28: Frogs

| wonko

The second model I learnt to make as a wide-eyed and eager 11 year old was this frog. I like that it’s proportions are correct, it has a puffy body and the back legs look right.

…so as a “getting to know you exercise” with my pastoral care group, I thought we could each make this model (as an exercise in listening and doing) and set out determined to explain this complex (lots of simple steps) model. I think we were pretty successful overall:

A Tutor Group worth of Frogs

It was interesting because the boys sat together (year levels 8-12), helped each other out, conversed, concentrated and listened, struggled spatially and got to inflate a frog through the vent in it’s bottom (hey, it is a boy’s school).

Very proud of my boys.

27: Tadpoles

| wonko

Now I am going for a theme here, starting with tadpoles – yes you are correct there are TWO models here, but they are variations of each other – one without legs, the other with … look closely:
Quite cute models from a purely biological perspective because when the legs form, the tail is absorbed into the body much as the model suggests. each made from a square 1/4 the size of the largest one you can cut from an A4 sheet.

We all know a tadpole develops into a ….

26: An Aussie Kangaroo

| wonko

“Australia, Australia, Australia, we love you, Amen. This here’s the wattle, the emblem of our land. You can stick it in a bottle, you can hold it in your hand.” (apologies Monty Python)

What could be more Australian than a Kangaroo? There are lots of designs – few look roo-like sadly (mostly folded by people who have never actually seen one), I will keep looking as I am not happy with the hind legs or head of this model, all else is fairly good.

I like that there is a Joey in the pouch and the front legs are positioned right but the bulk of paper there makes further shaping problematic, still for my first attempt at this model I am fairly happy with the outcome.

You too can fold a Kangaroo for Australia Day: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=COgQlI0HzDU

25: Chook

| wonko

Many contemporary folders have changed the face of Origami – Florence Temko is one such paper artist – this remarkably simple model is very chook-like and contains very few foldsThanks @ackygirl for the lend of the book with this design in it – it is labelled “Rooster” but I have other models that are more “cock-a-doodle-doo” than this one, so I have labelled it a chook for now.

Arrgh, should know better than to edit a published post, the DATE of this post was yesterday, had to recreate it because wordpress plunged this post into “scheduled” mode and therefore it was not visible in the timeline – I did not cheat, you can trust me

24: Terrier

| wonko

Now I have seen a lot of dogs, some do not look very dog like, most in flat profile but this cheeky little terrier looks like it is expecting you to throw the ball for it – nice and simple, surprisingly, but lovely and dimensional (with a pudgy body and an alert expression on it’s face)cutey little turned up nose, curly tail and the only type of dog I will let my kids have, sorry (they have asked, not in my house said I)

You should try this – really simple and delightful

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-30n1Drgp-s

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

22: Gilad’s Dragon

| wonko

…there are many variations of dragon (indeed, most experienced folders have their own variation it seems), some that do not look dragon-like at all, I like this one although it is a tough fold – so much paper gets gathered in the body that the final detailing is hard work using photocopy paper (discovering all sorts of limitations of the media).

I think I did a reasonable job (having never tried this model before), an A4 sheet reduces to a figure that is only 5cm tall, but the tail and hands/legs are ok and I quite like the wings that can be folded back or extendedYou can have a go at this one yourself, it is great practise for “rabbit ear” folds, as this model uses a lot of them. The folding diagrams are mostly understandable but I found myself looking ahead to see where a fold would lead to to better complete it. It is of intermediate skill level (not a good introductory/newbie model)

Dragon Fold Pattern

21: A Kitten

| wonko

…now I have many diagrams for cats, mostly flat models that do not look very cat-like but to find a chubby little kitten that is “anime” style is a treat – I like the head/ears and the lovely 3d body and playful tailI had to resist drawing in whiskers and big anime eyes here, clever use of shaping after folding also to make front/back legs and the body bulge – hope you like it, I do.

You too can make one of these cute little blighters: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IwmjLFkSztQ

20: Crocodile

| wonko

…so I set out to find a crocodile, found one that will do as a first try, the base it is built from has potential, but the limbs and head are in the wrong proportions, will keep looking I think:He has all the bits a decent snapper should have, just not real happy with it (and yes, it is faithful to the pattern), I improved the body a tad.

Why a crocodile? Well, I was door knocking in a flood affected area, gathering information on what volunteers could do this weekend for householders and came across a family in a garage, in good spirits (no idea how they managed it, but there you go, human spirit hey) – they had concrete animals in their garden pre-deluge, as the flood waters rose, they retreated to their roof, and brought a concrete crocodile up with them. Rather cheekily, they said, as the waters rose above gutter level they positioned the concrete croc at the waterline, and dramatically huddled their family at the opposite corner of the roof so the overhead news helicopter would think they were being corralled by a crock – they chuckled about it when they told us. I love larrakinism – it can make an insufferable situation bearable.

You can make your own snapper here: http://www.craft-s.info/origami/videos/view.php?id=JBUnkhHnIXc&/How-to-make-an-origami-crocodile-1-2 … you know you want to.

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

18: Twitter Bird

| wonko

…so you gotta imagine this is blue (an unimagined limitation to my original white rule, doh!), the shape is fairly faithfully the twitter logo – tricky to get the head and feet angles/proportions right, and some thick folding through the body here

You too can fold your own twitter bird: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r38S8fjDUN0 … you know you want to

17: An Irrelephant

| wonko

…as my daughter often points out, anything that is not pertaining to elephants is irrelephant (lol, she even has a tshirt that proclaims that).

So I thought I would make her an irrelephant

I have lots of elephants, this is quick and capable of some nice poses – I modified the body a little from the diagrams I had, rounded the tummy and repositioned the bum/tail to make it more “dumbo” like, might try another later in the year, we shall see. Nice big ears – does that make it an African or an Indian Irrelephant? … Google it now!!

16: Yoda

| wonko

…do or do not, there is no try.

I have seen a few Yoda models, this is one I decided to try – quite like the stance but geting the expression on the face and arms/feet right were tricksey.  They can not all be gems I supposeSee if you can improve on this model, have a go at: http://www.fishgoth.com/origami/diagrams/yoda.pdf

15: A Mouse

| wonko

I was looking for a nice mousey and stumbled across this tutorial, nice and easy to follow and the resultant mouse is so very cute – pudgy body, lovely ears and fantastic tailVery pleased with how it turned out – remember all these models are first-go folds for me, no practice allowed.

You should have a go at this little cutie – the tutorials can be found at: http://origamiks.com/showorigami/289-origamiblog/7275-origami-tanaka-mouse

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