How to Fold a Paper Into Thirds
Start with your paper flat on your work area., Roll the paper into a loose cylinder., Align the edges, then gently flatten the middle., Flatten the cylinder completely when you have a near-fit.
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Start with your paper flat on your work area.
Believe it or not, there are many ways to fold a paper into thirds, but some give more precise results than others.
Try this method if you don't need to be exact — it's quick and it works well, but rarely will your results be perfect.
On the plus side, you won't need any tools for this method.
Note that a standard 8 1/2 × 11 inch sheet of paper doesn't have to be folded perfectly into thirds to fit in an envelope, making this a good choice for correspondence. -
Step 2: Roll the paper into a loose cylinder.
Your goal is to make a fat, loose roll from your paper — about the dimensions of a rolled-up newspaper.
Don't make any folds yet. , Look at your cylinder from the side — you want one edge of the rolled-up paper to be on the left and the other to be directly across from it on the right.
Start to compress the cylinder, adjusting as you go to keep the edges lined up.
You want the three layers of paper created this way to be approximately the same size.
For this, you'll want one edge of the paper snug against the inside of the fold of the cylinder and the other edge lying over the top, lined up with the other fold.
This is more intuitive than it sounds. , When you see that your paper is as near to perfect thirds as you can realistically get it, press down on the edges of the paper to get smooth, clean creases.
Congratulations! Your paper should be in (nearly) perfect thirds.
At this point, you can make last-minute adjustments, but avoid making more than one crease unless your thirds are very uneven — this can look unprofessional. -
Step 3: Align the edges
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Step 4: then gently flatten the middle.
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Step 5: Flatten the cylinder completely when you have a near-fit.
Detailed Guide
Believe it or not, there are many ways to fold a paper into thirds, but some give more precise results than others.
Try this method if you don't need to be exact — it's quick and it works well, but rarely will your results be perfect.
On the plus side, you won't need any tools for this method.
Note that a standard 8 1/2 × 11 inch sheet of paper doesn't have to be folded perfectly into thirds to fit in an envelope, making this a good choice for correspondence.
Your goal is to make a fat, loose roll from your paper — about the dimensions of a rolled-up newspaper.
Don't make any folds yet. , Look at your cylinder from the side — you want one edge of the rolled-up paper to be on the left and the other to be directly across from it on the right.
Start to compress the cylinder, adjusting as you go to keep the edges lined up.
You want the three layers of paper created this way to be approximately the same size.
For this, you'll want one edge of the paper snug against the inside of the fold of the cylinder and the other edge lying over the top, lined up with the other fold.
This is more intuitive than it sounds. , When you see that your paper is as near to perfect thirds as you can realistically get it, press down on the edges of the paper to get smooth, clean creases.
Congratulations! Your paper should be in (nearly) perfect thirds.
At this point, you can make last-minute adjustments, but avoid making more than one crease unless your thirds are very uneven — this can look unprofessional.
About the Author
Jack Jones
Professional writer focused on creating easy-to-follow cooking tutorials.
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