How to fold an origami ferris wheel
A real project. Fold a big square into eight layers and cut a wheel with a rim, spokes and a hub in two snips. Stand it on an A-frame, hang six gondolas, then add a ticket booth, balloons and a cotton-candy cart.
You need: 15 pieces: a 15 cm blue square, then grey, red, yellow, green, orange, purple, pink and teal ones (sizes in steps). Scissors, glue, pens.. Challenge, 57 steps, about 60 minutes.
Steps
- Wheel: fold in half. Start with the wheel: a 15 cm blue square, blue side up. Fold the left edge over onto the right edge.
- Wheel: in half again. Fold the top edge down onto the bottom edge. The closed corner at the top left is the middle of the wheel.
- Wheel: fold a triangle. Fold it in half from the middle corner, bringing the top edge down onto the left edge. Now it's a triangle eight layers thick.
- Wheel: cut the rim. Cut straight from the bottom left corner to the long fold, 7.5 cm from the middle corner. Then snip 8 mm off both ends of that cut.
- Wheel: fold the point down. Fold the middle corner down onto the front, creasing from 4.2 cm down the left fold to 4.2 cm along the long fold.
- Wheel: snip the windows. Snip off both corners at the new fold: from 2 cm further along each side edge to 1.3 cm along the fold. Cut through every layer.
- Wheel: open the point. Fold the middle corner back up.
- Wheel: open the triangle. Unfold the triangle.
- Wheel: open again. Unfold the top half.
- Wheel: open it flat. Open it flat: a round rim, eight spokes and a hub, with eight windows between them. Crease it flat again.
- A-frame: new sheet. Set the wheel aside. For the stand, take a 13 × 11 cm grey piece, grey side up, long side across.
- A-frame: fold in half. Fold the left edge over onto the right edge.
- A-frame: cut the legs. Cut from the top edge, 8 mm from the fold, to the bottom open corner. Then cut from the fold 8 mm below the top to the bottom edge, 1.2 cm from that corner.
- A-frame: open it. Open it out: a tall A-frame with two long legs, the same shape as the frames that hold up real wheels.
- Cabin 1: new sheet. Set the last part aside. First cabin: a 2.4 × 4 cm red piece, white side up, standing tall.
- Cabin 1: roof and body. Fold the top edge down 6 mm for the roof and the bottom edge up 1 cm for the body. The white band left between them is the windows.
- Cabin 1: bevel the corners. Fold all four corners behind, 5 mm each way. The cabin gets a sloping roof and a rounded bottom.
- Cup 1: new sheet. Set the last part aside. First cup: a 2.8 cm orange square, colour side up.
- Cup 1: the rim. Fold the top edge down 6 mm onto the front. The white band is the rim of a round, open cup to ride in.
- Cup 1: round the bottom. Fold both bottom corners behind, 1.1 cm each way, so the cup has a round bottom.
- Cabin 2: new sheet. Set the last part aside. Second cabin: a 2.4 × 4 cm yellow piece, white side up, standing tall.
- Cabin 2: roof and body. Fold it like the first cabin: the top edge down 6 mm, the bottom edge up 1 cm, a white window band between.
- Cabin 2: bevel the corners. Fold all four corners behind, 5 mm each way, like the first one.
- Cup 2: new sheet. Set the last part aside. Second cup: a 2.8 cm purple square, colour side up.
- Cup 2: the rim. Fold the top edge down 6 mm onto the front for a white rim, like the first cup.
- Cup 2: round the bottom. Fold both bottom corners behind, 1.1 cm each way.
- Cabin 3: new sheet. Set the last part aside. Third cabin: a 2.4 × 4 cm green piece, white side up, standing tall.
- Cabin 3: roof and body. Fold it like the first cabin: the top edge down 6 mm, the bottom edge up 1 cm, a white window band between.
- Cabin 3: bevel the corners. Fold all four corners behind, 5 mm each way, like the first one.
- Cup 3: new sheet. Set the last part aside. Third cup: a 2.8 cm pink square, colour side up.
- Cup 3: the rim. Fold the top edge down 6 mm onto the front for a white rim, like the first cup.
- Cup 3: round the bottom. Fold both bottom corners behind, 1.1 cm each way.
- Hang the gondolas. Glue the A-frame behind the wheel, its top behind the hub. Glue the six gondolas round the rim, cabins and cups in turn, each hanging from a dot on the rim.
- Awning: new sheet. Set the wheel aside. For the booth's awning, take a 6.4 × 2.4 cm red piece, red side up, long side across.
- Awning: fold in half. Fold the left edge over onto the right edge.
- Awning: in half again. Fold the right edge back over onto the left fold. It is now a stack 1.6 cm wide.
- Awning: cut a point. Cut the bottom to a point: from 7 mm up each side to the middle of the bottom edge.
- Awning: open it. Unfold the last fold.
- Awning: open flat. Unfold the first fold too. The awning has four points along its bottom edge.
- Booth: new sheet. Set the awning aside. For the ticket booth, take a 7 × 10.4 cm teal piece, white side up, standing tall.
- Booth: fold the sides. Fold each long side in 9 mm onto the front. The teal strips are the booth's corner posts.
- Booth: counter and header. Fold the bottom edge up 2.6 cm for the counter and the top edge down 1 cm. A white ticket window is left in the middle.
- Balloon 1: new sheet. Set the last part aside. For a balloon, take a 3.6 cm red square, colour side up, turned like a diamond.
- Balloon 1: fold the sides. Fold the left and right corners behind, 1 cm each, so the balloon is taller than it is wide.
- Balloon 1: round it. Fold the top corner behind 7 mm to round it, and the bottom tip behind 5 mm: that's the knot.
- Balloon 2: new sheet. Set the last part aside. For a balloon, take a 3.6 cm yellow square, colour side up, turned like a diamond.
- Balloon 2: fold the sides. Fold the left and right corners behind, 1 cm each, so the balloon is taller than it is wide.
- Balloon 2: round it. Fold the top corner behind 7 mm to round it, and the bottom tip behind 5 mm: that's the knot.
- Cart: new sheet. Set the balloon aside. For the cotton-candy cart, take a 4.6 × 3.8 cm orange piece, orange side up, long side across.
- Cart: rim and corners. Fold the top edge down 5 mm onto the front for a white rim. Fold both bottom corners behind, 6 mm each way.
- Cotton candy: new sheet. Set the cart aside. For the cotton candy, take a 6.3 cm pink square, pink side up, turned like a diamond.
- Cotton candy: the cone. Fold the two lower edges in to meet along the middle, onto the front. The long white point is the paper cone.
- Cotton candy: fluff it. Fold the top corner behind 7 mm and both side corners behind 6 mm, so the pink top is a soft round puff.
- Grass: new sheet. Set the cotton candy aside. Last, the grass: a 30 × 5 cm green strip, green side up, lying long.
- Grass: path and hills. Fold the bottom edge up 1 cm onto the front for a white path. Fold both top corners behind, 1.5 cm each way, for gentle hills.
- Build the funfair. Glue everything behind the grass, bottoms 7 mm down: wheel in the middle, booth on the left with its awning, balloons above, cart and cotton candy on the right.
- Stand it up. Bend the grass gently towards you on each side of the wheel, and stand the whole funfair up on the table.
Roll up, roll up!
Dot white lights round the rim and paint stripes on the awning. Draw the hooks, the ticket seller, the balloon shines, the cart's wheels and the candy's fluff.