box pleat

86: Bookcase

| wonko

The first box pleating exercise I ever did was this bookcase:

The whole thirds thing did my head in as a young folder, now it seems simple – I guess that with practice comes skill development – I wonder if that is a principle that would be useful in education?

I regret making this so small now, but I guess it is perfect dolls-house height, if only I had a … dolls house. A 2×1 rectangle cut from the width of an A4 page. I like how all the bits tuck away, reinforce the shape and the resultant model is so tidy. Folded from “Secrets of Origami” by Robert Harbin

79: Joisel’s Baby Hedgehog

| wonko

Prepare to be AMAZED – even after 3 hours folding I am!

This is a hedgehog, well in truth the “baby hedgehog” – it has 5 rows of spines (as opposed to the “mother” which has 9). I remember seeing hedgehogs in New Zealand (yes, I grew up there for a while) – shy little creatures you only usually met when you ran them over, sadly. This model is not unlike an echidna, and in truth I fashioned a head that was more echidna-like merely because the instructions stopped with a step “make the head” but no ideas as to how.

I have not worked on a model that resolves, on the fiddliest folds to 64ths until now, it is exhausting. I should have realised that it was going to be tricky when Joisel himself stopped explaining a stage (formation of the first row of spines) saying it was difficult but here is what it should look like when you have finished – lol. I also discovered that Joisel’s favourite paper folding tool – a Japanese chopstick, was needed to combat the fat fingers that would otherwise mangle fiddly pleating.

Eric Joisel was a master of paper folding, arguably the worlds most accomplished folder of human characters. Some of his work defies reality and the techniques he pioneered for paper sculpture are forever his legacy to the origami community. I hope he is smiling at this model, I am so chuffed I managed to achieve it.

You can find the instructions for this and 10 other Joisel Models at his tribute website: http://www.ericjoisel.com/ps.html Good luck, you will need it.

You may applaud now.

73: Panzer Tank

| wonko

I was leafing through a Robert Harbin book “Introduction to Origami 4” and stumbled across a lovely little box-pleating exercise:

This tank, designed by Laurie Bisman is neat, it is 3d, has a turret, caterpillar tracks and a mobile gun – I wedged a paper shim under it to keep it upright for the photo.

I am actually amazed it worked given the 3×1 rectangle I started with was not entirely straight when I cut it. there are many junctures in the model where there are no measurements and, given pre-folding experience I would have done differently – I un-folded and re-folded the turret 4 times before I was happy with it’s dimensions for instance. Happy with the result in the end – first-fold can be like that.

67: Bloxy

| wonko

Now to celebrate International Women’s Day, I initially decided to make a woman, and stumbled across a model known as “bloxy” because she is a box pleated block-like lego lady.

I like that she has a firm bosom, bangs and is sort of free-standing (although the centre of balance is a little off because of the weight in the head – you get that).

I am hoping my feminist friends will not see this as an objectification of women as that was not intended of this … object … well … umm … Happy(?) IWD anyway.

65: Vase

| wonko

Ingenious folds that create waterproof containers are interesting:

Massaging the edges to the top and finishing them off decoratively so they lock and stay together is an art, this little vase is a beauty, apart from the whole 1/3rd 1/6th thing necessary to initially pleat the structure.

I cheated, did a square in quarters and cut off one quarter on 2 sides to leave thirds – am sure there is a method to precisely fold thirds though. I could imagine this in tissue-foil with camellia blossoms – a pretty bit of geometric paper torture – see if you can follow along.Taken from a book I bought in Japan, no idea what it is called, sorry as it is all in Japanese.

61: Jack In the Box

| wonko

Wow, no I mean WOW!

This little beauty is a masterpiece of box pleating, designed by Max Hulme.  I was sure it had no chance of working correct as the whole working in 6ths, 12ths and quarters was a real pain on such a small scale. Made from the largest 2×1 rectangle that can be cut from an A4 page, I think next time I make it I will do it bigger and it is really fiddly with such big fingers.

This pattern was given to me by a Year 12 student years back on a Kairos rereat, and one look at it relegated it to the “yeah, maybe later” pile to try – I decided to give it a whirl first-fold today and am totally chuffed it worked.

I am amazed with the intricacy and detail – his face has ears, body is wearing a coat with sleeves, he is sitting on the most torturous but beautiful spring and most magically of all, actually folds up into a tiny neat box so the lid closes – wow!

56: Wise Owl

| wonko

I like this fold, the eyes, winds, body shape all work, not bad for a first fold:

Why an Owl? Well, being surrounded by so many wonderful (and wise) QSITE members past, present and future reminded me of the wisdom we all rely on – to me, wisdom is an owl (tissue thin justification I know but there you go). Also, against all wisdom, QSITE have me on their board again, editor of their Journal – silly fools, surely they have learned better by now?

