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How to fold an origami bamboo forest

A real project. Fold a panda with a big round head, a crane with lifted wings, pleated bamboo with slim leaves, a stream that winds by folding and steep misty peaks. Stand it up.

You need: 24 pieces: pale green A4, pale grey-green, sage, grass green, blue, greens, pale greys, black, a scrap of red (sizes in steps). Scissors, glue, pens.. Challenge, 89 steps, about 120 minutes.

Steps

  1. Peak: left side behind. Start with a misty peak: a 12 cm pale grey-green square, coloured side up, as a diamond. Fold the left corner behind on an upright crease 5.6 cm in.
  2. Peak: right side, blunt top. Fold the right corner behind the same way, and the top corner behind 1.6 cm along each edge. Now it is a tall, steep peak.
  3. Peak: new sheet. Set the peak aside. For another peak, take a 10.2 cm pale grey-green square, coloured side up, as a diamond.
  4. Peak: left side behind. Fold the left corner behind on an upright crease 4.8 cm in.
  5. Peak: right side, blunt top. Fold the right corner behind the same way, and the top corner behind 1.4 cm along each edge. Now it is a tall, steep peak.
  6. Peak: new sheet. Set the peak aside. For another peak, take a 8.5 cm pale grey-green square, coloured side up, as a diamond.
  7. Peak: left side behind. Fold the left corner behind on an upright crease 3.8 cm in.
  8. Peak: right side, blunt top. Fold the right corner behind the same way, and the top corner behind 1.2 cm along each edge. Now it is a tall, steep peak.
  9. Hill: new sheet. Set the peak aside. For the near hill, take a 16.9 × 5.6 cm sage green piece, coloured side up, lying long.
  10. Hill: slope it. Fold the top right corner behind, 4.4 cm along each edge.
  11. Hill: round it. Fold the two new corners behind, 1.3 cm each, so the hill rolls gently down.
  12. Grassy bank: new sheet. Set the hill aside. For the grassy bank, take a 29.7 × 8.1 cm piece, coloured side up, lying long.
  13. Grassy bank: top edge behind. Fold the top edge behind 6 mm, for a straight line where the bank meets the hills.
  14. Stream: new sheet. Set the grassy bank aside. For the stream, take a 9.8 × 3.6 cm blue strip, white side up, lying long.
  15. Stream: narrow it. Fold both long edges in to meet along the middle, for a blue strip.
  16. Stream: point the far end. Fold the two corners of the left end behind to the middle. The stream narrows away into the distance.
  17. Stream: first bend. Fold the right part down to the left on a slant 5 cm from the point.
  18. Stream: second bend. Fold the end straight down on a slant 2.5 cm further on. The stream winds out to the front.
  19. Bamboo: new sheet. Set the stream aside. For a bamboo stalk, take a 3 × 22.2 cm green strip, white side up, standing tall.
  20. Bamboo: fold up. Fold the part below up on a level crease 6.6 cm from the top.
  21. Bamboo: fold down. Fold it back down 3 mm higher. The pleat is a bamboo joint.
  22. Bamboo: fold up. Fold the part below up on a level crease 14 cm from the top.
  23. Bamboo: fold down. Fold it back down 3 mm higher. The pleat is a bamboo joint. Two joints done.
  24. Bamboo: narrow it. Fold both long edges in to meet along the middle, through the pleats, for a thin green stalk.
  25. Bamboo: new sheet. Set the bamboo aside. For another bamboo stalk, take a 3 × 22.2 cm green strip, white side up, standing tall.
  26. Bamboo: fold up. Fold the part below up on a level crease 4.8 cm from the top.
  27. Bamboo: fold down. Fold it back down 3 mm higher. The pleat is a bamboo joint.
  28. Bamboo: fold up. Fold the part below up on a level crease 12.2 cm from the top.
  29. Bamboo: fold down. Fold it back down 3 mm higher. The pleat is a bamboo joint. Two joints done.
  30. Bamboo: narrow it. Fold both long edges in to meet along the middle, through the pleats, for a thin green stalk.
  31. Bamboo: new sheet. Set the bamboo aside. For another bamboo stalk, take a 3 × 22.2 cm green strip, white side up, standing tall.
  32. Bamboo: fold up. Fold the part below up on a level crease 7.8 cm from the top.
  33. Bamboo: fold down. Fold it back down 3 mm higher. The pleat is a bamboo joint.
  34. Bamboo: fold up. Fold the part below up on a level crease 15.2 cm from the top.
  35. Bamboo: fold down. Fold it back down 3 mm higher. The pleat is a bamboo joint. Two joints done.
  36. Bamboo: narrow it. Fold both long edges in to meet along the middle, through the pleats, for a thin green stalk.
  37. Leaf: new sheet. Set the bamboo aside. For a bamboo leaf, take a 5 cm light green square, white side up, as a diamond.
  38. Leaf: kite. Fold the two lower edges in to meet along the middle, for a kite.
  39. Leaf: narrow the top. Fold the two upper edges in to the middle too, so the top comes to a slim point.
  40. Leaf: narrow the bottom. Fold the wide middle corners in once more, from the bottom point. Now it is a long, slim bamboo leaf.
  41. Leaf: new sheet. Set the leaf aside. For another bamboo leaf, take a 5 cm light green square, white side up, as a diamond.
  42. Leaf: kite. Fold the two lower edges in to meet along the middle, for a kite.
  43. Leaf: narrow the top. Fold the two upper edges in to the middle too, so the top comes to a slim point.
  44. Leaf: narrow the bottom. Fold the wide middle corners in once more, from the bottom point. Now it is a long, slim bamboo leaf.
