Another parental milestone today. We are going with our daughter and her fiancé to look at a wedding and reception venue:
Lots on, important however to attend to that which really matters – family and friends.
Designed by Joseph Wu to me folded at the reception of a wedding (to give the guests an “ice breaker” activity to get to know the people at their table), a figurative “Happy Couple” – nice and simple.
I once shared a house with 3 other uni friends – much happened, most memorable. Late one night, instead of finishing a due-next-day assignment, Mark was seen flitting and pirouetting through the house:
We coined the expression “sugar plump fairy” after the dance he was attempting, it stuck. Happy Birthday Mark!!!
I like this model, simple folds, precise creasing that gives form from flat surfaces – very clever Mr Brill.
This model is designed to be a Christmas tree topper – I can see how that would work given the convenient pocket at the back. It is not free standing (although I could mangle the lovely minimalist legs into feet and knees I guess – that would ruin the lines however.
Hope you like it.
Miguel the Matador struts confidently into the arena, the crowd erupts, enraptured. El Toro stampedes into the arena, head held high, the crowd roars entusiastically:
Proudly El Toro circles the matador, alert yet regal the matador watches his worthy opponet, a balletic interplay continues, each proud adversary taunting the other until…
they both live happy ever after, El Toro got put out to pasture and the Matador, a champion for animal rights forms PETA and abolished the barbaric … yeah, I know, I got nothing.
Interesting figurative model – each suggestive of form without being nit-pickingly detailed – I like them, except for the sport they personify. I was looking for “Llopio’s moment of truth” by Neal Elias but could not find a licensed diagram, so I bought the book that it is in – it is being shipped from the British Origami Society as we speak, so settled on a much simpler but none the less effective model by Robert Neale.
I had to cheat – you can just see the splayed paper clip and blob of bluetac holding up the matador (his ankles are too weak and the balance is all wrong for him to stand unaided, sadly.
Why a bullfight? Well, we have been invited to a Spanish-inspired lunch by some old friends “The Goodies” so I thought getting in the mood was a good plan.
You see a gaping cavern, the sudden rush of sulphurous breath hints at a hiding dragon, you fumble in your robes, raising your wand and hope your newly learned incantations are sufficient defence against the scaley foe …
I love RPGs, get lost in them all the time, as does my Wife. She has a good friend, on the other side of the world, who is having a birthday today – **Happy Birthday MIKE!!! ** So I thought making a mage (his fav class) would be a good idea. 
Cute model, relatively few folds (which is good as I am not feeling the best atm), hope he likes it. Doubly fitting as it is also Draco Malfoy’s Birthday (potter geeks should confirm this).
High on a rocky promontory sat an Electric Monk on a bored horse. From under its rough woven cowl the Monk gazed unblinkingly down into another valley …
And so begins one of my favorite books of all time “Dirk gently’s Hollistic Detective Agency” by Douglas Adams.
Today we remember DNA, and carry a TOWEL in his honour – may he rest in peace.
Whlst i could not find a “towel” origami (interestingly there IS a branch of origami that deals with folding towels for guest beds into exotic shapes) I thought I would go with the Monk – I decided against the bored horse – am convinced that this monk is more than willing to believe anythig it is programmed to believe in, as a service to it’s master … if you haven’t read the book – do so, it is fab!
An odd-proportioned rectangle first drew me to this model – 1.5:1; that means slicing off 1/3 from one side:
Two figures, standing (oddly) beside a lovely card table, pack in hand
This reminds me of a Neil Elias figure, but is cunningly (and surprisingly simply) crafted by Eugeny Fridrik. I loved how the table appeared out of a gusset – seemingly by magic.
You too should have a go at this model – here. I had to do a little papercraft from some of the offcut paper to make the card hand, and there is a nice little pleat keeping it on each figure’s hand – very tidy.
Tuesday evenings for over a year now a mate and I get together and watch 2 episodes of Battlestar Galactica, gradually wending our way through the seasons. Tonight is the final 2 eps:
I like the idea that the CG extras (robot Cylons or “toasters” as they are lovingly referred to) would have to check the script to determine their cues to enter, gesticulate mecahically and kill all humans, so I modded a fold of a german person wearing a hat reading a newspaper to suit:
…squint, look at it in poor light, chemically enhanced and … you got it, right? Well, it is sort of figurative, and sort of works – I really wanted to do the whole cylon centurion but could not find a fold that worked. 
If you have not seen the more recent incarnation of BSG you really should – it is landmark Sci Fi, I like it that episodic drama can literally take your breath away, move you to care about the characters, make you question things and be so danged entertaining to discuss.
The Elias base is a great one for figures:
This delightful downhill skier is a fine example – I like the posture, the arm positions, it looks like he is on motion. Folded from “More Origami” by Robert Harbin, another application of the Elias base. A fairly simple fold for a hectic afternoon/night, hope you like it.
