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How to fold an origami japanese garden

A real project. Fold a pagoda with flicked-up roofs, arch a red bridge over a koi pond, add a stone lantern and a pleated cherry tree, fold a slim double-kite crane in flight with pleated wings, and stand it up.

You need: 17 pieces: sky-blue A4, green, blue, red, orange, dark brown, slate, grey, brown, pink and white (sizes in steps). Glue.. Challenge, 58 steps, about 90 minutes.

Steps

  1. Ground: straight horizon. Start with the ground: a 29.7 × 10.2 cm green strip, green side up, lying long. Fold the top edge behind 5 mm.
  2. Pond: new sheet. Set the ground aside. For the koi pond, take a 15.2 × 6.8 cm blue piece, blue side up, lying long.
  3. Pond: corners behind. Fold each corner behind, 2.2 cm along each edge.
  4. Pond: round it. Fold the eight new corners behind, 6 mm each, for a smooth oval pond.
  5. Bridge: new sheet. Set the pond aside. For the arched bridge, take a 19.2 × 2.4 cm red strip, white side up, lying long.
  6. Bridge: fold in half. Fold the top edge down onto the bottom edge. The strip is red on both sides and the fold on top is the handrail.
  7. Bridge: arch it. Fold each end down on a long shallow slant, starting on the top edge 2 cm out from the middle. The bridge arches over the pond.
  8. Koi 1: new sheet. Set the bridge aside. For a koi, take a 6 cm orange square, turned like a diamond, white side up.
  9. Koi 1: triangle. Fold the bottom corner up to the top corner.
  10. Koi 1: corners up. Fold the left and right corners up to the top point. You get a small diamond.
  11. Koi 1: fan the tail. Fold the tips of both flaps outward so they fan apart as a tail. Fold the nose corner behind 5 mm.
  12. Koi 2: new sheet. Set the koi aside. For a koi, take a 6 cm red square, turned like a diamond, white side up.
  13. Koi 2: triangle. Fold the bottom corner up to the top corner.
  14. Koi 2: corners up. Fold the left and right corners up to the top point. You get a small diamond.
  15. Koi 2: fan the tail. Fold the tips of both flaps outward so they fan apart as a tail. Fold the nose corner behind 5 mm.
  16. Pagoda tower: new sheet. Set the koi aside. For the pagoda tower, take a 4.2 × 11.1 cm dark brown strip, white side up, standing tall.
  17. Pagoda tower: sides to the middle. Fold both long edges in to meet along the middle. The tower is brown all over.
  18. Pagoda tower: the spire. Fold both top corners behind, 1 cm along each edge, so the tower ends in a sharp spire.
  19. Bottom roof: new sheet. Set the tower aside. For the bottom roof, take a 8.6 × 2.4 cm slate grey strip, grey side up.
  20. Bottom roof: fold in half. Fold the top half behind, onto the bottom half.
  21. Bottom roof: slope it. Fold the top corners behind on a slant, from 1 cm in along the top to 3 mm above the bottom corner.
  22. Bottom roof: flick up the tips. Fold the bottom corners behind on a slant from 1.2 cm in, so the eaves point out and up.
  23. Middle roof: new sheet. Set the roof aside. For the middle roof, take a 7.2 × 2.4 cm slate grey strip, grey side up.
  24. Middle roof: fold in half. Fold the top half behind, onto the bottom half.
  25. Middle roof: slope it. Fold the top corners behind on a slant, from 1 cm in along the top to 3 mm above the bottom corner.
  26. Middle roof: flick up the tips. Fold the bottom corners behind on a slant from 1.2 cm in, so the eaves point out and up.
  27. Top roof: new sheet. Set the roof aside. For the top roof, take a 5.8 × 2.4 cm slate grey strip, grey side up.
  28. Top roof: fold in half. Fold the top half behind, onto the bottom half.
  29. Top roof: slope it. Fold the top corners behind on a slant, from 1 cm in along the top to 3 mm above the bottom corner.
  30. Top roof: flick up the tips. Fold the bottom corners behind on a slant from 1.2 cm in, so the eaves point out and up.
  31. Lantern: new sheet. Set the top roof aside. For the stone lantern, take a 3.6 × 6.5 cm grey piece, grey side up.
  32. Lantern: the light box. Fold the top edge down in front by 2 cm. The white square is the lantern's glowing light box.
  33. Lantern: the post. Below the white box, fold both sides behind on a slant, from the box's corners to 1.1 cm in at the bottom. A tapering stone post.
  34. Lantern cap: new sheet. Set the lantern aside. For its cap, take a 3.5 cm grey square, turned like a diamond, white side up.
  35. Lantern cap: triangle. Fold the bottom corner up to the top corner, for a wide pointed cap.
  36. Lantern cap: the knob. Fold the top point down 1 cm, through both layers.
  37. Lantern cap: knob up. Fold the point back up on a crease 2 mm below the first one, so its tip pokes up as a little stone knob.
  38. Cherry trunk: new sheet. Set the cap aside. For the cherry tree trunk, take a 2.4 × 4.8 cm brown piece, brown side up, standing tall.
  39. Cherry trunk: taper it. Fold both long sides behind on a slant: 8 mm at the top, 3 mm at the bottom. The trunk spreads at its roots.
  40. Blossom: new sheet. Set the trunk aside. For the cloud of blossom, take a 9.2 × 8.9 cm pink piece, pink side up.
  41. Blossom: pleat, fold up. Fold the bottom edge up, creasing 4.7 cm below the top edge.
  42. Blossom: pleat, fold back. Fold it back down 4 mm higher. A ledge splits the blossom into two puffy layers.
  43. Blossom: corners behind. Fold each corner behind, 2.4 cm along each edge.
  44. Blossom: round it. Fold the eight new corners behind, 7 mm each, for a round cloud of cherry blossom.
  45. Crane: new sheet. Set the trunk's crown aside. For the crane, take an 11 cm white square, turned like a diamond.
  46. Crane: kite. Fold the two right-hand edges in to lie along the middle line from left to right. A kite with a long point on the right.
  47. Crane: slim the neck. Fold the long edges in to the middle line again, creasing from the right point. The point gets long and thin: the neck.
  48. Crane: slim the tail. Fold the two left-hand edges in to the middle line, creasing from the left point. Now both ends are pointed.
  49. Crane: fold in half. Fold the top half behind along the middle line. The fold on top is the crane's back.
  50. Crane: head. Fold the tip of the neck down through both layers, 1.6 cm from the end, so the head and beak dip forward and down.
  51. Crane: legs. Fold the left point down through both layers, 2.3 cm from its tip. These are the long legs trailing behind.
  52. Wings: new sheet. Set the crane aside. For its wings, take a 14 × 2.6 cm white strip, lying long on a slant as shown.
  53. Wings: pleat, fold up. Fold the lower long edge up, creasing 7 mm from it.
  54. Wings: pleat, fold back. Fold it back down 2.5 mm higher. The ledge is the line of long flight feathers.
  55. Wings: raise them. Fold the right part up on a level crease from the lower edge, 2.4 cm left of the middle, so the two wings rise in an even V.
  56. Sky: new sheet. Set the wings aside. Last, the sky: a sky-blue A4 sheet, coloured side up, lying long.
  57. Build the scene. Glue the ground, pond, bridge and koi, then the pagoda tower and its roofs, the lantern and cap, the cherry tree, and the crane with its wings.
  58. Stand it up. Bend the sky gently towards you just right of the bridge, and stand the garden up on the table.

Peaceful!

Draw lit windows on the pagoda, rail posts on the bridge, eyes and white spots on the koi, blossoms, and black tips and an eye on the crane.

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