A pagoda is one of those folds that makes people stop and look twice - a tiny paper tower with tiers and flared roofs, sitting there as if it grew out of the sheet. It looks far more complicated than it is, and that is most of the fun.

The trick is that the model is built from repetition. You make the same unit twice - a square opened into a triangle, its corners pulled in and its pockets folded down into upswept eaves - and then you slot the two units together to get the stacked, temple-like shape. Each wall follows the same little dance of flaps, so once you find the rhythm the 27 steps go quicker than they look.

Give yourself a clear table and two sheets of paper, maybe in two colors so the tiers stand apart, and settle in. By the end you will have a small monument that looks like it belongs on a shelf rather than in a recycling bin.

STEP 1.

Take a square sheet of paper, fold it in half downward to make a crease and unfold.

STEP 2.

Fold the paper in half sideways and unfold.

STEP 3.

Fold the paper in half diagonally and unfold.

STEP 4.

Fold along the other diagonal and unfold.

STEP 5.

Fold the paper along the creases you’ve made to get a triangle.

STEP 6.

Fold the top layers of the side corners upward to meet the center line.

STEP 7.

Open the central pockets and fold them downward, making the top corners meet the bottom corners.

STEP 8.

Open the central bottom corners.

STEP 9.

Fold the right flap to the left.

STEP 10.

Then fold the flap to the right in half.

STEP 11.

Fold the flap to the right again.

STEP 12.

Fold the left flap to the right.

STEP 13.

Then fold the flap to the left in half.

STEP 14.

Fold the flap to the left again.

STEP 15.

Bring the central corners sideways.

STEP 16.

Turn the item over.

STEP 17.

Fold the side corners upward to meet the center line.

STEP 18.

Open the pockets and fold them downward.

STEP 19.

Fold the central bottom corners outward.

STEP 20.

Fold the right flap to the left.

STEP 21.

Then fold the flap to the right in half.

STEP 22.

Fold the flap to the right again.

STEP 23.

Fold the left flap to the right and then fold it to the left in half.

STEP 24.

Fold the flap to the left again.

STEP 25.

Bring the central corners sideways.

STEP 26.

Make two of such items and insert one into the other.

STEP 27.

The pagoda is complete!