When I make origami birds like the crane or the flapping one, I usually start with the bird base. It’s kinda like the foundation. To get there, I begin with a square base and then do two petal folds—that’s what makes it a bird base. Sometimes people forget the second petal fold, but you need both!
The first step is to fold a square in the basic origami style. This is how I usually start. Here is the square I folded – it’s a good starting point for everyone.
Step 2 now. I fold the corners inwards, just like in the next two pictures. After that, I make sure to crease really well, then unfold it. These creases are super important—no joke. So I usually go over them once, then again, and maybe one more time just to be sure.
Start with the right side.
then on the left
Step 3 now. I fold the tip down, nice and straight. Then, just like before, I press the crease really well. Can’t skip that part. After that, I unfold it again.
Step 4’s kinda cool. So the 3 creases I made earlier—they’re gonna help me do this next move, the petal fold. If I did a good job creasing (and I hope I did 😅), the paper just kinda follows along. But if I didn’t crease well… yeah, it fights back and gets annoying.
Now I lift that bottom corner up, follow the crease lines I already made, and then I flatten it down into a triangle.
Boom—petal fold done (hopefully)!
Step 5! My bird base is halfway there now—yay! 😄 Time to flip the whole thing over and get ready for the next part. Almost there!
Step 6 now. I’m just gonna do the same thing as Steps 3 and 4, but on this side. So I fold in the three corners to make those crease marks. Gotta remember to crease them really well—don’t rush it! Then I unfold everything again, just like before.
I always like to start from the right side.
Continue folding with the left and top sides.
Step 7 already! Now I just lift up the bottom corner again—same as before—and do another petal fold on this side. If my creases were good, it should fold pretty smooth.
And that’s it—my bird base is finally done! 🎉 Kinda satisfying seeing it all come together like that.