50: Wheelchair

| wonko

Helping out a mate today, got inspired to try some box pleating to duplicate his mode of transport, relatively happy with the results:The wheels (front and back) worked out fairly nicely, seat is functional (but does not look very comfortable – with some more paper torture I am sure I could pad both) and the handle at the back needs work – not bad for a first fold however

48: An Excavator

| wonko

I found another box-pleating model that looked cute – a digger thing with a sort of backward-facing bucket:

I like that it has caterpillarish tracks, and a nicely shaped scoop. Folded from a 2×1 rectangle folded into 12/24ths prior to collapsing, the whole 1/3rds thing is the only real stumbling point:

You an have a go also: excavator

45: A Valentine

| wonko

…now I am not one to buy into the whole commercialism of Valentines Day, afterall it is a Hallmark moment mostly, but it did give me inspiration for todays model – a heart-shaped box:

So I made one on Friday (inbetween sleeps as I was sick) as a first-time fold and was so pleased with it I made a nice one (using some patterned parchment), made a hearty shapey thing out of gold foil, personalized it, then whilst shopping Saturday discovered that Darryl Lee have a dark chocolate heart that just fits the box made from an A4 page – all sweet. Hid until this morning it made a nice surprise.

I am sure you have done something for the one you love, I also am sure it is not as nice as mine 😛

Alternatively, you could have a go at this:

Nice use of a SINGLE sheet of A4 split lengthways down the middle to make the base and lid.

40: A Catfish

| wonko

This fish, designed by Davor Vinko has the most splendid eyes, and a nice 3D body, most impressed.
Why a fish? Well, it is the School Swimming Carnival today and I am at home being beaten up by a middle ear infection so I thought I would get as close to the spirit of the event whilst staying quiet and dry.

You can have a go at this model yourself, it is actually pretty easy once you get the 1/6ths sorted out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FUcp0EiZ2xU

30: Ring Box

| wonko

Boxes and containers are a branch of Origami that I find fascinating – how you can bend a flat sheet into a container has always interested me. This jewellery box, by David Brill, is a masterpiece of pre-folding

Inside, it is finished, lined, refined and tidy, has a “lip” that, if the model is made with coloured paper turns out to be the inside colour – the lid closes down on that lip smoothly, a beautiful hinge and just … works.

A hideous fold actually, based on FIFTHS, everything is folded using them, so the size of the box is 1/5 the length of the starting square, the trick is to tidily tuck away all that paper and lock it into place so it does not sproing apart. I started with a square cut from an A4 page, and the resultant ring box emerged the size a REAL one would be – nice happinstance.

Feel like i achieved something here as I had never done this fold before and there were moments when I was sure I had my first failure, because it just goes to hell and then re-emerges in an organised way.

Have a go yourself: http://www.happyfolding.com/instructions-brill-box_and_lid

23: Fujimoto’s Apple

| wonko

Quite taken with box pleating, I looked for a 3D piece of fruit and came across Fujimoto’s Apple – a real bastard of a pre-creasing exercise that coalesces into a delightfully organic shapeI was heard to exclaim WOW as the mess of twisted and tangled paper started to take shape. Botanists will note this is a morphologically correct model – it is comprised of 5 sections/divisions as is the core of a real apple, has the right shape and is hollow.

Why an apple? Well, I have a saucepan of stewed apple and nectarine gently ticking away on the stove that will become the most delicious crumble later tonight … why not?Please have a go at this yourself, if you can follow the instructions and understand the presenter: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z2e4jyWCtaU

19: Bulldozer

| wonko

Now I was quite taken with the whole “box pleating” idea so looked out some more designs that use this technique. This is a front-end loader, or bulldozer and was fairly fiddly to be honestIt does have an integrated scoop, hints of a caterpillar track and a nicely formed cab, but I think the folding pattern is incorrect at two key junctures, so I improvised.

have a go and see what you think: http://origami.happymagpie.com/diagrams/bulldozer.pdf

14: Tip Truck

| wonko

…so “box pleating” is a geometric style of folding where you take paper, divide it up and then pleat it into smaller modular shapes. I have never tried it, until now.Made from a 4×1 rectangle cut from the longest side of an A4 page, this model design is very clever indeed – it features a cab, strong chassis with rounded wheels and an articulated tray* that actually tips – I could not stop smiliing as it came together whilst I folded it.

* Bassetts Frosted Jelly Babies sold separately.

Wanna give it a go? Jump here and try the fold yourself: http://origami.happymagpie.com/diagrams/dumptruck.pdf