^[3]

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   Cut along the bottom crease with a pair of scissors or tear the paper. This will remove the excess paper. Unfold the paper completely. Use a pair of scissors to cut off the bottom rectangular flap. Use the crease to guide you, and try to cut as straight of a line as possible.

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   Unfold your paper completely. Now you should have a square piece of paper that you can use for your origami practice. You may want to use a hard, flat object to smooth the paper so that it's easier to work with when you are folding your origami. Try putting it inside a thick textbook for a day or two.

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1. 1

   Print out designs. A lot of origami paper has beautiful repeating designs on one or both sides. Some paper even have different designs on each side. To make this kind of paper at home, find a pattern on the web that you like and print it out. Patterns specifically for origami paper usually have a guide so you will not need to use the folding method to make a square.^[4]

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   Consider colored paper. If you don't want designs but would like some color in your origami creations, buy some colored printer paper. This can give you variety without having to waste printer ink. Inexpensive printer paper comes in numerous bright colors.

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   Use wrapping paper, scrapbook paper, or tissue paper. Another way to reuse or recycle paper is to use gift wrap, scrapbook paper, or tissue paper. Wrapping paper and scrapbook paper are usually white on one side with a design on the other, much like most specialty origami paper.

   • Gift wrap comes in a wide variety of designs that can make beautiful origami. Be aware that it folds well, but can tear easily. Use a ruler, a pencil, and a pair of scissors to cut it into squares.
   • Scrapbook paper is usually thicker and sturdier. You can buy scrapbook paper in large or small squares, so you may not need to cut it at all.^[5]
   • Tissue paper comes in many colors and designs. However, it is also very thin. You will need to take extra care when folding it. Additionally, some kinds of tissue paper won't hold a crease and are not usable for origami. Crepe paper, the tissue paper often used in packages and decorations, holds a crease well and is suitable for origami. Tissue paper also has the advantage of often being sold as squares.^[6]

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   Design your own paper. Take squares of printer paper and draw your own designs on it. You can use acrylic paint, watercolor paint, markers, or anything you have to color it to make your own unique designs.^[7] If you're using acrylic paint, be careful not to paint it on too thick. Thick paint can crumble, and the bumpiness will make folding difficult. You can also dye your paper using tea, either as a "paint" or by using tea bags to create abstract art.^[8]

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Add New Question

• Question

  Can I use colored construction paper to make origami paper?

  

  You could, but the paper is slightly thicker and may cause problems with folding precisely.

• Question

  Would I be able to use watercolor paint for this?

  

  Ukjm2357

  Community Answer

  Yes, you could.

• Question

  What is the size of origami paper?

  

  Mandy_Moon_Watcher

  Community Answer

  Origami paper comes in several sizes, but standard sizes include 75 × 75 mm (about 3 × 3 inches), 6-inch squares, and 10-inch squares.

• Question

  Where can I buy it?

  

  I am pretty sure that you can buy origami paper pretty much anywhere they sell paper.

• Question

  How do I make a paper crane?

  

• Question

  Why is it we never have origami paper?

  

  Elizabeth Bolster

  Community Answer

  You can buy origami paper at your local craft store or you can order it online.

• Question

  Where can I buy cheap origami paper ?

  

  Fredwina

  Community Answer

  You can buy it in bulk at craft stores, and there is inexpensive paper online.

• Question

  How can I make paper decorations for my desk at home for homeschooling?

  

  Dewa Dewappriya

  Community Answer

  You could make a couple of scarecrows using colour papers, glue and a sharp paper cutter. Or even make nice patterns using colour papers, glue and glitter. Decorate your to-do-list using some glitter and decorative tape or add some favorite stickers. These decoations will make your desk look cool!

• Question

  Can I just do it without colors? It looks hard.

  

  Yes you can. You could do it on a blank paper, or instead printing colors, you could color it with color pencils or pens.

• Question

  How can I get used paper?

  

  You can cut paper to square sizes. You can cut it big size or any sizes, it is your choice.

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• Origami has been shown to have a positive effect on stress, to improve some psychological disorders, and to help with recovery in people who have had hand injury or surgery.^[9]

• Some skilled artists use business cards to make origami.^[10] While free business cards are easy to find, this material is challenging to work with due to its thickness and small size.

• If you have access to a paper trimmer, you can make hundreds of sheets of origami paper from printer paper in just a few minutes. Simply use the ruler on the cutting board and align a stack of paper with the long edge at the 8.5 inch (21.6 cm) mark. Then simply trim off the excess to create a square.

• Never press too hard when creasing, especially on the initial attempts of each fold. That way if you need to redo a fold, there won't be a lot of creases in your paper.

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Things You'll Need

• Printer paper (printer paper method)
• Scissors
• Gift wrap (decorative paper method)
• Scrapbook paper (decorative paper method)
• Tissue paper (decorative paper method)
• Printer (optional)
• Acrylic or watercolor paint (optional)

About This Article

Article SummaryX

To make origami paper with a sheet of A4, start by folding the top right corner until it lines up with the left edge. Then, fold the top left corner down to the bottom right corner of the triangle. You should be left with a new triangle and a small rectangle at the bottom. Fold this rectangle behind the triangle. Now you can unfold the paper and use a pair of scissors to cut the bottom rectangle off. For more adventurous origami paper, use colored paper or wrapping paper. Alternatively, decorate your paper with your own designs in marker pens or acrylic paint. To make your origami paper smoother, try keeping it inside a thick textbook for a day. For more tips, including how to make thicker origami paper, read on!

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How to Make a Origami With Paper

Source: https://www.wikihow.com/Make-Origami-Paper

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