The covid-19 situation is escalating to a full-blown crisis. (India). Amid extended lockdown/shutdowns and fear of health safety and job security, origami folding is keeping me and the kids in the house busy and distracted.

In this Instructables project, I'm sharing steps to fold a small tote handbag.

Supplies

2 Origami papers,15 cm x 15 cm
Flat surface for folding
Paper glue

Step 1: The Valley Fold

Place the origami paper on a flat surface and fold the square paper vertically in half like a valley. Crease it well by sharpening it with a fingernail and unfold it.

"This fold is known as Valley Fold because the crease is at the bottom and the paper is folded forward into itself, so that paper makes a "V shape" when unfolded"

Now, Valley Fold the paper vertically and unfold it.

Step 2: The Center Fold

Valley fold all the corners to the center.

Step 3: The 3/4th Fold

Fold the bottom side horizontally so that the folded part coves the 3/4th part of the square and then unfold. Repeat this for the upper side. Sharpen the crease well and then unfold.

Step 4: The Mountain Fold

For this step hold one corner of your thumb and index finger. Pinch it gently so that the corner folds upward like a mountain.
"This fold is known as Mountain Fold because the crease sits at the top and the paper is folded behind itself, and the paper makes an "inverted V shape" when unfolded."

Repeat this step with all the corners. Sharpen the folds nicely and unfold. Place the paper flat on the surface and unfold the top and bottom sides. The left and the right sides will remain folded.

Step 5: Snakes in the Box

Mountain fold along the Black line(Pic 1) and bring down the flap to lock in the folds. You can use glue to secure the fold.

We will now have a box-like structure(Pic 4) with two extruding parts. At this step, the bag will resemble two snakes peeping out of the box and looking in opposite directions.

Fold any one extruded side inside the box. Use glue to lock it firmly.

Now, if we look closely, we will note that the extruded part resembling a tringle stacked above a rectangle.

Mountain fold the rectangle part in half. Next, fold and glue the bottom part forward and the triangular part inside the box.

Step 6: The Tote Shape

Keeping the bag so that the glued extruded part is facing you, mountain fold the corners by pinching the corners between your thumb and index finger. Sharpen the edge to the halfway mark of the bag. Make sure you are only sharpening the crease to half the length of the side of the bag and not till the bottom. Unfold this crease and push it gently inside to valley fold the corners together. Repeat this to the other side of the bag.

Step 7: Final Touch: Adding Handle

Cut a rectangular strip(2 cm x 10 cm) from other origami paper. Place it horizontally and Valley fold it horizontally 2 times. Spread the two ends of the strip so that it resembles a Kayak Paddle. Use glue to secure the fold strongly. Repeat this step to fold one more handle for the bag. Glue the strips to the handbag.

The Mini Origani Tote Bag is ready. Do comment if you get stuck somewhere. Thank you :-)

Introduction: Origami Tote Bag