Ok boys, girls and small green aliens from alpha centauri, I present to you clues for this week’s WTF (What’s That Fold?) also model #434
I start with an enormous square (using a square cut from an a1 ish sheet of litho, no idea if it should be nice side up or down so I just guessed. Using the ourPAD as the repository of instructions and not yet known if I will need anything from my origami toolbox:
I have been agonising for ages (years in fact) as to the best way of personalising my models, so it is obvious that I folded them.
I toyed with the idea of a Japanese stamp/cartouche/character but realised pretty soon that even I had no idea what the symbols meant. I wanted something small enough to be added to a finished model, that looked like it belongs, that is something about me.
The essence of the idea is that PDub bends paper, so set about designing that, the resultant stamps (I could not decide on which one I liked the best so had both made) are lovely. They are tiny – the resultant impressions measure 12mm x 7mm, will be discrete but there enough I think.
Above is my POINTING FINGER, to give you an idea of scale
Managing ink, getting a good impression etc are all things I look forward to playing with (and look forward to the time when the blue test ink they used goes away) but I think they are terrific. I cannot wait to decide where on my existing models the “PDub seal of approval” will go.
So I have this line I sometimes use: “find some nice paper and I will make something for you”:
A friend (*waves to Jan*) found a packet of 15cm (ish) hand-printed Washi and teh challenge was on.
I have been on the lookout for a nice giraffe for a number of reasons, but stumbled across Hideo Komatsu’s in a JOAS Tanteidan:
This was a fun model to fold – it twists and turns and for most of the journey looks NOTHING like a giraffe.
As a teacher, I look for activities, particularly in the establishment phase of a year, to engage. Nothing says engagement like a hands-on physical activity and, as my wont is origami, I went for a modular project:
The themes for this were many, the metaphors a plenty – “many hands make light work” and “the sum is greater that it’s parts” being central.
For this week’s WTF (What’s That Fold?) #5 we go to a Japanese Designer.
I thought I should try something easier to guess (but harder to fold). This model is complicated (has over 100 steps) but the end result is really obvious
Those of you who were guessers for the WTF (What’s That Fold?) #4 will be interested to know that this model was actually a Spider Conch designed by Robert Lang:
I once taught on Palm Island – which is seaward from Townsville, North Queensland. Whilst there I loved to snorkel the reef nearby. Whilst doing so, I managed to find a pair of “spider shells” that I still have today.
Ok kids, this week’s WTF (What’s That Fold?) #4 is a doozie, it is from a fairly old publication and is NOT land-based (that is what is called a hint people).
Step 1 (the fish/camel base) looks like this:
You may have guessed I am a bit of a fanboi when it comes to the works of Satoshi Kamiya:
As previously stated, my wife and I spent some time in a rainforest cabin and that inspired me to have a go at his Lyrbird – a deliciously complicated crumple that needs to result in a characteristic fan tail, 2 side tail things, wings, legs, body and head.
My wife and I spent some time in a rainforest cabin – whilst there I folded this week’s WTF#3:
On a tropical theme, I left the model for the cabin owner as a thank you for a lovely time away.
A simple, slightly asymmetric fold that teases an odd number of petals, stamen and stem, cleverly managing the layers so the flower face and stamen would be one colour, stem another if I used duo paper.
I was looking for a simple fold and amongst my Tanteidan magazines I spied this figure, designed by Yamaguchi Makoto – must try it with colourful paper.
No one was able to discern it was even a flower – very disappointing people!
So I hope you are getting the hang of this, follows is this week’s WTF (what’s that fold):
the successful guesser can have the model if they assist me with the postage (if necessary), so put your best thinking caps on and begin guessing.
After some clever asymmetric bending, you get this at step 9:
After some inside reverse folds and assorted bending, you get this:
With a few swivels and a bit more bending, you get this:
…this is your LAST CLUE – any closer to guessing?
Give up? CHECK OUT THE ANSWER – no guesser this week – get your act together people!
Anyone who knows me realises I am a huge fan of the Alien movies, the first one is, for me, close to perfect science fiction horror:
I had been aware of Kade Chan’s Alien design for ages, had the crease pattern and wrestled many times trying to make it with no luck. I had relegated this to the “give up on it” pile – there are a few that have just beaten me for the moment.
Kade posted a near complete video tutorial, suddenly this model was back on the radar. The video is pretty clear – you should have a go – it is NOT a beginners model but the techniques for forming the main features are pretty clear.
So I set about a test fold, in Litho paper – the paper gave up half way through, splitting on most major creases, but I learned the basic collapse and some of the featuring before it gave up so resolved to fold it with something more durable.
I cut a 55cm square of Kraft paper off the roll and, very carefully, began folding. This, like most models, relies on accuracy for things to work out – a part of a mm out here and it compounds when you do accordion pleating, and this model has so many layers because of the amount of the sheet that is hidden.
