How to Make an Outside Reverse Fold When Inner Corners Block the Layers

An outside reverse fold changes a flap’s direction while wrapping its layers around the outside of the adjoining paper. In an inside reverse fold, the reversed section sits between the surrounding layers. That difference gives you a useful check: look at where the paper finishes, rather than judging only the direction of its tip. Origami Resource Center explains this distinction.

For a simple two-layer flap, imagine the end opening into two sides that pass around the adjoining section. Both sides participate in the reversal. Wiley’s “Getting Started in Origami” chapter describes the layers wrapping outward on opposite sides and explains that some precreases must change between mountain and valley folds. Getting Started in Origami, page 19.

Before attempting the move again, identify three landmarks on your paper: the tip being redirected, the crease where it changes direction, and the adjoining section that remains in place. Keep those landmarks in view while you open the layers.

Compare the drawing before the fold with the drawing immediately afterward. Trace the visible edges and read any accompanying text. A direction that applies to an outer flap may leave an inner layer in place; treating the entire stack as one flap can therefore produce the wrong arrangement. Wiley specifically recommends reading ahead and checking text for instructions about which overlapping layers to fold. Getting Started in Origami, page 10.

Use these questions before changing the paper:

• Which point moves, and where does it finish?
• Which visible edges belong to that point?
• Does the instruction specify a layer count or repeat the action behind?
• Does the next drawing show an inner flap remaining exposed?
• Have you matched the drawing’s orientation?

If you cannot identify the moving layers, return to the preceding step and reconstruct its layer order. A generic reverse-fold tutorial establishes the motion, but it cannot determine the intended arrangement of an unspecified model.

Reopen your attempted reversal to its starting position. Support the adjoining section and separate the moving layers slightly. Look into the opening while beginning only a small part of the outward movement.

For troubleshooting, distinguish two observations. If the flap opens but bends away from the intended line, inspect its precreases. If movement stops where a particular inner corner meets another folded edge, inspect that overlap. These are practical diagnostic checks derived from the basic opening method, rather than separate named origami techniques.

Do not assume every visible inner corner must come outside. Follow its edge back into the model: is it part of the flap being reversed, or part of the stationary structure? Your next action depends on that distinction. Keep the model partly open until you can see the relationship.

Work through the following sequence slowly. Its purpose is to create access to the intended fold without adding an improvised crease.

1. Undo the unsuccessful attempt. Restore the position immediately before the outside reverse fold so you can distinguish existing creases from accidental bends.
2. Open the main fold slightly. Separate the sides around the working area. Origami.me explicitly allows opening the model to make the outward reversal easier.
3. Expose the caught corner. If an adjacent folded flap covers it, temporarily lift that flap along its existing crease. Open only as far as needed to see the overlap.
4. Test the intended movement. Guide the moving layer outward a little while watching the corner. Let a free edge clear the overlap only if that agrees with the required final layer arrangement.
5. Pause if the connection remains closed. A continuous folded edge cannot be treated as a loose corner. Recheck the earlier steps and the specified layers before proceeding.

This sequence extends the documented instruction to open the model during the fold; it is not a model-specific instruction to extract every trapped layer. The underlying opening and closing motion is shown in Origami.me’s outside reverse fold instructions.

With the obstruction visible and the intended layers identified, check that the reversal lines are established. Wiley recommends a firm precrease and notes that making it does not automatically give every crease its final mountain-or-valley direction. Getting Started in Origami, page 19.

Begin turning the flap outward at the crease junction while keeping the surrounding structure open. Watch both faces as you guide the flap toward its destination. If one side follows the crease and the other bunches, reopen slightly and inspect the resisting side before closing further.

Origami Resource Center describes separating the layers, allowing them to bend along the crease, and then reinforcing the completed folds. Use that order: establish the arrangement first, then press it flat. Outside Reverse Fold in Origami.

As a visual reference for the closing stage, Origami Guide’s photo sequence shows the prepared sections being pinched together before the upper section folds back behind. Compare the relationship between the layers, allowing for your model’s different orientation. How to Make an Outside Reverse Fold.

The following table is a practical decision aid based on the checks above. Treat each observation as a reason to inspect the paper, rather than proof of a particular mistake.

What you observe	What to inspect	Next action
A corner catches beneath a neighboring flap	The overlap covering that corner	Lift the neighboring flap along its existing crease and retest the movement.
One face folds neatly while the other buckles	The resisting face’s crease position and direction	Reopen and guide that face along the intended precrease.
The tip moves, but the adjoining section twists	Layer selection and starting orientation	Restore the starting position and compare both diagrams.
The outline matches, but an extra flap remains exposed	The final layer order	Trace the extra flap back to its starting position before flattening.
The paper seems to need an unshown crease	Earlier folds or a more complex instruction	Recheck the sequence rather than inventing a correction.

Inspect the result from both sides and through the opening. Confirm that the intended flap wraps outside, the tip reaches the illustrated position, and the adjoining section retains its required shape. Check any temporarily lifted flap against the next diagram before restoring it; closing it automatically could recreate the same obstruction.

If the arrangement matches, reinforce the intended creases and continue. If it does not, reopen while the layer relationships are still easy to trace. The useful habit is to resolve the overlap while the model is open, then flatten the completed reversal once its layers agree with the instructions.

• Learn How to Make Origami: The Complete Beginner’s Guide — Origami.me
• How to Make an Outside Reverse Fold — Origami Guide
• Origami Outside Reverse Fold — Origami Resource Center
• Getting Started in Origami — Wiley chapter excerpt