I’ve always been captivated by Ryan Dong’s origami designs, and this narwhal is a perfect example. With its rounded body, upturned tail, and that iconic horn, it is both lifelike and cute.
Ready to create your own? This intermediate-level project requires just one square sheet of paper. Let’s dive in and bring this narwhal to life!
Besides, if you love the magic of folding a mythical horned creature, you’ll adore our Origami Unicorn tutorial.
If you are new to origami, start here from our beginner guide to know the basics and how to read the step-by-step instructions.
- Folding time: 35 minutes
- Paper: 15×15 cm
- Total steps: 32
- Difficulty: Intermediate
- Designer: Ryan Dong
Material
Prepare a piece of 15 × 15 cm square paper with different colors on each side, and you can make a narwhal model about 10 cm long.
Step by Step Instructions
Step 1
Place the paper in a diamond shape with the desired display side face up. Fold it in half horizontally, crease it well, and unfold.
Step 2
Fold it in half vertically, and unfold.
Step 3
Fold the bottom left and bottom right edges to align with the vertical crease. Crease, and unfold them.
Step 4
Fold the bottom corner to the center intersection point of the creases. Crease, and unfold. Turn over the paper from left to right.
Step 5
Fold the crease made in the previous step to meet the center horizontal crease, then fold the triangle layer up.
Step 6
Fold the right edge of the triangle to align with its bottom edge, crease well, and unfold. Repeat this for its left edge.
Step 7
Fold the triangle’s top point down along the horizontal line (black dashed) that passes through the two points where the slanted creases intersect.
Tip: Pre-crease it as a mountain fold first for precision.
Step 8
Fold the right edge of the bottom triangular layer to the left along the existing crease. As you do this, the top right corner will lift and form a pocket. Flatten this pock. (pictures 1-2)
Now, lift this small new triangle by unfolding the edge back to the right (picture 3).
Then, refold the same crease as a mountain fold, tucking the paper inward. Neaten the layers and flatten. The right side of the original triangle will now be reduced. (pictures 4-6)
Step 9
Repeat the previous step for the left side.
Step 10
Rotate the model 90 degrees clockwise, then fold the model in half horizontally from top to bottom.
Step 11
Fold the bottom corner of the top layer upward, ensuring the two red dots meet. (picture 1)
Then, fold the top corner down to meet the intersection of the bottom edge and vertical crease. Crease well, and unfold. (pictures 2-3)
Step 12
Fold the top layer’ right edge to align with its own bottom edge. Crease sharply and unfold.
Then, fold the top corner downward along the dashed line connecting the crease intersection and the layer’s bottom right corner.
Tip: Similar to Step 7, first pre-crease this dashed line with a mountain fold, then reverse it to a valley fold for accuracy.
Step 13
Focus on the top left part.
Mountain fold along the crease indicated by the red dash-dot-dot line, then fold this crease toward the right, so that the bottom left corner of this layer meets the intersection of the crease and the bottom edge. Flatten the fold.
Step 14
Mountain fold along the crease indicated by the red dash-dot-dot line. (picture 1)
Then, fold this mountain crease toward the right side; this will open a corner. Flatten the forming pocket along the dashed line connecting the two red dots on the underneath layer. (pictures 2-3)
Step 15
Fold the right corner of the top triangle layer toward the left side, forming a small flap. Lift this flap, open and squash it.
Step 16
Locate the small quadrilateral from the previous step.
Lift and fold its bottom corner toward the top right. This action will cause an opening at the bottom left, forming a 3D pocket. Press this pocket flat (squash fold).
Now, you have finished one of the narwhal’s eyes.
Step 17
Turn the model over from left to right. Fold the bottom corner upward, ensuring the two red dots meet. (pictures 1-2)
Then, fold the top corner down to meet the intersection of the bottom edge and vertical crease. Crease well, and unfold. (pictures 3-4)
Step 18
Similar to step 12.
Fold the top layer’s left edge to align with its own bottom edge. Crease sharply and unfold.
Then, fold it downward along the dashed line connecting the crease intersection and the layer’s bottom left corner.
Step 19
As you did in Step 13. Focus on the top right part.
Mountain fold along the crease indicated by the red dash-dot-dot line, then fold this crease toward the left, so that the bottom right corner of the layer meets the intersection of the crease and the bottom edge. Flatten the fold.
Step 20
Repeat the process from Step 14 on this side.
Mountain fold along the crease indicated by the red dash-dot-dot line. (picture 1)
Then, fold this mountain crease toward the left side; this will open a corner. Flatten the forming pocket along the dashed line connecting the two red dots on the underneath layer. (pictures 2-3)
Step 21
Mirror the action from Step 15 here.
Fold the left corner of the top triangle layer toward the right side, forming a small flap. Lift this flap, open and squash it.
Step 22
Locate the small quadrilateral from the previous step.
Lift and fold its bottom corner toward the top left. This action will cause an opening at the bottom right, forming a 3D pocket. Press this pocket flat (squash fold). And this is another eye.
Step 23
Fold the top layer upward to open up the model, then turn it over. (pictures 1-2)
Fold the left corner to the right. Then, fold this same corner back to the left, making it meet the left edge’s midpoint. Finally, fold the entire resulting flap back to the left. (pictures 3-5)
Step 24
Fold the left edge to meet the right edge. Slightly crease the center only, then unfold. (pictures 1-2)
Then, turn the model over from back to front and fold it in half horizontally. (pictures 3-4)
Step 25
Fold the top-left corner down along the dashed line. (picture 1)
Fold the new triangle’s left corner to its right corner. Crease and unfold. (pictures 2-3)
Fold the bottom-left corner up along the dashed line. Crease and unfold. (pictures 4-5)
Step 26
Fold the top layer upward to open up the model, then flip it over from front to bottom. (pictures 1-2)
Bring up the left corner by mountain folding the creases indicated by the dashed lines. (picture 3)
Finally, close the model from and rotate it 90 degrees from front to back to lay it flat. (pictures 4-5)
Step 27
On the left rhombus, fold the top-right corner down to the bottom-left along the dashed diagonal. (picture 1)
Pull out the small underlaying flap; this will form the narwhal’s flipper. (picture 2)
Flip the model over and repeat both steps on the rhombus of this side, and pull out the “flipper” on this side. (pictures 3-5)
Step 28
Fold this small triangle along its own edge, and unfold.
Step 29
Rotate the model 90 degrees forward to make it stand upright. Gently open the tail section and reinforce the mountain folds along the red dash-dot-dot lines from the previous step. This will turn this section into a triangular tail. (pictures 1-3)
Rotate the model again to lay it flat.
Step 30
Fold the left flap down along the black dashed line, then fold it back up to the top, creating a zigzag (pleat fold). Crease both folds sharply, then unfold them completely.
Step 31
Rotate the model 90 degrees forward to make it stand upright.
Gently open the left part, mountain fold the two longer creases indicated by the red dash-dot-dot lines, and valley fold the two shorter creases indicated by black dashed lines. At the same time, mountain fold the horizontal crease. (pictures 2-4)
As you form these creases, the left corner will naturally lift. Sharpen all creases and close the model. You finished the horn.
Step 32
Lay it flat, fold the top layer’s bottom left corner backward (mountain fold). Then, on the underlying layer, fold the same corner inward (valley fold) at the same angle.
This creates a smoother, more rounded contour for the narwhal’s body.
What’s Next
Congratulations! You’ve just brought a narwhal to life. If you enjoyed this fold, you can explore our other fish designs. From simple flat fish for beginners to complex 3D creations for experts. There’s a whole ocean of origami waiting for you. Happy folding!
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