The Traditional Masu Box

Tomoko Fuse's Origami Boxes

Posted by Tuttle Publishing

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6 x 6 in (15 x 15 cm) sheets are standard

The traditional “Masu” box is folded from a square sheet of paper and has many variations. Let’s start with the basics.

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You Will Need (1 thing)

  • 6 x 6 in (15 x 15 cm) sheets Paper

Steps (21 steps, 20 minutes)

  1. 1

    Basic Masu Base

    1 - 2

  2. 2

    3

    Fold the corners to the center, taking care not to shift the already folded sections.

  3. 3

    4

    Unfold, including the inner triangles.

  4. 4

    5

    Crease and unfold.

  5. 5

    6

  6. 6

    7

    Open and reverse fold to form box side.

  7. 7

    8

    Fold flap down and press into place.

  8. 8

    9

  9. 9

    10

  10. 10

    11

  11. 11

    Masu Variation 1
    Square Box with a Lid

    6 x 6 in (15 x 15 cm) sheets are standard
    To make a lid for the Masa Box above, start from step 3 of the Basic Masu Base instructions:

    3

    Fold to about
    1/8 in(4mm) below the center.

  12. 12

    4

    Unfold, including the inner small triangle.

  13. 13

    5

    Match ○ symbols on each side, folding along ◎ symbol.

  14. 14

    6

  15. 15

    7

    Unfold, including the inner triangles.

  16. 16

    8

    Match ○ symbols on each side, folding along ◎ symbol.

  17. 17

    9

  18. 18

    10

  19. 19

    11

  20. 20

    12

    Continue folding the
    rest of the box using steps 7-11 from page 6.

  21. 21

    13

    The box is now complete.

    Tip
    By changing the width of the folds, you can vary the box dimensions