Folding　Cranes

Now, I'd like to show you how to fold a crane.
Follow the diagram below.

1. You need a sheet of square Origami paper.
2. Put the top corner to the opposite to make triangle shape. Press its crease of diagonal line of the square.
3. Put your left point of the triangle to the right to make smaller triangle. Press the crease.
4. Put your finger into the triangle pocket, opening and flattening, to make a square.
5. Turn it over, then do the same way. Now you get the smaller (1/4 size of the original) squares. It is called Preliminary Base.

6. Your center of original square origami is the top. Fold both wing parts of the square to the center as to meet along the diagonal line. Undo this, then pick the bottom of the triangle, and pull it up. Now you see the thin diamond shape.
7. Turn it over, and do the same. This thin diamond shape is called Bird Base 1.

For experiment, unfold them all and check all the crease.
You see,

2 diagonal valley fold creases (which divide each corner of the square equally.

A horizontal and a vertical summit fold creases, which divide the original square into 4 smaller ones. (Those go through middle point of the sides.)

8 short summit fold creases that divide the corners into the equal quarter. ( looks like a star shape)

Basic form of Crane

With these basic creases of the Bird Base 1, you can fold it for instance. It is the basic form of the cranes. You finish folding its beak and the tail. Here you go!!

　Cranes in variation

Different form Cranes

You can fold different form cranes using the form of cranes. That means you only need the basic creases of the crane. You can apply these basic creases on the different shape paper. For example, triangle shape, diamond shape, and pentagon shape or so.
When you use a sheet of triangle paper, your crane will have a short tail. From diamond shape paper, your crane will have short neck and tail, or it will have longer wings. From pentagon shape paper, your crane will have two heads or two tails (Wow!!). You can try other shapes like an isosceles right-angled triangle, and a rectangle.

Twin Cranes or Others

You cut a sheet of paper into smaller squares leaving some parts not separated. You can fold Twin Cranes accordingly by the Basic form of Crane. You need to know what part would be its beak and tail.

Variations

Iwaizuru (Cranes for good luck)

It comes with red and white color combination of the Twin Cranes. Those color combinations are for cerebration and special occasions in Japan.

Ehiroi

These are the mom and chick cranes. It is so cute that it looks like Mom is feeding her chick beak to beak.

Hyakkaku

You divide a sheet of square paper into a hundred squares, then fold each. It will be a hundred cranes in herd.

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