How to Make an Origami Heart 2 Different Ways

Guides on how to make a simple origami heart and a more advanced, 2D heart out of paper

Co-authored by Aly Rusciano

Last Updated: January 28, 2023 References Tested

Traditional Origami Heart

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2D Heart

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Video

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Q&A

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Tips

ARTICLE

VIDEO

Looking for a cute gift to give your friend, crush, or family member? Well, look no further because we have the perfect handmade heart that’ll cause just about anyone to blush. All you need for this craft is a square piece of paper (size and color are totally up to you), a bit of patience, and some paper-folding skills. With our help, you’ll make so many paper hearts you won’t know what to do with them all!

Things You Should Know

Use a square piece of paper to make your paper heart. If you don’t have square paper, simply cut another paper down to size.
A traditional origami heart is made by tilting your paper to look like a diamond and creating a series of creases to form the top and bottom points of the heart.
Create valley and mountain folds to make a paper heart more 2-dimensional so it appears puffier and rounder.

Method 1

Method 1 of 2:

Traditional Origami Heart

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Fold a piece of square paper in half diagonally. Lay the paper on a flat surface and turn it to look like a diamond. Take the top point and fold it down towards the bottom point. Press down on the fold to make a crease, and then unfold the paper.^{[1]
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- The larger your piece of paper is, the larger your paper heart will be. The smaller your piece of paper, the smaller the heart.
- If you don’t have a square piece of paper, cut a piece of printer paper (or any other paper you have on hand) into a square using scissors.
2
Fold the paper in half again in the opposite direction. Turn your paper, so the next corner faces you (the one you didn’t fold before). Bring the bottom point up towards the top point, crease the center fold, and then unfold the paper.^{[2]
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- Now, there should be 4 triangles in the square or 2 perpendicular crease marks running through the center of the square.
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3
Bring the top point down to the center of the paper. Keep the paper turned, so it looks like a diamond. Fold the top point down into the center of the square where the creases intersect. Press down on the fold to hold it in place.^{[3]
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Bring the bottom point up to the top edge of the paper. Fold the point closest to you up and over the center of the page so that the point touches the top edge of the fold you made previously.^{[4]
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Fold both halves up and over to the top edge of the paper. Keep the paper flat on your work surface and bring the right point up and over the top edge by folding it up at a 90-degree angle. Repeat this fold with the left point, bringing the inner edges of the folds together in the middle of the paper.^{[5]
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- It may take 2 hands to do this—1 holding the middle of the paper while the other folds.
- Think of the right and left points as each half of the heart. Folding up the right point makes the right half, while folding the left points creates the left half.
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Tuck the points into the back of the paper. Flip your folded paper over. Fold the 2 points on each top side of the heart down about a ¹⁄₂ in (1.3 cm). This will give your paper heart a more rounded look.^{[6]
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- If you’d like your heart to be more triangular, keep the points out.
- That’s it—you’ve made your very own paper heart! Turn it over and see how it looks.

Method 2

Method 2 of 2:

2D Heart

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Fold a square piece of paper in half horizontally. Start with the paper on a flat surface in front of you. Then, fold the top edge of the paper to touch the bottom edge. Press on the fold to crease it, and then unfold it.^{[7]
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- If you don’t have a piece of square paper, no worries! Simply use scissors to cut a different-sized piece of paper into a square.
2
Fold the paper in half vertically. Bring the left edge of the paper over, so it touches the right edge. Press the fold down to create a crease, and then unfold it. Now your piece of paper is divided into 4 sections.^{[8]
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Crease the paper in half diagonally twice. First, bring the top left point down until it touches the bottom right point. Press down on the fold and then unfold the paper. Next, bring the top right point down to touch the bottom left point. Crease and unfold.^{[9]
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Bring the top and bottom edges to the center of the paper. Fold both edges to meet horizontally at the center of the page. Press down on each fold to make a crease, and then unfold the paper again.
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Turn the paper to the right and fold it horizontally again. Slide the paper around so that the right edge is now the square's bottom edge. Fold the top and bottom edges into the center of the paper like you did before. Create a crease, and then unfold.^{[10]
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Rotate the paper and fold the top and bottom points to the center. Turn your paper, so it looks like a diamond. Then, bring the top point down to meet the center of the paper and the bottom point up to the center. Press down on the folds, so they stay in place.^{[11]
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Bunch the folds together to form the heart. Fold the left and right points toward the center of the paper, while folding the top 2 points down to the center at the same time. Bring the bottom 2 points up to the center on either side along the existing diagonal creases. Use 2 hands to do this. Bring all the left creases together with your left hand and the right creases with your right. Flatten the fold once you’ve made a heart shape.^{[12]
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- To flatten the paper, fold it in half horizontally, so the top and bottom edges are going away from you. The folded crease should be facing you.
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Fold the top points of the heart toward and away from you. Bring the left point toward the middle of the heart, make a crease, and then create the same fold behind the heart. Repeat on the right side with the right top point.^{[13]
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- Folding something toward you is called valley-folding, while folding something away from you is called mountain folding.
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Pull the side edges of the paper out to see a square-shaped crease. Turn the paper, so the left side edge where you made the previous fold is facing you. Hold the paper in both hands and pull slightly to partially open the folds. Look for the square-shaped crease near the center of the paper.^{[14]
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- There should be 2 perpendicular creases intersecting in the square's center.
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Fold the sides of the square away from you and press them together. Mountain-fold each point of the square in on itself. Once you’ve made 4 mountain folds, press the folds together. Repeat this process with the right edge and point of the heart.^{[15]
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- If you’ve done your folds correctly, the square will fold in on itself when you press it together. If it doesn’t, no worries! Press down on the center of the square with your finger to push everything in place.
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Tug on either half of the paper to “inflate” the heart. Make sure all your points are safely tucked into the middle of the heart, give the heart one last press, and then gently pull on the back and front side to make it 2D. Now all that’s left to do is give it to your friend, crush, or family member!^{[16]
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Community Q&A

Question

Why don't you show pictures of it?

PrincessCutieFuz26

Community Answer

There are some pictures from people who used this wikiHow at the bottom of this page.
Question

How can I make my heart look bigger?

Community Answer

Use a bigger paper and repeat all the steps. With a bigger paper, you don't need to change any step, because the size of the paper will do it for you.
Question

Would it be the same if I used a rectangular piece of paper?

Community Answer

Yes. First you would just cut a piece off to make it a square.