Traditional bases[]
Fish[]
The fish base is a traditional base formed by rabbit-earing two corners along the diagonal. It hasd four flaps, two short and two long.
Kite[]
The kite base is a simple base with three creases made by folding along the diagonal of the square, unfolding, then folding two adjacent sides to line up with the diagonal, creating a kite or ice cream cone shape.
Book[]
The book base, sometimes called a book fold, is a traditional base and one of the simplest. It is made by bringing one edge of a square or rectangle to the opposite edge, folding the sheet in half.
Blintz[]
The blintz base is a traditional origami base, named after a thin pancake of Slavic orgins. It is formed by bringing all four courners of a square to the center point. Blintz can also be used as a type of fold meaning bringing all four corners to the center and as a verb. George Rhoads helped to pioneer the usage of the base. The blintzed bird base and the blintzed frog base are derived from it.
Cupboard[]
The cupboard base is a traditional origami base and one of the most basic. It is formed by bringing two opposite edges of a square to the center line. The pinwheel base and pig base are derived from it.
Pinwheel/Boat[]
The pinwheel base, also known as a pinwheel and called a boat base by the Page-A-Day Origami Calendar, is a traditional base and is related to the pig base. It has four triangular flaps connected to the center. The traditional pinwheel utilizes this base.
Pig[]
The pig base is a traditional base related to the boat base. It has four symetrical flaps, all short.
Square/Preliminary[]
The square base, also known as the preliminary base, is one of the basic origami bases and the reverse of the waterbomb base. It is the starting point for the frog and bird bases.
Frog/Lilly
The frog base is one of the traditional bases, made from the square base, and is used in the traditional lily and traditional frog. It has eight triangular flaps, four short and four long.
Waterbomb[]
The waterbomb base (Spanish: la base bomba de agua) is one of the traditional bases; it has five points, four long at the corners and one at the center. The base is shaped like a flattened pyramid.
Bird[]
The bird base is one of the traditional bases and the starting point for the crane. It has five triangular points, four long at the corners and one short at the center.
Specific fold names[]
Diaper fold[]
Folding two opposite corners of the square together and creasing the diagonal
Cupboard fold[]
The cupboard base is a traditional origami base and one of the most basic. It is formed by bringing two opposite edges of a square to the center line. The pinwheel base and pig base are derived from it.
Book fold[]
The book fold is a fold that moves a flap from one side to another, the axis of movement being the part of the paper that connects the flap to the rest of the model. It is especially used in waterbomb and square base derived models.
Blintz fold[]
The blintz base is a traditional origami base, named after a thin pancake of Slavic orgins. It is formed by bringing all four courners of a square to the center point. Blintz can also be used as a type of fold meaning bringing all four corners to the center and as a verb. George Rhoads helped to pioneer the usage of the base. The blintzed bird base and the blintzed frog base are derived from it.
Petal fold[]
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Bone folder[]
various folding tools including bone folders
A bone folder is a tool traditionally used for book binding. Frequently made from bone or plastic, there are types that are made from teflon, wood, or other materials. A bone folder is used to create a consistent, sharp crease and, sometimes, to otherwise manipulate the paper in ways that may not be as easy to use one's hands such as probing small spaces in the model.
A typical bone folder is around 6 inches long, 1 inch wide, and a quarter of an inch thick, altohugh dimensions and styles can vary. One end is frequently narrowed to a dull point.
Some people used improvised or found objects as bone folders. One example is the plastic flare punched out of the handle of a gallon plastic milk jug. These can sometimes be found for free at grocery stores or dairy farms, although they are sometimes hard to find and some manufacturers now recycle them at the factory.