It Pays to Smile - Optical Illusion

 The secret is in the way that you fold the dollar bill. Just follow these simple steps...

1. Start with George's portrait facing you.
2. Make a "mountain fold" through the middle of George's left eye. In origami terms, this means to fold the bill away from you.
3. Make a second mountain fold through the middle of his right eye. Make sure that these creases are sharp.
4. Make a "valley fold" between the two previous folds so that the crease is between George's eyes and nose.
5. Pull on the ends of the bill slightly so that you can see his entire face, but make sure that the folds are still present.
6. Hold the portrait side of the bill in front of you with the face tilted upward. Notice how George smiles at you!
7. Slowly begin to tilt the bill downward as if George was looking at the floor. Don't take your eyes off George's face because his smile will magically turn into a frown! Be ready for a spontaneous chorus of oohs & ahhs!

Use different dollar bills ($5, $10, $20, $50, even $100) to see if you can alter the emotions of some other presidents.  Is Abe hiding a smile?

How does it work?

The George Washington facelift is a great example of an optical illusion. The opposing folds cause the features on the face to bend and contort, depending on how you look at them. Although it's a very simple activity, it's one that you'll do forever!