How to fold an origami night sky
A real project. Pleat a crescent moon, fold stars from diamond bases, a fox, an owl on a branch, a house with a glowing window, a hill and fireflies. Stand the night up.
You need: 19 pieces: midnight blue A4, yellows, dark green, brown, red, orange and gold (sizes in steps). Scissors, glue, pens.. Challenge, 78 steps, about 90 minutes.
Steps
- Moon: fold in half. Start with the moon. Fold the left half over onto the right half, for a long yellow band. The fold on the left is the moon's round back.
- Moon: point the ends, left corners. Fold the left corner at each end behind on a slant, from the middle of the end to 2.6 cm down the side.
- Moon: point the ends, right corners. Now fold the right corners behind the same way, so both ends come to sharp points.
- Moon: pleat the ends, fold in. Fold the top end down in front and the bottom end up behind, straight across, 1.3 cm either side of the middle.
- Moon: pleat the ends, fold out. Fold each end back out on a slant from the left edge, so it leans to the right. The moon starts to curve.
- Moon: tips, fold in. Do it again 2.8 cm further out: fold each tip back straight across the band, the top one in front and the bottom one behind.
- Moon: tips, fold out. Fold each tip back out on a slant from the outer edge, so the points curl right round. A big crescent moon!
- Small star: new sheet. Set the moon aside. For the small star, take a 2.5 cm yellow square, white side up, as a diamond.
- Small star: top kite. Fold the two upper edges in to lie along the middle line, for a kite.
- Small star: bottom kite. Fold the two lower edges in to the middle line too. It becomes a long thin diamond: one spike of the star.
- Small star's cross piece: new sheet. Set the small star aside. For the cross piece, take a 1.6 cm yellow square, white side up, as a diamond.
- Small star: cross piece. Fold it the same way, but lying sideways: the edges by the left corner in to the middle line, then the edges by the right corner.
- Small star: cross piece, right. Now the right edges in, for a short diamond lying across. Glue it over the long one later to make a four-point star.
- Big star: new sheet. Set the small star's cross piece aside. For the big star, take a 3.4 cm yellow square, white side up, as a diamond.
- Big star: top kite. Fold the two upper edges in the same way to lie along the middle line, for a kite.
- Big star: bottom kite. Fold the two lower edges in to the middle line too. It becomes a long thin diamond: one spike of the star.
- Big star's cross piece: new sheet. Set the big star aside. For the cross piece, take a 2.1 cm yellow square, white side up, as a diamond.
- Big star: cross piece. Fold it the same way, but lying sideways: the edges by the left corner in to the middle line, then the edges by the right corner.
- Big star: cross piece, right. Now the right edges in, for a short diamond lying across. Glue it over the long one later to make a four-point star.
- Tree: new sheet. Set the big star's cross piece aside. For the tree, take a 1.6 × 10.2 cm brown strip, white side up, standing tall.
- Tree: narrow it. Fold both long edges in to meet along the middle, for a brown trunk.
- Tree: the twig. Fold the top 2.8 cm over to the left on a slant, so it sticks up like a twig.
- Branch: new sheet. Set the tree aside. For the owl's branch, take a 8.2 × 0.9 cm brown strip, brown side down.
- Owl: fold the branch. Fold the strip in half along its length, bottom edge up to the top, so the branch is thick and brown on the outside.
- Owl: new sheet. Set the branch aside. For the owl, take a 6.3 × 6.3 cm brown square, white side up.
- Owl: fold the corners. White side up, fold each top corner in on a crease from 1.7 cm down the side to 1.1 cm along the top. Fold the bottom corners in a little smaller.
- Owl: fold to the middle. Fold the left and right edges in to meet at the middle. These flaps are the wings; the white gaps at the top and bottom are face and chest.
- Owl: pleat: fold up. Fold the whole bottom part up on a level crease just under the point of the face.
- Owl: pleat: fold down. Fold it back down on a crease 6 mm higher, so a neat neck ledge is left across the owl.
- Owl: round the owl. Cut the two top corners round for the head, and the two bottom corners round for the body, two short cuts at each corner.
- Eye: new sheet. Set the owl aside. For an eye, take a 0.3 cm yellow square, yellow side up.
- Owl: round the eye. Fold the four corners behind, 2 mm along each edge, for a round eye.
- Eye: new sheet. Set the eye aside. For the other eye, take another 0.3 cm yellow square.
- Owl: round the eye. Fold the four corners behind, 2 mm along each edge, for a round eye.
- Hill: new sheet. Set the eye aside. For the hill, take a 29.7 × 11.1 cm dark green piece, green side up, lying long.
- Hill: the slopes. Fold the top left corner behind on a long slant, 15 cm along the top, and the top right corner behind, 3.4 cm along.
