How to fold an origami rhinoceros beetle
Fold a rectangle in half and take its corners behind for a round domed back. Fold a double kite into a slim hooked horn, and narrow two strips into bent legs.
You need: Brown paper: a 13.5 × 10 cm piece, a 9 cm square, a 9 × 1.5 cm strip and an 8 × 1.5 cm strip; glue, a white gel pen. Hard, 28 steps, about 30 minutes.
Steps
- Body: pleat. Lay the 13.5 × 10 cm piece white side up, long side across. Fold the right edge over on a crease 8 cm from the left edge.
- Body: and back. Fold it back out on a crease 4 mm further left. The step marks off the head end.
- Body: fold in half. Fold the top half down. The fold is the beetle's back, and the head will be on the right.
- Body: slope the head. Fold the top right corner behind both layers, from 4.5 cm along the top fold to 2.5 cm down the right edge.
- Body: round the tail. Fold the top left corner behind, from 3.4 cm along the top fold to 2.2 cm down the left edge.
- Body: rounder tail. Fold the new corner on the left behind a little, so the tail end curves down.
- Body: dome the back. Fold the two corners on the top fold behind on small slants, so the back is a smooth dome.
- Body: belly corners. Fold the two bottom corners behind a little, so the belly ends are rounded too.
- Horn: a square. Set the body aside. Take the 9 cm square, white side up, turned like a diamond.
- Horn: crease. Fold it in half from left to right and unfold, leaving a crease down the middle.
- Horn: kite. Fold the two lower edges in to lie along the crease, making a kite.
- Horn: top down. Fold the white top corner down along the top edges of the flaps.
- Horn: turn over. Turn it over.
- Horn: narrow. Fold the long lower edges in to the middle again, so the bottom is a long thin point.
- Horn: fold in half. Fold the left half over onto the right half.
- Horn: hook the tip. 4 cm from the point, outside-reverse-fold the tip so it wraps around the horn and hooks back.
- Front and back legs: a strip. Set the horn aside. Take the 9 × 1.5 cm strip, white side up, lying across.
- Front and back legs: fold in half. Fold it in half the long way, coloured side out.
- Front and back legs: thinner. Fold it in half again the long way. Crease it hard, so it's a thin stick.
- Front and back legs: knees. Bend both ends down the same way round, 2.1 cm from each end. These are the knees.
- Front and back legs: fold a V. Fold the left half over on a slant through the middle into a wide V.
- Middle legs: a strip. Set it aside and take the 8 × 1.5 cm strip, white side up.
- Middle legs: fold in half. Fold it in half the long way, coloured side out.
- Middle legs: thinner. Fold it in half again the long way. Crease it hard, so it's a thin stick.
- Middle legs: knees. Bend both ends the same way round, 1.9 cm from each end.
- Middle legs: fold a V. Fold the left half over on a slant through the middle into a narrower V.
- Middle legs: point up. Turn the V so its point is at the top and the legs reach down.
- Glue it together. Glue the body over the middle legs, the wide V under its back half, and the horn's base behind the head so the horn rises and hooks back.
Ready to rumble!
Dot a small white eye low on the head with the gel pen.