7 animated diagrams
Decorations
Fold a few and string them up, stick them on cards or fill a jar.
Lucky Star
An origami lucky star is a tiny, puffy five-pointed star made by knotting a long paper strip into a pentagon and wrapping it. It is easy and takes about three minutes, though the final puffing step needs a light touch.
Tulip
The origami tulip is a flat flower head made from a single square in three folds, designed to be joined to a separate folded stem. It is one of the easiest models on the site and takes about three minutes.
Tulip Stem
The origami tulip stem is a slim green stalk with an attached leaf, folded from one square to support the origami tulip bloom. It is easy, takes about three minutes, and uses a series of narrowing folds to the center line.
Origami Heart
The origami heart is a flat, symmetrical heart shape folded from one square, ideal for slipping into a card or envelope. It is an easy model that takes around five minutes and uses only simple valley and mountain folds.
Butterfly
The origami butterfly is a small model with four wings and a locked body, folded from a square using the waterbomb base. It is a comfortable intermediate model that takes about six minutes and introduces collapsing a base.
Pinwheel
The origami pinwheel is a flat four-bladed model folded from the traditional windmill base that can be pinned to a stick so it spins in the wind. It is an intermediate model taking about six minutes, with one careful step where hidden corners are pulled out.
Paper Crane
The origami crane is the traditional Japanese orizuru, a bird with spread wings folded from a single square without cuts or glue. It is an advanced model: expect about 15 minutes for your first one, mostly spent learning the petal fold and inside reverse fold.