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How to fold an origami cuttlefish

Pleat a sheet on slants so its edges ripple into a fin skirt. Pleat a brown body over its head and taper it, then zigzag a thin strip into three arms.

You need: An 18 × 9 cm sheet and a 2 × 24 cm strip of brown paper, an 18 × 11 cm sheet of peach paper, all white on the back, glue, a black and a white pen. Hard, 19 steps, about 35 minutes.

Steps

  1. Body: pleat. Brown side up, lying across. Fold the right part over to the left on an upright crease 5.8 cm from the left end.
  2. Body: pleat back. Fold it back to the right 6 mm further left. The step is the front edge of the body; the part on the left is the head.
  3. Body: taper the head. Fold the top and bottom behind on long slants, from 3 cm apart at the left end to the body's edges 2.4 cm past the step.
  4. Body: round the back. Fold the two right corners behind on slants, so the back of the body is round.
  5. The skirt. Set the body aside. Take the peach sheet, peach side up, lying across.
  6. Skirt: round the ends. Fold the four corners behind on slants: short ones on the left, longer ones on the right.
  7. Skirt: pleat 1. Fold the right part over to the left on a crease 4.5 cm from the left end, leaning a little to the right.
  8. Skirt: pleat 1 back. Fold it back to the right on a parallel crease 7.5 mm further left. The part on the right steps up or down, so the edges ripple.
  9. Skirt: pleat 2. Fold the right part over to the left again, 2.6 cm right of the last step, leaning the other way.
  10. Skirt: pleat 2 back. Fold it back to the right on a parallel crease 7.5 mm further left. The part on the right steps up or down, so the edges ripple.
  11. Skirt: pleat 3. Fold the right part over to the left again, 2.6 cm right of the last step, leaning the other way.
  12. Skirt: pleat 3 back. Fold it back to the right on a parallel crease 7.5 mm further left. The part on the right steps up or down, so the edges ripple.
  13. The arms. Set the skirt aside. Take the thin brown strip, white side up.
  14. Arms: fold thin. Fold the strip in half the long way, so it is brown on both sides.
  15. Arms: first arm. 4.7 cm from the end, fold the strip straight back on itself.
  16. Arms: back. Where the strip began, fold it out again, a little higher.
  17. Arms: second arm. 5 cm out, fold it straight back once more.
  18. Arms: back again. Where the others meet, fold it out a little higher again: the third arm.
  19. Glue it together. Glue the skirt behind the body, rippling out all round it. Glue the arms behind the head, where they meet, so they reach forward.

Ripple and glide!

Draw two big white eyes on the head with black W-shaped pupils, and wavy zebra stripes across the back.

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