Text-Only Instructions copyright 2026 by Lindy van der Merwe
accessorigami.com
Various sites show how to create this traditional fold.
For instructions with pictures, see, for example
instructables.com
My thanks to Annette Carr for folding this model and for editing suggestions.
You can find Annette's tip for an alternative way to form the wings of the model at the end of this tutorial.
Paper to be used: A 2:3 Rectangle or one that is about one-and-a-half times longer than it is wide (For example: 4 by 6 inches).
To get the correct measurement, you can also use any square, divide it into thirds and cut or tear off one third. The remaining "two-thirds" rectangle will be perfect for this model.
The easiest method I have found to do this is to pick up your paper and gently fold the top and bottom sides over to their opposite edges, into an S or a Z fold. Adjust your folds on both sides before making small creases right at the edges of the paper to mark where you will fold.
Don't worry if this is difficult at first. It will become easier with practice.
Unfold all the way again and place your square down with the marks on the left and right. Using the marks on both sides, fold the top edge of the square down a third of the way and then over once more, like you would a letter going into an envelope.
Crease well and unfold so you have a square with two lines across it.
Cut or tear off the bottom third of the paper. You will only need the top part.
Folding level: Easy/Beginner
Steps: 10
Description: This model is a corner bookmark with a pocket at the back and a representation of a butterfly on the front. The butterfly is not very detailed, yet it is easily recognized and quite pretty for a two-dimensional model.
It will look especially eye-catching if folded from paper with a different color on each side, since the design is intended to show both sides of the paper, creating a two-tone effect where the butterfly appears to be super-imposed on top of a contrasting background.
Remarks:
Fold as many as you like and use them as bookmarks wherever and whenever needed.
This model is also an easy project for young kids to fold, decorate and use as party favors or last-minute gifts.
If you are giving a book as a gift, this is the perfect way to lend it a personal touch.
This bookmark does not slip off pages easily and can also be used by visually impaired people to help orientate print pages by placing them, for instance, at the left, top corner of a page.
If using two-sided origami paper, lay your paper with the patterned or colored side down before starting to fold.
Step 1
Place a rectangular sheet down with the short edges at the left and right, or in the landscape orientation.
Step 2
Fold the top edge down to meet the bottom edge. Crease and leave folded.
Step 3
If preferred, you can first fold the long rectangle from left to right and then unfold to make a crease mark at the center of the strip.
Now, take both the top left and right corners and bring them down to meet each other along the center vertical line of the model.
Crease well on both sides and unfold.
Step 4
Flip the model over, like turning the page of a book, and repeat the previous step, folding the corners along the same diagonal lines you have already created.
Crease and unfold.
Step 5
Using the diagonal creases, push the left corner inwards so it disappears between the top and bottom layers of the paper.
Step 6
Repeat the same fold on the right corner of the model.
You will now have a multi-layered triangle at the top with what will look like two separate legs or rectangles poking out from the bottom of the triangle.
Step 7
We will now start to create the wings of the butterfly using the two rectangles at the bottom of the model.
There are no exact guides for these folds, but we can use the corners of our rectangles to help us.
7.1 Focus on the left rectangle first.
We are going to take its loose, bottom right corner and fold it upwards and slightly to the left as far as it will go.
To find the angle we are looking for, imagine a straight diagonal line starting at the top right corner and ending at the bottom left corner of this rectangle.
Result: You will now have formed a new triangle on the bottom left of the model with its longest, folded edge laying at an angle, nearest you.
If preferred, you can experiment by varying the angle in this step. Folding the loose bottom corner up more or less will create different angles for the wings of the butterfly.
Unfold and use the same line to fold the triangle to the back of the model, using a mountain fold.
Unfold again.
Then, as you did before, gently push the fold inwards between the front and back layers of the paper.
7.2 Now, focus on the right rectangle.
Repeat the valley and mountain folds, followed by the inside reverse fold, making sure the right and left folds end up symmetrical.
The result after this step will be that you will have a large triangle at the top of the model with four long, wing-like shapes protruding from inside it.
Step 8
Rotate the model 180 degrees so the wing-like shapes are now at the top left and right. The point of the large triangle will be nearest you.
Step 9
Notice that you will have two wings sticking out on the left and two on the right.
Bring only one of the wing shapes down from each side, all the way towards you. Press flat.
These shapes are the back wings of your butterfly. The shapes still left on the table are the front wings.
Step 10
If you feel at the back of the model now, you will find a large triangle forming a pocket that you can slip over the corner of a page.
Tip for an alternative way to form the wings of the butterfly - by Annette Carr:
1. In Step 2, after folding the paper to form a long skinny rectangle and having the long-creased edge at the top, make pre-creases at the ends of the rectangle to be used in Step 7 by folding down the top right corner to align the right short edge with the bottom long edge, then reverse fold this corner, and unfold. Repeat on the left side. You can change the look of the final wings by adjusting this fold.
When folding the top corners down, bringing them below the bottom long edge or leaving them above the long edge will change the final appearance of the wings.
2. Continue with the instructions through Step 6.
3. In Step 7, since you have already created precreases, simply do the inside reverse folds by pushing the triangles at the bottom of the legs up and inside the model.
4. Continue with Step 8.
Making origami accessible through text-based tutorials.
For non-commercial use only.
Compiled by Lindy van der Merwe, January 2026
Revised, February 2026
This text copyright 2026 by accessorigami.com and the author/s.
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