YOUR PAPER MOMENT
Masu box
Get your paper ready.
Lay a square sheet down as a diamond, with one corner pointing up and one towards you. If one side is coloured, put it face down and the white side face up.
Use smooth, properly square paper: in the next folds the corners have to reach the centre exactly.
All the steps as text
A traditional model: you bring the corners to the centre, crease the square a quarter in from each side, unfold two flaps, fold the long edges towards the centre and open the paper out in 3D to raise the walls. The floor is a square and the walls are half as tall as the floor is wide.
Get your paper ready.
Lay a square sheet down as a diamond, with one corner pointing up and one towards you. If one side is coloured, put it face down and the white side face up.
Use smooth, properly square paper: in the next folds the corners have to reach the centre exactly.
Bring the top corner to the centre.
Fold the top corner of the diamond towards you, onto the centre. The fold is horizontal and runs through the middle of the two upper edges.
Line up the corner with the centre before pressing the fold.
Bring the right corner to the centre.
Fold the right corner of the diamond towards you, onto the centre. The fold is vertical and runs through the middle of the two right-hand edges.
The corners meet in the centre, but they do not overlap.
Bring the bottom corner to the centre.
Fold the bottom corner of the diamond towards you, onto the centre. The fold is horizontal and runs through the middle of the two lower edges.
The corners meet in the centre, but they do not overlap.
Bring the left corner to the centre.
Fold the left corner of the diamond towards you, onto the centre. The fold is vertical and runs through the middle of the two left-hand edges. You now have a square with four triangular flaps that meet in the centre.
Press each fold well: later you will need these edges to be straight.
Bring the top edge to the centre.
Fold the top edge of the square towards you, onto the horizontal line that runs through the centre. Fold all the layers together. The fold lands a quarter of the way down the square, counting from the top.
Line up the edge with the centre before pressing: this crease is used later on.
Unfold the top edge.
Open the top edge again. A horizontal crease stays, a quarter of the way down the square from the top.
There is no need to flatten it completely: the crease is already made.
Bring the bottom edge to the centre.
Fold the bottom edge of the square towards you, onto the horizontal line that runs through the centre. Fold all the layers together. The fold lands a quarter of the way up the square, counting from the bottom.
Line up the edge with the centre before pressing the fold.
Unfold the bottom edge.
Open the bottom edge again. A horizontal crease stays, a quarter of the way up the square from the bottom.
There is no need to flatten it completely: the crease is already made.
Bring the left edge to the centre.
Fold the left edge of the square towards you, onto the vertical line that runs through the centre. Fold all the layers together. The fold lands a quarter of the way across the square, counting from the left.
Line up the edge with the centre before pressing the fold.
Unfold the left edge.
Open the left edge again. A vertical crease stays, a quarter of the way across the square from the left.
There is no need to flatten it completely: the crease is already made.
Bring the right edge to the centre.
Fold the right edge of the square towards you, onto the vertical line that runs through the centre. Fold all the layers together. The fold lands a quarter of the way across the square, counting from the right.
Line up the edge with the centre before pressing the fold.
Unfold the right edge.
Open the right edge again. A vertical crease stays, a quarter of the way across the square from the right. The square now has four creases: two horizontal and two vertical.
There is no need to flatten it completely: the crease is already made.
Unfold the left flap.
Open the left-hand triangular flap out to the left, the one from the left corner, until its point is back at the left edge of the paper. The top, bottom and right flaps stay folded.
Unfold only that flap and leave the others as they are.
Unfold the right flap.
Open the right-hand triangular flap out to the right until its point is back at the right edge of the paper. You have a hexagon with a point on each side, and the top and bottom flaps are still folded.
The quarter creases should show in the centre; you use them in the next step.
Fold the top edge along the crease.
Fold the top edge towards you along the top crease, onto the horizontal line that runs through the centre. Fold all the layers together, including those of the side points.
If the crease is well made, the fold falls into place by itself.
Fold the bottom edge along the crease.
Fold the bottom edge towards you along the bottom crease, onto the horizontal line that runs through the centre. Fold all the layers together. You have a long hexagon with a point on the left and one on the right.
If the crease is well made, the fold falls into place by itself.
Open the centre and raise the long walls.
Open the paper out in the centre and raise the two folded strips, the top one and the bottom one, until they stand up: they are the long walls. The two points at the ends stand up too. This step is in 3D: the flat paper fades out and a drawing that shows the result appears, seen from the front and a little from the right.
Go over the creases with your fingernail before raising: the walls then stay straight.
Close the left end.
Raise the left end as a wall and fold its point inwards: the point covers the wall on the inside and reaches the centre of the floor. This step is in 3D: the drawing shows the result.
Fold the point along the crease you made at the start, on the left side of the square.
Close the right end.
Do the same with the right end: raise it as a wall and fold its point inwards. This step is in 3D: the drawing shows the finished box. The point is inside and, from this angle, the right-hand wall hides it.
Fold the point along the crease you made at the start, on the right side of the square.
Your masu box is ready.
The drawing shows the box: a square floor and four walls as tall as half the side of the floor. On the outside you see the coloured side; on the inside too: the flaps cover the long walls, and the points at the ends cover the short walls and the floor.
Stand the box on a flat surface and go over the corners of the floor with your finger.