  45. Leaf: new sheet. Set the leaf aside. For another bamboo leaf, take a 5 cm light green square, white side up, as a diamond.
  46. Leaf: kite. Fold the two lower edges in to meet along the middle, for a kite.
  47. Leaf: narrow the top. Fold the two upper edges in to the middle too, so the top comes to a slim point.
  48. Leaf: narrow the bottom. Fold the wide middle corners in once more, from the bottom point. Now it is a long, slim bamboo leaf.
  49. Crane's legs: new sheet. Set the leaf aside. For its legs, take a 0.4 × 6.9 cm black strip, standing tall.
  50. Crane: fold the strip. Fold it in half lengthwise, the right edge over onto the left edge, so it is black on both sides.
  51. Crane: two legs. Fold the top half down on a crease across the middle that rises to the right, so it swings out ahead: one leg stepping forward.
  52. Crane: feet. Fold the last 4 mm of each leg forward along the ground.
  53. Wings: new sheet. Set the crane's legs aside. For the wings, take a 6 × 4.7 cm pale grey piece, grey side up, long sides level.
  54. Crane: fold in half. Fold the left edge over onto the right edge.
  55. Crane: cut the wings. Cut from the fold 6 mm below the middle up to the top right corner. Cut from 8 mm along the bottom up to the right edge, 1.4 cm from the top. Round the tip.
  56. Crane: open the wings. Unfold it: two long wings rising from a short stem in the middle, like a wide V.
  57. Crane's body: new sheet. Set the wings aside. Now the crane. For its body, take a 6.3 cm pale grey square, white side up, as a diamond.
  58. Crane: fold in half. Grey square, white side up, turned like a diamond. Fold the top corner down to the bottom corner. The long fold on top is the back.
  59. Crane: crease a strip. Fold the top edge down 4 mm along its whole length, through all the layers, and crease it hard.
  60. Crane: open it. Unfold the strip again. You will cut along its crease to free a long neck.
  61. Crane: free the neck. Cut along the crease from the right edge to 3 mm right of the middle. Cut the strip's end to a long point. Round the body below it.
  62. Crane: neck up. Outside-reverse-fold the strip up from the end of the cut, so it stands tall and leans a little forward.
  63. Crane: head and beak. 1.4 cm from the tip, outside-reverse-fold the top forward and up: a small head with a long beak, calling to the sky.
  64. Red crown: new sheet. Set the crane's body aside. Cut a small red circle, about 5 mm across, for the crown.
  65. Ear: new sheet. Set the red crown aside. Now the panda, the hard part. For an ear, take a 1.4 × 1.4 cm black square, black side up.
  66. Ear: round it. Fold all four corners behind, about 3 mm in, so the ear is round.
  67. Ear: new sheet. Set the ear aside. For the other ear, take another 1.4 × 1.4 cm black square.
  68. Ear: round it. Fold all four corners behind, about 3 mm in, so the ear is round.
  69. Legs: new sheet. Set the ear aside. For the legs, take a 6.7 × 1.9 cm black strip, white side up, lying wide.
  70. Legs: in half. Fold the bottom edge up to the top edge.
  71. Legs: round the feet. Snip all four corners off the ends, 5 mm in, so each foot is round.
  72. Panda's body: new sheet. Set the legs aside. For the panda's body, take a 4.8 × 4.8 cm pale square, pale side up.
  73. Body: round the shoulders. Take the big pale square. Fold both top corners behind, 1.4 cm in along each edge.
  74. Body: round the bottom. Fold both bottom corners behind, 8 mm in, so the tummy is round.
  75. Bamboo shoot: new sheet. Set the panda's body aside. For the shoot it munches, take a 1.3 × 4.8 cm green strip, white side up, standing tall.
  76. Bamboo: in half. Fold the strip in half from left to right, long edge to long edge.
  77. Bamboo: in half again. Fold it in half again from right to left, so you have a thin stick 3 mm wide.
  78. Bamboo: pleat a joint. Fold the bottom part of the stick up on a crease 1.8 cm from the bottom.
  79. Bamboo: and back down. Fold it back down 1 mm higher up. The little step is a bamboo joint.
  80. Bamboo: a shoot. Fold the top 8 mm out to the right on a slanted crease, so a little shoot sticks out at the top.
  81. Arms: new sheet. Set the bamboo shoot aside. For the arms, take a 6.7 × 1.9 cm black strip, white side up, lying wide.
  82. Arms: in half. Fold the bottom edge up to the top edge. This black band goes over the panda's shoulders.
  83. Arms: swing them down. Fold each end down on a slanted crease about 1.4 cm from the middle, so the arms hang down and turn in a little.
  84. Arms: round the paws. Snip the corners off the end of each arm, so the paws are round.
  85. Head: new sheet. Set the arms aside. For the head, take a 3.8 × 3.8 cm pale square, pale side up.
  86. Head: round it. Fold all four corners behind, 10 mm in along each edge, so the head is round.
  87. Sky: new sheet. Set the head aside. Last, the sky: a pale green A4 sheet, coloured side up, lying long.
  88. Build the scene. Glue the peaks on the sky, the hill and bank over them, the stream, bamboo at both sides with the leaves, then the crane by the water and the panda.
  89. Stand it up. Bend the sky gently towards you just right of the stream, and stand the bamboo forest up on the table.

Peace in the bamboo

Draw the panda's eyes and nose, the crane's eye and black wing tips, a few ripples on the stream and birds over the peaks.

What to fold next