Now the date is a word-play on a classic Star Wars line, and what better to celebrate Star Wars Day than with C3P0:
This is a mask – even from an A4 sheet it is quite large – I Hazard to suggest that an A3 sheet would make one that was wearable. Fairly happy with it – simple fold, busy day.
I loved Ridley Scott’s “Alien” – so dark, terrifying and it introduced a much reprised xenomorph originally designed by H.R. Geiger.
When I first saw the instructions for a paper xenomorph (in Spanish) I filed them away in the “yeah, prolly not” folder.
Conventionally the diagram should have symbols to reinforce what is happening (sometimes with words also, except these were in Spanish). First exception to the rule was a TURN OVER with no corresponding flip symbol!!! Grrrr. Following my realisation that I was folding the wrong side, I tried again only to be baffled by “Quedan la dos solapas mirando hacia la derecha” describing a collapse, followed by “Introducir las solapas dentro de los bolsillos” to describe a pocket tuck … poor paper (and finger tips) by this stage. Thank you Google translate.
Now I admit I broke a rule here – I got part way towards collapsing the base and realised I missed an instruction to open some side flaps so did all the nasty folding over the top of some snarly pre-folding instead of on the yet-unfolded side. I discovered this when i opened up the model expecting to find pre-creases only to find none – oops. I was determined to complete this model, so I started again – so sue me.
This is AMAZING – appendages, tail (ouch, that was painful to fold at this scale) and I re-worked the head to be a little 3d and characteristically domed – very pleased with this model. For an A3-cut square to reduce to a model barely 7cm tall, there is a LOT of paper torture, thank goodness for fingernails – I am amazed the copy paper did not simply disintegrate (it would have had I used the model I folded in error first).
For all you Alien fans out there, this one is for you (in commemoration of the theft of a classic line in the movie “Paul” I saw last night – “get away from her you bitch!” – lol.
I remembered, passing the King Cobra, that Fakirs and other showman use Cobras in ceremonial and entertainment fields, and had a vague memory of a charming little model tucked away in one of my origami books:
Designed by Fred Rhom, folded from “More Origami” by Robert Harbin, this is an action model – you press the apex of the stickey-outey bit and the snake rears up (sort of like it is coming out of a basket).
I modded the snake (to make it cobra-like; there was paper, the hood flattened nicely and I merely hinted at a head, quite an effective alteration I think). This model uses the “simplex” base – a useful one for figures.
I put a Fez on him, not because I think fezzes are cool Doctor, but because by reducing the paper for the hat you increase the paper available for the flute (yes, that is supposed to be a flute, not a nose) – would like to re-think this one as I think it should be a horn but there was never going to be enough paper in there for that. I would have liked to re-think the “basket” end because the original design does not look at all basket-like; providing the spring for the raising snake is however the job of that bit.
Quite a cute model and suitably snakey, nearing the end of the month thank goodness, looking forward to some simpler folds to come (or not).
Lindy and Randy get married today, which is actually yesterday (curse this linear time) and as a MILESTONE fold I thought I would attempt Neal Elias’s “Last Waltz”:
Fittingly it is a bride and groom dancing at their wedding. there is much to love about this model – it WORKED first fold, contains 2 figures (joined at the hip) and they have a fairly natural posture, are both dressed formally (him in a suit and her in a meringue) and it is free standing.
He has his hands on her shoulder and waist, she is reciprocating and the model withstands viewing from all angles.
Made from a 3×1 rectangle cut from white wrapping paper (testing it out for a larger snake project later), when made with 2-sided paper he ends up a different colour to her – very clever indeed.
A joy to fold, another joy to attend Lindy and Randy’s wedding via UStream – hope this is a fitting wedding present.
This is a cute action model, counter-balanced so it actually rocks back and forth:
It is supposed to be 2 children, opposite ends of a see-saw – a boy (wearing an Indian costume and feather) and a girl (in a bonnet) – use your imagination or some recreational chemicals and it is as clear as anything.
Designed by Fred Rohm, I folded this from “Secrets of Origami” by Robert Harbin, one of my oldest books – a simple model as I was brain-fried after a punishing term, hope you like it.
I remember this model from my childhood, or rather how unsuccessfully I attempted it waaay back them. Let your eyes blur a little and you will see it:
A man and a woman behind a parasol … seeee? He is leaning in for a kiss … seeee?
I like how this model massages the paper around to form figures suggestive of a courting couple, forms her skirts and the centre of the parasol is the centre of the square. Fairly snarly to flatten this model – harder to photograph as it is not free-standing:
Made out of “Origami 2” by Robert Harbin – I notice in the index the child me crossed this model out as too hard. Is charming right down to the tip of his nose.
Thanks for the suggestion Simon, this little “Reaper” does not look so grim:
A relatively simple fold, few features, suggestive of form, I like it. Looks a little like a Dementor from Harry Potter’s world (except it is carrying a worrying scythe).
Why a Grim Reaper? One computer dies, another is built to replace it, the process is not always painless – you get that.
