Paper Stingray

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Every step, at a glance

Compare your paper with each diagram after completing the action. Blue and gold track the original left and right paper halves; darker shades show the reverse. Orange highlights the moving paper and hinge. The red outline is a scissors path, not a crease. The finished animal needs no drawn features.

0. 0. Measure the outline
1. 1. Cut one connected blank
2. 2. Fold the snout behind
3. 3. Fold the tail tip upward
4. 4. Return the tail downward
5. 5. Raise the right pectoral fin
6. 6. Raise the left pectoral fin
7. 7. Check the finished stingray

0. PREPARATION · Original measured cut-and-fold stingray

   Measure the outline

   Lay the 8 × 10-inch blank portrait. Measure all coordinates from its top-left corner: A is (4, 0), B is (0, 3), C is (3.5, 5), D is (4, 10), E is (4.5, 5), and F is (8, 3), in inches across then down. Join A–B–C–D–E–F–A with straight pencil lines. Lightly mark the vertical center from A to D.

   Layers: One full rectangular layer. These are cutting lines, not folds.

   Check: C and E are one inch apart; the narrow triangle C–D–E is the attached tail.

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1. STEP 1 · Original measured cut-and-fold stingray

   Cut one connected blank

   Cut along the six outer lines A–B–C–D–E–F–A and remove the surrounding scraps. Keep the broad upper body and the long triangular tail as one piece. Do not cut across C–E or along the center line. Keep A at the top and D at the bottom.

   Layers: Cut the single layer only. The complete one-inch C–E root joins the tail to the body.

   Check: You have two wide side points and one long narrow tail, with no separate pieces to attach.

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2. STEP 2 · Original measured cut-and-fold stingray

   Fold the snout behind

   Mark a horizontal line 1/2 inch below A. Fold the small top triangle away from you and flatten it behind the body. Keep the tail pointing down.

   Layers: Move the entire small top triangle; the body and fins stay still.

   Check: The pointed nose becomes a short straight snout edge.

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3. STEP 3 · Original measured cut-and-fold stingray

   Fold the tail tip upward

   From the middle of C–E, measure 3 inches down the tail and mark a line straight across it. Fold all the tail below that line toward you and upward. Flatten the fold gently.

   Layers: Move the complete terminal tail triangle, not either body fin.

   Check: The tip now lies 1 inch below C–E, in front of the stationary tail root.

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4. STEP 4 · Original measured cut-and-fold stingray

   Return the tail downward

   On the lifted tail flap, mark a line 1/4 inch above the fold you just made. Fold only the lifted flap toward you and downward on this new line. Hold the underlying tail still.

   Layers: Only the previously lifted packet moves. Its narrow base band remains folded upward.

   Check: A quarter-inch zigzag pleat shortens the tail by 1/2 inch; the tip points down again, 4.5 inches below C–E.

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5. STEP 5 · Original measured cut-and-fold stingray

   Raise the right pectoral fin

   Mark a line parallel to the center, 3/4 inch to its right, across the broad body only. Hold a ruler on that line and lift all the paper to its right toward you. Crease lightly and leave the fin about 20 degrees above the central body; a protractor can help. Do not fold it flat across the body.

   Layers: The broad right panel rotates as one attached fin. The snout and slender tail remain still.

   Check: The outer right point is about 1.1 inches above the central body, with a straight continuous root.

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6. STEP 6 · Original measured cut-and-fold stingray

   Raise the left pectoral fin

   Repeat on a line 3/4 inch to the left of center. Lift the complete left panel toward you to about 20 degrees. Support the middle so the completed right fin and tail do not change.

   Layers: Only the broad left fin moves. Both fins are still integral parts of the body.

   Check: The two side points rise equally; a 1.5-inch-wide central strip stays between their hinges.

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7. STEP 7 · Original measured cut-and-fold stingray

   Check the finished stingray

   Display the stingray with its short snout forward, broad paired fins slightly raised and its single slender tail trailing behind. Check that the tail root is uncut and the small zigzag pleat is visible. Adjust only the two fin angles gently if needed.

   Layers: One connected cut-and-fold sheet; no ink, separate tail or hidden fastener.

   Check: The broad pectoral disc and long integral tail identify the stingray from above and at an angle.

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