I like that most surfaces provide layers that you can then texture in the modelling, sculpting them in graded steps to create carapace, armour and small beautiful details like the rib cage and prehensile tail.
The alien as envisaged by the movie franchise took on shape and general morphology from the host it bursts through the chest of – this one is fairly certainly humanoid and so posing it I found myself anthropomorphising its stance a little. I used a little MC to ensure the pose was rigid, clamped details in place until the paper was dry, then mounted him on a textured circular base and am quite chuffed with the result.
This was WTF (What’s That Fold) #2 – stay tuned for more paper bending
I have, of late, been exploring different papers and decided some nice paper was in order. Needing to get out of the house for a while (unfortunately from the cool aircon to the blistering heatwave), I bussed into the city then walked to an art supplies shop in The Valley called “Oxylades” but am always on the lookout for other local suppliers – sadly there seems little demand for it here so far.
They have an interesting collection of art papers – some beautiful light weight textured papers that would be amazing to work with – most much heavier than 180GSM, most lovely but brittle art papers suitable for painting and drawing on. They have a large collection of hand-made mulberry but it is card stock and would not take folds well.
I headed to their racks of specialist papers and drooled at the Unryu tissues they stock – suck lovely things, fibres visible, thin and strong – decided on a black/grey and a lime green. I also bought a sheet of “natural fibre” paper made from banana and flax – very beautiful and lumpy but should prove interesting.
On arriving home, a parcel from The Origami Shop had been delivered and was baking on our front porch. retreating to the cooler interiors, I broke into the package to discover my VOG (paper made popular by the Vietnamese Origami Group – VOG, you see) paper had arrived.
Huge sheets (folded into quarters for transport) of textured, colourful gloriousness – cannot wait to fold that let me tell you.
I also purchased a couple more “envelopeners” – fantastic little accurate crease splitters – you fold paper then run this little gadget along the crease and the sheet is split precisely on the crease, no more scissors – yay.
Fab day, all be it hot and a long walk, but worth it. I now have a fair selection of specialist papers – you really can tell the difference when working with good paper but I still really like brown Kraft paper also to prototype/practise complex folds on as it is strong, thin and cheap as chips – I wish I could say the same for the papers I acquired today.
So, last week’s fold became obvious, I gave LOTS of clues and many guessed not only what the model was but also the designer and the book it features in – nice work.
On a different tack this week, I present the first clue in WTF#2:
Take guesses as to what this will become (assuming I can achieve the model and it does not end up a scrunched up mess in the bin).
Depending on how it turns out, you can win either this actual model or a refold of it (the refold will be tidier I suspect).
Thinking caps on, suggest away (and expect less clues this time)
After Step 25, the model looks like this:
And a little later, it looks like this:
After a LOT of open/close sinks, it looks like this:
And with some nifty wrangling, it looks like this:
Follow that up with some shaping and modelling and you have this:
A critter only a mother could love – a Xenomorph that is fairly faithful to the HR Geiger original – Alien, designed by Kade Chan and wrangled to it’s final shape by me.
I have yet to apply MC to stabilise and pose this chap, but already I like him a lot – the paper is so very thick in many places (my prototype fold actually disintegrated in my hands as I was folding it – litho paper fell apart at important creases) – I had to get creative with the shaping as, although the video instructions are great at getting the base, the modelling and shaping is not covered well at all.
The Weekly WTF#1 (what’s that fold) had to be a Satoshi model, and I had been itching to make this little beauty ever since I was aware he had designed one:
Initially, I folded this with a odd end of a kraft roll, starting with a nearly 40cm square (nearly in that I discovered it was not quite square), but found it very small for my fat clumsy fingers.
I resolved to fold it neater, so went larger – second fold (the one pictured) is a 60cm square of brown Kraft paper (no, it is not green, and I know of no easy way to make it so).
There is a LOT to like about this model, and some concerns – some of the steps are fairly poorly explained (given the nature of some of the manoeuvres I can not imagine how that would be improved) and some of the folding is through so many layers that without help this model does NOT stay as folded.
I decided to do wet-folding, with a little MC (methyl cellulose) to fold, mould and let it dry before moving on – this lengthened the time to make the model, but in the end made it most beautiful. Some of the subtle shaping would ONLY be achievable with foil-core paper or via wet MC folding.
In the end, this is the most frog-like thing I have encountered that was not actually a frog. the details are astonishing even to me (and I wrangled them out of a flat, uncut square).
I ended up with 2 – my first fold, whilst smaller is different to the larger one, they both have interesting postures and attitudes and I am torn as to which one I prefer.
I am sure I will fold this one again – he is so cute, but I think I will wait until I have suitable thin green paper – the model is so well designed that it’s tummy is one colour, rest of the body is the other – so I will be hunting paper that is 2 shades of green front to back (or perhaps making a bit of double tissue – we shall see).
