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Flat Origami Christmas Stocking

Make a small flat Christmas stocking with a turned cuff and a sideways toe. This outside-fold version is for display, not for holding gifts.

Preparation + 11 numbered steps

Materials

6-inch square · 6 × 6 inches

One 6 × 6-inch square (15.24 × 15.24 cm) of thin origami paper. Red paper with a white reverse makes a contrasting cuff. Ruler and pencil for the ankle and toe marks. No cuts or glue.

Start the interactive guide ↓
Read all illustrated steps ↓Download PDF ↓ · one-page illustrated guide
Flat Origami Christmas Stocking: a folded cuff, tall leg and rounded toe with a sloping heel
A folded cuff, tall leg and rounded toe with a sloping heel

Follow along

Preparation

The interactive guide needs JavaScript. Read every illustrated step below.

Camera only; does not change the fold.
Help · controls & diagram

Play or drag the progress slider to watch a fold from 0% to 100%. Use the view buttons or drag the diagram to look from another angle.

Blue and gold track the original halves of one sheet, not your paper colors. Darker shades show the reverse. Orange highlights moving paper and its hinge.

With the diagram focused: Space plays or pauses, ←/→ change steps, and Home resets.

Every step, at a glance

Compare your paper with each diagram after completing the action. Blue and gold track the original halves of one sheet, not your paper colors. Darker shades show the reverse. Orange highlights moving paper and its hinge.

  1. 0. Prepare the square
  2. 1. Fold the cuff
  3. 2. Turn the paper over
  4. 3. Crease the vertical center
  5. 4. Open the rectangle
  6. 5. Fold the right edge in
  7. 6. Fold the left edge in
  8. 7. Close the narrow strip
  9. 8. Fold out the foot
  10. 9. Round the upper toe
  11. 10. Round the lower toe
  12. 11. Finish the flat stocking
  1. END STATEOriginal left: blue · right: goldPrepare the square

    PREPARATION · Santa Boot source family; flat outside-fold adaptation

    Prepare the square

    Place the square with level top and bottom edges and the intended stocking color facing up.

    Layers: One uncut square.

    Check: The reverse will become the cuff.

    Explore this step ↑
  2. END STATEOriginal left: blue · right: goldFold the cuff

    STEP 1 · Santa Boot source family; flat outside-fold adaptation

    Fold the cuff

    Measure 0.30 inches down from the top edge. Fold that narrow strip toward you.

    Layers: Move the entire top strip.

    Check: A contrasting narrow band runs across the top.

    Explore this step ↑
  3. END STATEOriginal left: blue · right: goldTurn the paper over

    STEP 2 · Santa Boot source family; flat outside-fold adaptation

    Turn the paper over

    Turn the whole sheet over from side to side. Keep the cuff at the top.

    Layers: Carry the cuff with the whole square.

    Check: The folded cuff is now behind.

    Explore this step ↑
  4. END STATEOriginal left: blue · right: goldCrease the vertical center

    STEP 3 · Santa Boot source family; flat outside-fold adaptation

    Crease the vertical center

    Bring the right edge over to the left edge.

    Layers: Move every layer in the right half, including the cuff.

    Check: The side edges line up.

    Explore this step ↑
  5. END STATEOriginal left: blue · right: goldOpen the rectangle

    STEP 4 · Santa Boot source family; flat outside-fold adaptation

    Open the rectangle

    Unfold completely, leaving the cuff folded.

    Layers: Return the same half.

    Check: A vertical center line remains.

    Explore this step ↑
  6. END STATEOriginal left: blue · right: goldFold the right edge in

    STEP 5 · Santa Boot source family; flat outside-fold adaptation

    Fold the right edge in

    Bring the right edge to the center crease.

    Layers: Carry the complete side, including its cuff layers.

    Check: The right edge rests on the center.

