Just Fold Paper

Choose a color theme

Fold only

Flat Origami Rice Ball

Make a flat onigiri rice-ball picture from one square. A doubled lower corner becomes a broad contrasting nori band, while backward shaping folds give the rice a short flat top and beveled base. The color change is folded paper, not drawn decoration.

Preparation + 11 numbered steps

Materials

6-inch square · 6 × 6 inches

One 6 × 6-inch square (15.24 × 15.24 cm) of thin paper with contrasting sides. White on the front and black on the back resembles rice and nori. Ruler and pencil for shaping marks. No scissors or glue.

Start the interactive guide ↓
Read all illustrated steps ↓Download PDF ↓ · one-page illustrated guide
Flat Origami Rice Ball: a triangular rice shape above a folded contrasting nori band
A triangular rice shape above a folded contrasting nori band

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 left and right halves, not the literal colors of your paper. Darker shades show the reverse. Orange outlines mark 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 left and right halves, not the literal colors of your paper. Darker shades show the reverse. Orange outlines mark moving paper and its hinge.

  1. 0. Prepare the diamond
  2. 1. Crease the vertical diagonal
  3. 2. Open the diamond
  4. 3. Crease the horizontal diagonal
  5. 4. Open the cross guides
  6. 5. Turn up the lower corner
  7. 6. Raise the complete nori band
  8. 7. Taper the right side behind
  9. 8. Taper the left side behind
  10. 9. Flatten the rice tip behind
  11. 10. Bevel the lower right corner
  12. 11. Bevel the lower left and finish
  1. END STATEOriginal left: blue · right: goldPrepare the diamond

    PREPARATION · Origami Club Rice Ball · measured flat construction

    Prepare the diamond

    Place a corner at the top with the intended rice color facing up. The reverse side will form the nori band.

    Layers: One uncut square.

    Check: The top and bottom points line up.

    Explore this step ↑
  2. END STATEOriginal left: blue · right: goldCrease the vertical diagonal

    STEP 1 · Origami Club Rice Ball · measured flat construction

    Crease the vertical diagonal

    Bring the right corner to the left corner and press the center fold.

    Layers: Move the full right half.

    Check: The side points coincide.

    Explore this step ↑
  3. END STATEOriginal left: blue · right: goldOpen the diamond

    STEP 2 · Origami Club Rice Ball · measured flat construction

    Open the diamond

    Return the right half completely to the table.

    Layers: Open the same half.

    Check: A vertical center crease remains.

    Explore this step ↑
  4. END STATEOriginal left: blue · right: goldCrease the horizontal diagonal

    STEP 3 · Origami Club Rice Ball · measured flat construction

    Crease the horizontal diagonal

    Bring the bottom point to the top point and press the fold between the side corners.

    Layers: Move the full lower half.

    Check: The top and bottom points coincide.

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

    STEP 4 · Origami Club Rice Ball · measured flat construction

    Open the cross guides

    Lower the folded half completely. Locate the center crossing.

    Layers: Open the same lower half.

    Check: The original square is flat again.

    Explore this step ↑
  6. END STATEOriginal left: blue · right: goldTurn up the lower corner

    STEP 5 · Origami Club Rice Ball · measured flat construction

    Turn up the lower corner

    Mark the vertical crease 0.47 inches below the center crossing. Bring the bottom tip up to that mark and press the horizontal fold.

    Layers: Fold the single bottom corner.

    Check: A small reverse-colored triangle sits just below the original center.

    Explore this step ↑
  7. END STATEOriginal left: blue · right: goldRaise the complete nori band

    STEP 6 · Origami Club Rice Ball · measured flat construction

    Raise the complete nori band

    Fold the entire shortened lower section upward on the original horizontal center crease. Carry the small corner fold with it.

    Layers: Move every layer below the original center, including the first hem.

    Check: A broad reverse-colored band covers the lower part of an upright triangle.

    Explore this step ↑
  8. END STATEOriginal left: blue · right: goldTaper the right side behind

    STEP 7 · Origami Club Rice Ball · measured flat construction

    Taper the right side behind

    On the closed lower edge, mark 2.83 inches right of the center. Fold the entire right corner backward on the line from the top apex to this mark.

    Layers: Carry the full corner packet, including the band and hidden hem layers.

    Check: The right side narrows; a small rear point projects below the base for later shaping.

    Explore this step ↑
  9. END STATEOriginal left: blue · right: goldTaper the left side behind

    STEP 8 · Origami Club Rice Ball · measured flat construction

    Taper the left side behind

    Mark the same distance left of center and make the matching backward fold.

    Layers: Move the complete left corner packet.

    Check: Two equal sloping sides frame the rice and nori; two little rear points hang below.

    Explore this step ↑
  10. END STATEOriginal left: blue · right: goldFlatten the rice tip behind

    STEP 9 · Origami Club Rice Ball · measured flat construction

    Flatten the rice tip behind

    Bring the top point backward to the upper edge of the nori band. Press the horizontal fold halfway between them.

    Layers: Move only the upper rice tip behind the model.

    Check: The rice has a short flat top; the nori edge stays visible.

    Explore this step ↑
  11. END STATEOriginal left: blue · right: goldBevel the lower right corner

    STEP 10 · Origami Club Rice Ball · measured flat construction

    Bevel the lower right corner

    On the original horizontal base, mark 1.70 inches right of center. Through that mark, make a 45-degree crease rising to the right. Fold everything below and right of the line behind.

    Layers: Carry the whole lower corner and the projecting rear point together.

    Check: A short diagonal bevel meets a straight lower edge; no right point hangs down.

    Explore this step ↑
  12. END STATEOriginal left: blue · right: goldBevel the lower left and finish

    STEP 11 · Origami Club Rice Ball · measured flat construction

    Bevel the lower left and finish

    Mirror the 45-degree fold through a base mark 1.70 inches left of center. Press the finished model flat.

    Layers: Carry all left-corner layers and the projecting rear point behind.

    Check: A broad nori band sits below a pale rice cap with a flat top and beveled base. The paper rice ball is complete.

    Explore this step ↑
Sources & notes

Origami Club; diagram copyright credit: Fumiaki Shingu, A Rice Ball (undated web diagram).

Rice Ball source and finished photograph ↗ · Complete source diagram ↗

The diagram credits Fumiaki Shingu. Diagram copyright credit does not establish model-design authorship or design-reuse permission. This guide does not claim traditional or public-domain status. No source image, prose or animation is reproduced; these instructions, numerical geometry and drawings are original.

Adaptation: Uses the complete diamond-square Rice Ball sequence, not the separate Rice Ball2 or a pudding trapezoid. Cross guides and paired shaping folds are separated into individual actions. The source leaves the first hem and shaping lines unmeasured: this 6-inch-square version brings the first lower tip 0.47 inches short of center, raises the whole shortened lower packet, and uses side hinges from the apex to base marks 2.83 inches from center. The top folds behind to the nori-band edge; 45-degree lower bevels carry the projecting rear points behind. These are authored numerical landmarks. The nori is the actual reverse of the original sheet, not an ink rectangle, extra sheet, pocket insertion or food container.

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. One uncut 36-square-inch sheet. The band rise carries the complete first hem, side tapers carry every overlapping layer, and the lower bevels include the projecting rear points. Zero-thickness diagrams do not certify finite-thickness contact or physical foldability. Real-paper folding and printing have not been tested. This is a flat paper food picture.