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How to fold an origami fairy tea party

A tiny garden party. Fold tall flowers with leaves, a toadstool table, a teapot, acorn cups, two toadstool stools, two fairies with wings and ladybugs, then stand it up.

You need: 20 pieces: lilac A4, green, red, coral, blue, brown, pink, yellow, aqua, pale blue, golden and skin-tone paper (sizes in steps). Scissors, glue, pens.. Challenge, 100 steps, about 110 minutes.

Steps

  1. Garden: crease the middle. Start with the garden: a lilac A4 sheet lying long. Fold it in half, short edges together, and open it. It bends on this crease to stand.
  2. Grass: new sheet. Set the garden aside. For the grass, take a 29.7 × 4.1 cm green piece, green side up.
  3. Grass: soft ends. Fold both top corners behind, 2 cm along each edge.
  4. Tall flower: new strip. Set the grass aside. For a tall flower's stem, take a 20.7 × 2.4 cm green strip, white side up.
  5. Tall flower: fold in half. Fold the strip in half along its length, left edge onto the right.
  6. Tall flower: thin stem. Fold it in half along its length again: a thin green stem.
  7. Tall flower: leaf up. Fold the bottom 5.5 cm up and out on a slant, so it rises beside the stem as a long leaf.
  8. Tall flower: point the leaf. Fold the two corners at the leaf's end behind, so it comes to a point.
  9. Tall flower: new sheet. Set the stem aside. For its bloom, take a 4.5 cm pink square, white side up, turned like a diamond.
  10. Tall flower: make a triangle. Fold the bottom corner up to the top corner.
  11. Tall flower: fold the left petal. Fold the left corner up and inwards so its tip sticks out a little past the left edge, about two-thirds of the way up.
  12. Tall flower: fold the right petal. Do the same on the right side, mirroring the left petal.
  13. Tall flower: turn it over. Flip the paper over from left to right.
  14. Tall flower: new strip. Set it aside. Fold a second stem the same way.
  15. Tall flower: fold in half. Fold it in half along its length.
  16. Tall flower: thin stem. Fold it in half along its length again.
  17. Tall flower: leaf up. Fold the bottom 5.5 cm up on a slant to make the leaf.
  18. Tall flower: point the leaf. Fold the two corners at the leaf's end behind, so it comes to a point.
  19. Tall flower: new sheet. Set the stem aside. Fold its bloom the same way from a 4.5 cm square.
  20. Tall flower: make a triangle. Fold the bottom corner up to the top corner.
  21. Tall flower: fold the left petal. Fold the left corner up and inwards so its tip sticks out a little past the left edge, about two-thirds of the way up.
  22. Tall flower: fold the right petal. Do the same on the right side, mirroring the left petal.
  23. Tall flower: turn it over. Flip the paper over from left to right.
  24. Table: new sheet. Set the flower aside. For the mushroom table, take an 11 cm red square.
  25. Table: crease the cap line. Start white side up. Fold the top edge down until it lands a little below the middle, crease, and unfold.
  26. Table: snip the sides. Cut along the crease from each side towards the middle, stopping about a third of the way in.
  27. Table: fold down the cap. Fold the top down on the crease again, so a wide red band shows: that's the cap.
  28. Table: narrow the stem. Fold the white stem's left and right sides behind, in line with the ends of your snips. The cap stays wide.
  29. Table: round the cap. Fold the cap's two top corners behind, big folds, and its two bottom corners behind, just a little.
  30. Table: make a dome. Fold the two corners left on top of the cap behind, just a little, so the cap is round on top.
  31. Teapot: new sheet. Set the table aside. For the teapot, take a 5 cm blue square.
  32. Teapot: sides behind. Coloured side up, turned like a diamond. Fold the left and right corners behind on straight up-and-down lines, the left one a bit further in.
  33. Teapot: spout. Behind, fold the left flap back out on a slant from the bottom of its fold, so its point rises up and out as the spout.
