Some origami bases seem to know exactly what they are for the moment they are born. The pattern base is one of them: a tidy little square with four flaps that point out like the arms of a pinwheel, ready to become a flower, a bird, or anything else you can imagine. What makes this base fun to fold is the way it sneaks in a classic technique along the way. Before the base itself exists, you fold a cupboard fold, two simple flaps that first divide the paper into a neat 4 x 4 grid of creases. Then, with a few diagonal corner folds and a little collapsing, the grid suddenly stands up as a three-dimensional shape. It is closely related to the windmill base and the table base, so if you know one, the others come quickly. Grab a square of paper, keep the white side up, and let us fold.

Learn how to make an origami pattern base. This origami base is used to make many different origami models.

The pattern base is very similar to the origami windmill/pinwheel base and table base.

Step 1

This is the back of the paper (usually white). We will start off by making an origami cupboard fold.

Step 2

Fold the paper in half, from right to left.

Step 3

Unfold the previous step.

Step 4

Fold the right edge to the central vertical crease.

Step 5

Fold the left edge to the central vertical crease. This is the origami cupboard fold.

Step 6

Unfold the paper completely.

Step 7

Repeat the cupboard fold in the other direction. Fold the bottom edge up to the top edge.

Step 8

Unfold the previous step.

Step 9

Fold the bottom edge up to the central horizontal crease.

Step 10

Fold the top edge down to the central crease.

Step 11

Unfold the paper. We now have a 4 x 4 grid.

Step 12

Flip the paper over to the other side.

Step 13

Fold the bottom right corner diagonally in to the center of the paper.

Step 14

Fold the other three corners in to the center.

Step 15

Unfold the paper.

Step 16

Flip the paper back over to the other side.

Step 17

Lift up the edges on the top, right, bottom and left.

Step 18

Fold the bottom and right sections inwards together, collapsing the bottom right corner forward.

Step 19

Bring in the left edge, collapsing the bottom left corner in towards the center.

Step 20

Fold the top edge down, collapsing the top left and right corners.

Step 21

This is the completed origami pattern base.