    Explore this step ↑
  7. END STATEOriginal left: blue · right: goldFold the left edge in

    STEP 6 · Santa Boot source family; flat outside-fold adaptation

    Fold the left edge in

    Bring the left edge to the same center crease.

    Layers: Carry all layers on the left side.

    Check: Both folded edges meet.

    Explore this step ↑
  8. END STATEOriginal left: blue · right: goldClose the narrow strip

    STEP 7 · Santa Boot source family; flat outside-fold adaptation

    Close the narrow strip

    Fold the right half over the left along the center crease.

    Layers: Move every layer on the right together.

    Check: A tall strip is 1.50 inches wide, with the cuff at the top.

    Explore this step ↑
  9. END STATEOriginal left: blue · right: goldFold out the foot

    STEP 8 · Santa Boot source family; flat outside-fold adaptation

    Fold out the foot

    On the left edge mark 2.70 inches below the top of the cuff. On the right edge mark 4.20 inches below the cuff. Join the marks and fold the entire lower packet toward you and to the right on that diagonal.

    Layers: Carry every lower layer together. Keep the tall leg still. Do not open a pocket.

    Check: The toe projects right; the heel slopes down to the level sole.

    Explore this step ↑
  10. END STATEOriginal left: blue · right: goldRound the upper toe

    STEP 9 · Santa Boot source family; flat outside-fold adaptation

    Round the upper toe

    At the outer top-right corner of the foot, mark 0.30 inches left along its top edge and 0.30 inches down its outer edge. Fold that corner away from you along the diagonal joining the marks.

    Layers: Carry every layer in the little foot corner to the outside back. Leave the leg and cuff still.

    Check: The top of the toe has a short bevel.

    Explore this step ↑
  11. END STATEOriginal left: blue · right: goldRound the lower toe

    STEP 10 · Santa Boot source family; flat outside-fold adaptation

    Round the lower toe

    At the outer bottom-right corner, mark 0.30 inches left along the sole and 0.30 inches up the outer edge. Fold the corner behind on the line joining the marks.

    Layers: Carry all layers in the lower toe corner away from you.

    Check: The top and bottom toe bevels match.

    Explore this step ↑
  12. END STATEOriginal left: blue · right: goldFinish the flat stocking

    STEP 11 · Santa Boot source family; flat outside-fold adaptation

    Finish the flat stocking

    Press the folds flat and display the cuff at the top with the toe pointing right.

    Layers: No new fold. Leave the folded layers closed.

    Check: A tall leg, narrow cuff, rounded toe and sloping heel complete the decoration.

    Explore this step ↑
Sources & notes

Origami Club; diagram copyright credit: Fumiaki Shingu, Origami Club: Santa Boot (undated web diagram).

Complete Santa Boot reference diagram ↗ · Reference model page ↗

The reference diagram credits Fumiaki Shingu. This does not establish traditional status, public-domain status or a design-reuse license. No reference drawings, prose or code are reproduced. These English instructions, material geometry and diagrams are original; no project-wide reuse license is implied.

Adaptation: An explicitly simplified flat-display adaptation, not a reproduction of the pocket-fold sequence. We retain the cuff and quarter-width folded strip, rotate the working layout to keep the cuff at the top, and replace the pocket squash/refolding with one ordinary all-layer diagonal ankle fold. The result has a sloping heel rather than the source square heel. Toe corners fold to the outside back instead of using inside reverse folds. Exact cuff, ankle and rounding positions are authored six-inch landmarks. No opening, gift capacity, wearable fit or freestanding behavior is promised.

Original instructions and diagrams, made with AI assistance. About & reuse

Accuracy notes

Real-paper follow-along and paper weight have not been tested. Diagrams illustrate the sequence, not paper thickness, contact, collisions or exact layer visibility. Rigid hinges retain one continuous uncut square, including all hidden cuff and side-flap layers at the ankle. Zero-thickness teaching diagrams are not thickness/contact certification. Real-paper folding has not been tested.