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How to fold an origami spinosaurus

Fold a sheet in half, reverse-fold the tail and neck, crimp a long snout and cut two walking legs. Cut a sheet into a tall arch for the sail, draw its spines and glue it on.

You need: A 24 x 15 cm rectangle, green on one side, and a 13 x 7 cm red rectangle; scissors, a ruler and glue. Hard, 20 steps, about 35 minutes.

Steps

  1. Fold in half. White side up, long sides at the top and bottom, fold the top edge down to the bottom edge. The fold at the top is the back.
  2. Crease the belly. Fold the bottom edge up on a level crease 3.6 cm below the top fold.
  3. Open it. Unfold it again. The body goes above this crease, the legs below it.
  4. Crease the hips. Fold the right end over on an upright crease 11.2 cm from the left edge.
  5. Open it. Unfold it again. The two legs will be cut on either side of this crease.
  6. Tail end back. Outside-reverse-fold the left end back over the body on an upright crease 8 cm from the left edge.
  7. Cut the tail. Cut up the left end fold, leaving 2.2 cm at the top. Trim the flap to a point: a slant from there to its far end on the top fold.
  8. Tail out. Outside-reverse-fold the tail strip out on a crease from its top corner, so the long tail points back and a little down.
  9. Neck end back. Outside-reverse-fold the right end back over the body on an upright crease 7.5 cm from the right edge.
  10. Cut the neck. Cut up the right end fold, leaving 2 cm at the top; trim the flap to 1.2 cm deep at its tip. Slant the tip's bottom corner off for a long snout.
  11. Cut the legs. Cut along the belly crease up to 1.5 cm each side of the hip crease, and up that crease 8 mm. Trim the back leg slanting back, the front one forward.
  12. Round the body. Snip the two bottom corners of the body off in slants: 1.5 cm along the belly at the tail end, 2 cm at the chest, up to the strips.
  13. Neck up. Outside-reverse-fold the neck strip up on a crease from its bottom corner, so the neck leans up and forward.
  14. Snout back. Outside-reverse-fold the top 4.6 cm of the neck back down along it, on a crease from its back edge.
  15. Snout forward. Outside-reverse-fold it out again from the same point, so the long crocodile snout points forward and a little down.
  16. Sail: new sheet. Set the body aside. Lay the 13 x 7 cm red rectangle red side up, long sides at the top and bottom.
  17. Sail: fold in half. Fold the left edge over onto the right edge.
  18. Sail: cut an arch. Cut a smooth curve from the top of the fold down to the right edge 5 mm above the bottom, in short snips, so it bulges up like a hill.
  19. Sail: open it. Unfold it: a tall, round sail. Draw spines fanning out from the middle of the bottom edge with a black pen.
  20. Glue on the sail. Glue the sail behind the back, its straight edge just below the top fold, so the big arch stands up over the body.

Splash!

Draw an eye near the back of the head and a long, toothy grin down the snout. Walk it along the edge of a pond!

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