- Hill: round the top. Fold the two corners at the top of the hill behind a little, about 1 cm, so the hilltop is round.
- House: new sheet. Set the hill aside. For the house, take a 9 × 9 cm red square, white side up.
- House: crease the middle. Fold in half side to side, crease, then unfold.
- House: top edge to the middle. Fold the top edge down to the middle of the sheet.
- House: make the roof. Fold the two top corners down so the top edges meet at the centre crease.
- Window: new sheet. Set the house aside. For the window, take a 2 cm yellow square, white side up.
- Window: corners to the middle. Fold all four corners in to meet in the middle. A glowing window with a cross of window bars!
- Fox: new sheet. Set the window aside. For the fox, the hard part: a 8.3 cm orange square, white side up.
- Fox: fold in half. White side up, fold the top corner down to the bottom corner. The long fold at the top is the fox's back.
- Fox: crease the ear strip. Fold the top edge down 9 mm through both layers and crease it hard. The right end of this strip will become the ears.
- Fox: open it. Unfold the strip again.
- Fox: crease the front legs. Fold the right point over on an upright crease 1.3 cm right of the middle and crease it hard. This marks the back of the front legs.
- Fox: open it. Unfold it again.
- Fox: crease the neck. Fold the right point over on an upright crease where the right edge is 3.9 cm below the back. This marks the front of the front legs.
- Fox: open it. Unfold it again.
- Fox: crease the hind legs. Fold the left point over on an upright crease 1.3 cm left of the middle and crease it hard. This marks the front of the hind legs.
- Fox: open it. Unfold it again.
- Fox: crease the tail. Fold the left point over on an upright crease 7 mm further left. Behind this crease will be the tail.
- Fox: open it. Unfold it again.
- Fox: cut the legs. Cut the bottom point off level, 3.9 cm below the back. Cut up both leg creases to 1.8 cm below the back and across between them. Cut the neck 1.9 cm deep.
- Fox: cut the tail. Cut 2.2 cm up the tail crease from the bottom and 3 mm down it from the back. Cut the tail round into a big plume, fat in the middle.
- Fox: slim the legs. Slant the sides of each leg in a little towards the paw, so the fox stands on dainty feet.
- Fox: cut the ears free. Cut along the strip crease from the nose back 1.6 cm. Cut along the back fold from the nose to just in front of the front legs.
- Fox: ears up. Outside-reverse-fold the loose strip up on a crease from the end of the cut, so it stands straight up and leans back a little.
- Fox: point the ears. Cut both ears to a point in the middle of the strip, 9 mm past the fold. Cut the front ear's point 5 mm lower, so a rim shows round it.
- Fox: head back. Outside-reverse-fold the head back over the body, on a crease from the neck's underside 7 mm in front of the leg, slanting back to the top.
- Fox: head up. Fold the head forward again on a crease from the same point, leaning further back, so the head is held high. Glue the neck layers together.
- Glow: new sheet. Set the fox aside. For a firefly's glow, take a 1 cm yellow square, yellow side up, as a diamond.
- Firefly: glow: round it. Fold all four corners a little behind, so the glow is round.
- Firefly: new sheet. Set the glow aside. For its body, take a 3 cm brown square, white side up, as a diamond.
- Firefly: make a triangle. Start white side up, like a diamond. Fold the top corner down to meet the bottom corner.
- Firefly: wings down. Fold the left and right corners down so their tips land just either side of the bottom point, leaving a thin V between the wings.
- Firefly: slim the body. Fold both sides behind to make the body long and narrow, and fold the top point a little behind for the head.
- Glow: new sheet. Set the firefly aside. For the second firefly's glow, take a 1 cm yellow square, yellow side up, as a diamond.
- Firefly: glow: round it. Fold all four corners a little behind, so the glow is round.
- Firefly: new sheet. Set the glow aside. For its body, take a 3 cm brown square, white side up, as a diamond.
- Firefly: make a triangle. Start white side up, like a diamond. Fold the top corner down to meet the bottom corner.
- Firefly: wings down. Fold the left and right corners down so their tips land just either side of the bottom point, leaving a thin V between the wings.
- Firefly: slim the body. Fold both sides behind to make the body long and narrow, and fold the top point a little behind for the head.
- Sky: new sheet. Set the firefly aside. Last, the sky: a midnight blue A4 sheet, coloured side up, lying long.
- Build the scene. Glue the moon top left, the stars, the tree and the owl on its branch, then the hill along the bottom, the house with its window on top, the fox and the fireflies.
- Stand it up. Bend the sky gently towards you just left of the house, and stand the night sky up on the table.
Goodnight!
Draw the owl's pupils and beak, the fox's eye and nose, the house door, the fireflies' eyes, a sleepy face on the moon and twinkles in the sky.