How to make an origami Praying Mantis
Designed by Jo Nakashima (01/2023)
Level: complex
In this video you’ll learn how to fold an origami praying mantis from a single uncut square sheet of paper. It is a box pleat model from a 48×48 grid. It is easier to fold than my origami ant and spider.
Crease Pattern
Paper
I recommend 30cm x 30cm of high quality thin paper that holds well the shape. Some suggestions:
- Kraft Alios – It’s the one I used in the picture. It’s super thin and light, but wet-shaping is required. Buy it here.
- Foil paper – Holds the shape very well, works great for complex models. Buy it here.
- Sandwich paper – With its foil base, you can shape it and it will hold in place without any effort. Buy it here.
- Home made tissue-foil – Made by gluing tissue paper and aluminum foil. Works great like the previous one and you can customize it with the color you want.
- Tissue-foil from origami-shop – It’s the paper I used in the tutorial. I think it’s a bit thick unless you use a larger sheet (you can see how it looks in the end of the tutorial). Buy it here.
Origami Praying Mantis pre-creasing diagrams
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