Dashed lines indicate Valley Folds. This means that the crease ends up at the bottom of the completed fold. The arrow indicates the direction that the paper should be folded.
Mountain Folds go the other way. They are usually represented by a line of dots and dashes. This means that the crease ends up on top, once the fold is complete. I think of the dots as peaks of mountains.
A Double Headed Arrow means you need to fold and unfold. This weakens the paper slightly, leaving a crease.
The Inside Reverse Fold is also very common.
It usually follows a crease, created by a previous fold and unfold.
Now, push against the center, creating mountain folds on both sides.
The completed Inside Reverse Fold.
The Waterbomb Base is an important starting point.
Mountain fold and unfold diagonally.
And again, in the other direction.
This will leave you with creases that form an “X.” Fold in half, away from you.
Push in the corners.
The completed Waterbomb Base.
The Squash Fold is common in origami and paper planes.
The Outlined Arrow means “push.” It means to apply pressure to the paper along a given path. In this case, it refolds a previous valley fold, while creating two new mountain folds.
The completed Squash Fold. Continue on the following page to form the Square Base.
Turn the paper over.
And do the same thing on the other side.
The completed Frog Fold.
The Swivel Fold involves moving a flap of paper around a set point, then resquashing in another position. This fold begins with the Square Base.
The completed Swivel Fold.
The Petal Fold can begin with a Square Base. There is more than one way to perform this sequence.
Fold the bottom edges in to the center. Unfold.
Push in the flaps and reverse the creases.
Fold the flap up.
The completed Petal Fold.
The Frog Fold can also begin with a Square Base.
Fold a single flap half way up.
Squash fold the flap.
Fold the bottom edges in to the center. Unfold.
Refold the bottom creases, while pulling up the center of the top layer to perform a squash fold at each side.
The completed Square Base.
Paper Airplane Mastery Tips
Understanding a few key points will help your dragons fly better. A little origami skill, and a little knowledge of paper airplanes will come in handy. There is a lot overlap between the two. The first ingredient is clean, precise folding. How do you achieve this? Well, start with clean, dry hands. While you’re folding, take your time, breathe and relax. The rest comes with experience. Another important, somewhat contradictory concept is slack. This can help with origami in general, but it is an asset to paper planes in particular. Slack refers to the space you leave between edges. Heavier paper requires