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How to fold an origami picnic

A real project. Pleat a tan basket into woven rows and fold it to taper, add a domed lid and an arched handle, then fold sandwiches with crusts, a watermelon slice, a jug of lemonade, a tree and a sun. Stand it up.

You need: 15 pieces: sky-blue A4, green, yellow, browns, dark green, blue, red, tan, light blue and pale yellow (sizes in steps). Scissors, glue, pens.. Challenge, 47 steps, about 75 minutes.

Steps

  1. Grass: straight horizon. Start with the grass: a 29.7 × 12.5 cm green strip, green side up, lying long. Fold the top edge behind 5 mm.
  2. Sun: new sheet. Set the grass aside. For the sun, take a 3.4 cm yellow square, yellow side up.
  3. Sun: round it. Fold all four corners behind, 7 mm along each edge, for a round sun.
  4. Trunk: new sheet. Set the sun aside. For the tree trunk, take a 3 × 7 cm brown piece, brown side up, standing tall.
  5. Trunk: taper it. Fold both long sides behind on a slant: 9 mm at the top, 4 mm at the bottom. The trunk spreads at its roots.
  6. Treetop: new sheet. Set the trunk aside. For the treetop, take an 8.6 × 7.4 cm dark green piece, green side up.
  7. Treetop: corners behind. Fold each corner behind, 2.3 cm along each edge. You get an octagon.
  8. Treetop: round it. Fold the eight new corners behind, 7 mm each, for a big round treetop that gives lots of shade.
  9. Blanket: new sheet. Set the treetop aside. For the blanket, take a 22.2 × 8.9 cm blue piece, blue side up, lying long.
  10. Blanket: white hems. Fold the top and bottom edges onto the front by 4 mm, for a white hem.
  11. Blanket: lay it back. Fold both ends behind on a slant, 2 cm in at the top and nothing at the bottom. The blanket lies back in the grass.
  12. Handle: new sheet. Set the blanket aside. Now the basket, starting with its handle: a 12.8 × 1.4 cm dark brown strip, white side up, lying long.
  13. Handle: fold in half. Fold the bottom edge up onto the top edge, for a thick brown band.
  14. Handle: turn down the ends. Fold both ends down on a slant, 4.8 cm apart, so they lean out a little. Now it's an arched handle.
  15. Basket: new sheet. Set the handle aside. For the basket, take a 6.4 × 7.6 cm tan piece, tan side up.
  16. Basket: row 1, fold up. Fold the bottom edge up, creasing 1.7 cm below the top edge. The white side shows for now.
  17. Basket: row 1, fold down. Fold it back down 4 mm higher. The pleat leaves a ledge across the basket: the first woven row.
  18. Basket: row 2, fold up. Pleat again: fold the bottom edge up, creasing 1.7 cm below that ledge.
  19. Basket: row 2, fold down. Fold it back down 4 mm higher, for a second ledge.
  20. Basket: row 3, fold up. And a third time: fold the bottom edge up, 1.7 cm below the last ledge.
  21. Basket: row 3, fold down. Fold it back down 4 mm higher. Four woven rows, all tan.
  22. Basket: taper it. Fold both sides behind on a slant through all the layers, nothing at the top and 7 mm at the bottom.
  23. Basket: round the bottom. Fold the two bottom corners behind, 5 mm along each edge.
  24. Lid: new sheet. Set the basket aside. For the lid, take a 7.2 × 1.7 cm brown piece, brown side up.
  25. Lid: dome it. Fold the two top corners behind, 6 mm along each edge, so the lid is domed.
  26. Sandwich 1: new sheet. Set the lid aside. For a sandwich, take a 3.5 cm square of golden brown paper, brown side up, turned like a diamond.
  27. Sandwich 1: left crust. Fold 2.5 mm of the lower left edge behind.
  28. Sandwich 1: right crust. Fold 2.5 mm of the lower right edge behind too.
  29. Sandwich 1: fold in half. Fold the bottom corner up to the top corner. A white slice of bread with a brown crust on both slopes: a sandwich!
  30. Sandwich 2: new sheet. Set the sandwich aside. For a sandwich, take a 3.5 cm square of golden brown paper, brown side up, turned like a diamond.
  31. Sandwich 2: left crust. Fold 2.5 mm of the lower left edge behind.
  32. Sandwich 2: right crust. Fold 2.5 mm of the lower right edge behind too.
  33. Sandwich 2: fold in half. Fold the bottom corner up to the top corner. A white slice of bread with a brown crust on both slopes: a sandwich!
  34. Jug handle: new sheet. Set the sandwich aside. For the jug's handle, take a 1.2 × 6.6 cm light blue strip, white side up, standing tall.
  35. Jug handle: fold in half. Fold the right edge over onto the left edge, for a thick blue band.
  36. Jug handle: turn the ends. Fold both ends to the left, 1.5 cm from each end, so the handle is shaped like a square bracket.
  37. Jug: new sheet. Set the handle aside. For the jug, take a 3.4 × 6.4 cm pale yellow piece, yellow side up.
  38. Jug: glass on top. Fold the top edge down 8 mm onto the front. The white band is the clear glass above the lemonade.
  39. Jug: shape it. Fold both long sides behind on a slant, 3.5 mm at the top and nothing at the bottom, so the jug is wider at its base.
  40. Watermelon: new sheet. Set the jug aside. For the watermelon, take a 5.2 cm red square, white side up, turned like a diamond.
  41. Watermelon: fold in half. Fold the bottom corner up to the top corner. A red slice!
  42. Rind: new sheet. Set the slice aside. For the rind, take a 7.9 × 1.9 cm green strip, white side up, lying long.
  43. Rind: fold up. Fold the bottom edge up to 4 mm short of the top edge. Green rind, with a white strip of pale rind above it.
  44. Rind: slant the ends. Fold the two top corners behind on a slant, 1.15 cm each way, so the rind's ends follow the slice's sides.
  45. Sky: new sheet. Set the rind aside. Last, the sky: a sky-blue A4 sheet, blue side up, lying long.
  46. Build the scene. Glue the grass along the bottom, then the sun, tree, blanket, the basket's handle, body and lid, the sandwiches, jug and watermelon, as shown.
  47. Stand it up. Bend the sky gently towards you near the middle, and stand the picnic up on the table.

Time to eat!

Paint white checks on the blanket. Draw the basket weave and clasp, melon seeds, ice and a lemon in the jug, sun rays and a trail of hungry ants.

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