  34. Teapot: handle. Behind, fold the right flap back out along a line a little further in, so its tip pokes out as the handle.
  35. Teapot: lid behind. Fold the top corner behind along a level line, so the pot gets a flat top.
  36. Teapot: knob up. Behind, fold that corner back up along a line a little lower, so its tip pokes up as the knob on the lid.
  37. Teapot: flat base. Fold the bottom corner behind, so the teapot sits on a flat base.
  38. Acorn cup: new sheet. Set the teapot aside. For an acorn cup, take a 3 cm brown square, white side up, turned like a diamond.
  39. Acorn cup: triangle. Fold the top corner down to the bottom corner: a brown triangle, point down.
  40. Acorn cup: rim. Fold the top edge down 3 mm for the rim.
  41. Acorn cup: round it. Fold the two side corners behind on upright creases 1 cm in, and the bottom point behind 7 mm up: a little bowl.
  42. Acorn cup: new sheet. Set it aside. Fold a second cup the same way from a 3 cm brown square.
  43. Acorn cup: triangle. Fold the top corner down to the bottom corner.
  44. Acorn cup: rim. Fold the top edge down 3 mm for the rim.
  45. Acorn cup: round it. Fold the side corners and the bottom point behind.
  46. Toadstool stool: new sheet. Set the cups aside. For a toadstool stool, take a 5 cm coral square, white side up.
  47. Toadstool stool: cap down. Fold the top edge down 1.8 cm. The coral band is the cap, the white below is the stem.
  48. Toadstool stool: stem. Fold the white stem's bottom corners behind on slants from the ends of the cap's top fold to 1.5 cm in along the bottom.
  49. Toadstool stool: round cap. Fold the cap's top corners behind, 1.2 cm along each edge, and its bottom corners behind just a little: a round cap.
  50. Toadstool stool: new sheet. Set it aside. Fold a second stool the same way from a 5 cm coral square.
  51. Toadstool stool: cap down. Fold the top 1.8 cm down.
  52. Toadstool stool: stem. Fold the stem's bottom corners behind on slants from the cap's ends.
  53. Toadstool stool: round cap. Round the cap: top corners behind a lot, bottom corners a little.
  54. Twirl fairy: wings: new sheet. Set the stool aside. For the first fairy's wings, take a 9 cm aqua square, aqua side up.
  55. Twirl fairy: wings: crease across. Fold the bottom edge up onto the top edge.
  56. Twirl fairy: wings: open it. Open it again. This crease is where the top and bottom wings meet.
  57. Twirl fairy: wings: crease down. Fold the left edge over onto the right edge.
  58. Twirl fairy: wings: open it. Open it again.
  59. Twirl fairy: wings: three snips. Cut along the crease across from each side, 3 cm in. Then cut down the middle crease from the top, 2 cm.
  60. Twirl fairy: wings: top wings. Fold each top wing's inner corner behind on a slant from the end of the middle snip to 6 mm from the outer corner. The wings lean out.
  61. Twirl fairy: wings: round the top wings. Fold each top wing's outer bottom corner behind a long way and the top tip a little way, so it turns into a teardrop.
  62. Twirl fairy: wings: bottom wings. Fold the bottom edge behind, 1.5 cm up from it.
  63. Twirl fairy: wings: round the bottom wings. Fold each bottom wing's outer corners behind, a long way at the bottom and a little at the top, so the small wings point out.
  64. Twirl fairy: new sheet. Set the wings aside. For her dress, take a 9 cm pink square, white side up, turned like a diamond.
  65. Twirl fairy: dress: fold a kite. Pink square, white side up, turned like a diamond. Fold the upper edges in to meet on the middle line.
  66. Twirl fairy: dress: shoulders. Fold the top point down on a level crease 3.5 cm below it. The point makes a pretty V on her top.
  67. Twirl fairy: dress: petticoat. Fold the white bottom point behind on a level crease 7 mm below the side corners. A strip of white petticoat peeks out under the hem.
  68. Twirl fairy: dress: waist pleat. Fold the skirt up on a level crease 2 cm above the side corners.
