5 Things I Learned Making an Origami Watercolor Painting (And Why You Should Try It)
I saw this technique on Instagram by @theartofsoil and immediately wanted to try it.
I knew going in that it would be tricky... all that folding and cutting and taping before you even pick up a brush. That was kind of part of the appeal. My only real hesitation was that it might feel too crafty... more of a paper project than a painting. I wasn't sure it would scratch the watercolor itch.
It absolutely did. Once the structure is built and you open up each panel, it's just painting. Four small paintings, actually. And honestly, the folding part was kind of satisfying on its own. I walk through it step by step in a YouTube tutorial here.
The origami watercolor folding technique takes one square of watercolor paper and turns it into a rotating piece that holds four completely different paintings, one in each panel. Here's what I learned along the way...
1. Don't use a pencil to crease your folds
My first instinct was to grab a pencil to press the folds flat. Seemed harmless. It wasn't.
Watercolor paper is rough and the pigment from the pencil rubbed right into the creases. I could see the yellow color along the edges and while it's not the end of the world, it's not what I wanted.
The fix: use the handle of a metal brush. Or the back of a butter knife, the flat edge of your scissors, anything smooth and metal that won't leave residue. It takes two seconds to grab the right tool and it makes a real difference in how clean the finished painting looks.
2. Bigger paper is actually easier
I almost started with a small piece to "practice" before committing to the real thing. Don't do that.
The smaller you go, the harder it is to fold. Watercolor paper is thick and stiff, and folding it into a tight grid of tiny squares is genuinely difficult. Nine by nine inches is the sweet spot — big enough to fold cleanly, small enough to feel manageable.
I used 140 lb paper, which is pretty standard for watercolor. If you want the folding to go a little smoother, 120 lb is slightly lighter and still paints beautifully. Either way — start big.
3. Tape beats glue every single time
There's a step in this project where you have to hold two folded sections together while the rest of the structure comes together. I almost used liquid glue. I'm really glad I didn't.
Liquid glue warps watercolor paper. Once it dries and warps, there's no fixing it. Glue sticks aren't strong enough for paper this thick. Painter's tape, or drafting tape (which I usually have on hand for taping down my paper when I'm painting something with full bleeds) works perfectly. Two small pieces per corner, pressed down firmly.
The best part: if you mess up the fold, you can actually pull the tape off and try again. That alone takes a huge amount of pressure off the whole process.
4. The confusing middle part is normal
There's a moment somewhere in the folding where all the layers start to feel like too much. The paper is getting stiffer, the cuts feel a little scary, and it's hard to picture how any of this is going to end up as a surface for painting.
Push through it. You can always pause the video tutorial and do it at your own pace. That's fine. Once the center squares are cut out and the corners are taped, the whole thing suddenly makes sense. It snaps into a square and opens and closes easily in all four directions. It genuinely feels like a small miracle.
The confusing middle is part of the process, not a sign you're doing it wrong.
5. You can paint literally anything inside it
Once the structure is built, each of the four panels is just a blank small watercolor painting — you can paint whatever you want inside it.
Landscapes, botanicals, abstract patterns, a little kitchen table scene, something from a photo on your phone... anything works. The four paintings don't have to match or relate. In fact, the contrast between them is part of what makes the finished piece so fun to look at and so surprising when you rotate it.
I used soil-based watercolors from The Art of Soil and painted four different images. But this is a great excuse to use whatever paints you already have sitting around.
If you need ideas, I have 30 free seasonal painting prompts you can grab here. And if you want more than just ideas, the Watercolor Confidence Course has 30 small but mighty video tutorials designed to be finished in under 10 minutes each, which makes them perfect for small panel paintings like these.
Watch the full origami watercolor tutorial here: https://youtu.be/37-i4N1MWU4
So what?
If you've been eyeing this technique and wondering if it's worth the effort... it is. It's a little different from a usual painting session, but in a good way. Fun, actually, which I wasn't totally expecting.
Go watch the video. And when you finish yours, tag me on Instagram @alyssawhetstoneart — I really do love seeing what people choose to paint in each panel.
For more beginner watercolor tips, Learning to Be a Beginner Again is a good read. And 5 Watercolor Mistakes Beginners Make will save you some pain if you're just getting started.
Stay creative, -Alyssa
