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How to fold an origami flamingo

Fold a long pink diamond in half and snip a thin strip free along the bottom for the leg. Outside reverse folds lift the neck and curl the head down; scissors slim the neck and trim the tail.

You need: 1 square sheet, 15 × 15 cm, pink on one side, scissors and a black pen. Hard, 15 steps, about 18 minutes.

Steps

  1. Crease the diagonal. Lay the square white side up, as a diamond. Fold the left corner to the right corner, crease, and unfold.
  2. Make a kite. Fold the two lower edges in to lie along the centre crease.
  3. Narrow the top. Fold the two upper edges in to the centre crease too, making a long pink diamond.
  4. Fold in half. Mountain-fold it in half along the centre crease, so the pink flaps stay on the outside.
  5. Lay it down. Turn it so the fold runs along the bottom and the point that was at the bottom is on the right.
  6. Crease a strip. Fold the bottom edge up 8 mm along its whole length, through all the layers, and crease it hard.
  7. Open it. Unfold the narrow strip again. You will cut along its crease to free a leg and a neck.
  8. Cut the neck free. Cut along the crease from the right end to 1 cm past the peak. Then cut the body away above it, slanting back up to the top edge 2.5 cm behind the peak.
  9. Cut the leg free. Cut along the crease from the left end, stopping 3.5 cm before the spot under the peak. The strip below the cut will be the leg.
  10. Neck back. Outside-reverse-fold the long neck strip back over itself, on an upright crease 1 cm right of the peak, so it points back along the body.
  11. Neck up. Outside-reverse-fold the neck strip up, starting the crease at the bottom of the last fold, so it stands up leaning a little forward.
  12. Curl the head. Outside-reverse-fold the top 2.5 cm of the neck forward and down, so the head and beak hang over in front.
  13. Leg down. Outside-reverse-fold the leg strip down from the end of its cut, so it hangs below the body, leaning a little forward.
  14. Fold the foot. Outside-reverse-fold the last 1.5 cm of the leg so it points back along the ground as a foot.
  15. Trim the tail. Snip the back end of the body off at a slant, starting 2.5 cm behind the leg, for a short tail.

Pretty in pink!

Colour the tip of the beak black and draw a small eye. Lean it on a wall, or tape its foot to a card so it stands on one leg.

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