  69. Twirl fairy: dress: fold it back down. Fold it back down on a crease 5 mm higher. The skirt now starts wider than her top, with a sash at the waist.
  70. Twirl fairy: head: new sheet. Set the dress aside. For her head, take a 4.5 cm golden square, white side up, turned like a diamond.
  71. Twirl fairy: head: hair. Fold the top corner down to the middle.
  72. Twirl fairy: head: fringe. Fold the new top edge down again, halfway to the middle. A straight golden fringe runs across her forehead.
  73. Twirl fairy: head: hair at the sides. Fold the side corners in, 1 cm from each tip, so her hair frames her face.
  74. Twirl fairy: head: chin. Fold the bottom corner behind for her chin, and the two top corners behind a little to round her head.
  75. Fairy: wings: new sheet. Set the head aside. For the second fairy's wings, take an 11 cm pale blue square, pale side up.
  76. Fairy: wings: fold in half. Fold the left edge over onto the right edge.
  77. Fairy: wings: fold again. Fold the top edge down onto the bottom edge. The corner where the two folds meet is the fairy's back.
  78. Fairy: wings: cut a wing. From the top fold 8 mm from the corner, cut a big round wing that almost reaches the far edges, ending on the left fold 2.5 cm down.
  79. Fairy: wings: open the top. Unfold the top layers back up. Now there are two wings, one above the other.
  80. Fairy: wings: smaller bottom wing. Snip round the edge of the bottom wing only, about 1 cm in, so it is smaller than the top one.
  81. Fairy: wings: open them. Open the wings out flat: two big wings on top, two small ones below.
  82. Fairy: new sheet. Set the wings aside. For her dress, take a 7.5 cm yellow square, white side up, turned like a diamond.
  83. Fairy: dress: fold a kite. Fold the upper left and upper right edges in to meet on the middle line.
  84. Fairy: dress: shape it. Fold the bottom point behind on a level crease between the side corners for the hem. Fold the top point behind, 2 cm down, for the shoulders.
  85. Fairy: head: new sheet. Set the dress aside. For her head, take a 3 cm skin-tone square, turned like a diamond.
  86. Fairy: head: round it. Fold all four corners a little way behind to make a round face.
  87. Ladybug: new sheet. Set the fairy aside. For a ladybug, take a 3 cm red square, white side up, turned like a diamond.
  88. Ladybug: make a triangle. Fold the top corner down to meet the bottom corner.
  89. Ladybug: front point up. Fold just the front layer's bottom point up to the middle of the top edge. White shows.
  90. Ladybug: wings down. Fold the left and right corners down so their tips land just either side of the bottom point, leaving a thin white V between the wings.
  91. Ladybug: top point behind. Fold the top point a little behind, to flatten the top.
  92. Ladybug: round the body. Fold the side corners and the bottom point a little behind.
  93. Ladybug: new sheet. Set it aside. Fold a second ladybug.
  94. Ladybug: make a triangle. Fold the top corner down to meet the bottom corner.
  95. Ladybug: front point up. Fold just the front layer's bottom point up to the middle of the top edge. White shows.
  96. Ladybug: wings down. Fold the left and right corners down so their tips land just either side of the bottom point, leaving a thin white V between the wings.
  97. Ladybug: top point behind. Fold the top point a little behind, to flatten the top.
  98. Ladybug: round the body. Fold the side corners and the bottom point a little behind.
  99. Set the party. Glue the grass and the tall flowers on the garden. Add the table with its teapot and cups, the stools, the fairies on them and the ladybugs.
  100. Stand it up. Bend the garden gently towards you on the middle crease and stand the tea party up on the table.

Tea time for fairies!

Draw the fairies' faces and wing veins, spots on the toadstools, tea and steam in the cups and the ladybugs' spots. Add sparkles of fairy dust.

What to fold next