Origami Basics 2

Valley folds and Mountain folds.

These are the two simplest folds in origami. A valley fold means fold in front along the line. This is represented by a dashed line.A mountain fold means fold behind along the line. This is represented by a dash-dot-dash line. Some books represent it as a dash-dot-dot-dash line.Together, almost all folds in origami are combinations of these two folds, in one way or another. Some models are composed entirely of one mountain or valley fold at a time. These are called Pureland folds. These models are often the simplest types of model to fold, although some of them can be pretty complicated.

This is a simple model to start you off with. It is a simple Samurai helmet, part of the armour worn by a Japanese warrior. It is modelled here by a cuddly Tasmanian Devil. All the folds are valley and mountain folds. A 12" square of paper produces a hat 8" wide, which should be big enough for most heads.