How to Fold an Origami Cat Face
The origami cat face is a kitten's head with two pointed ears and a blunt chin, folded from one square and finished with drawn eyes and whiskers. It is a very easy model with five folds and takes about three minutes, so it suits young children and first-time folders.
Quick answerThe origami cat face is an easy model folded in 5 steps and about 3 minutes, using only valley folds. You need a 15 cm (6 in) square in grey, black, orange or white.
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Time
- About 3 min
- Steps
- 5
- Paper
- A 15 cm (6 in) square in grey, black, orange or white
Lay the square as a diamond with the white side facing up, then bring the top corner down to meet the bottom corner, making a triangle.
Tip: swipe the diagram, or use ← → on your keyboard. Space plays and pauses.
All steps
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Step-by-step instructions
The same 5 steps as the animation above, written out so you can fold away from the screen.
Step 1
Lay the square as a diamond with the white side facing up, then bring the top corner down to meet the bottom corner, making a triangle.
Step 2
Bring the two side corners of the triangle together to crease a vertical line through the middle, then open it out again.
Step 3
Fold each side corner upward along a slanted line that runs from the bottom point to the top edge, so the tips poke up above the top edge as two pointed ears.
Step 4
Fold the very bottom point up a short way through all the layers to give the cat a flat chin.
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Step 5
Flip the model over to see the finished face with smooth, uncluttered cheeks.
Finished
Draw two eyes, a small triangular nose and a few whiskers on the face, and your cat is ready. It makes a quick bookmark decoration, a finger puppet or a card topper.
About the origami cat face
The cat face is a traditional children's model found in countless beginner books and classroom handouts. It turns a single folded triangle into a recognisable kitten's head with two pointed ears, a broad forehead and a tapering face that ends in a small flat chin. Like other simple animal heads, it is designed to be finished with a pen: the eyes, nose and whiskers you draw give each cat its own character, so a group of children folding the same model will end up with a room full of very different cats.
The folds are few but each one teaches something useful. Making the triangle and the middle crease shows how to line up corners precisely, and the ear folds introduce folding along a slanted line from a fixed point, a move that appears in many animal models. The small chin fold goes through several layers at once, which is good practice for pressing firm creases. Turning the model over at the end reveals a clean face with no flaps on it, which is an easy way to show beginners that the back of a model can be the side you display.
Cat faces make lively bookmarks, finger puppets, name tags and greeting-card decorations, and they look great in a row in different colours. Pair the cat with the Dog Face and the Fox Face for a set of animal heads that all start from the same triangle, or add a Fish for the cat to watch. If you want a next step that ends in a full animal rather than a face, the Penguin and the Whale are both short sequences that stay easy while introducing a few new folds.
Origami cat face: questions
Is the origami cat face good for young children?+
Yes. It uses only simple valley folds with clear reference points, such as corners and the bottom point. Most children from about five can fold it with a little help lining up the ears, and older children usually manage it alone.
What color paper is best for an origami cat?+
Paper colored on one side works well because the whole face shows the colored side. Grey, black, orange and white all make convincing cats, and patterned paper can suggest tabby or calico fur.
How is the cat face different from the dog and fox faces?+
All three start from a folded triangle. The dog's ears hang down beside the face, the fox's ears are folded up from a smaller diamond, and the cat's ears are swung up from the side corners along lines that start at the chin, which gives it a wide face and neat pointed ears.
Can I make a whole cat with a body?+
This diagram covers the head only. Many folders glue the face onto a second square folded into a simple body, or onto a card with a drawn body and tail, which is a quick way to make a complete cat picture.
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Dog Face
The origami dog face is a simple puppy head with floppy ears folded from one square, and children often draw on eyes and a nose to finish it. It is very easy and takes about three minutes, making it ideal for first-time folders.
Fox Face
The origami fox face is a pointed fox head with tall ears, folded from one square in five steps and finished with drawn eyes and a nose. It is an easy model that takes about three minutes.
Penguin
The origami penguin is a flat penguin seen from the front, with a dark back and wings, a white belly, a white face and a small dark beak, folded from one square that is dark on one side and white on the other. It is an easy model of six steps that takes about three minutes, using only valley and mountain folds.
Fish
The origami fish is a simple flat fish with a blunt nose and an upturned tail, folded from a kite shape made from one square. It is easy and takes about four minutes, so it suits children and complete beginners.