We fell in love with Origami this summer. I’m not yet used to summers so hot that I don’t want to go outside… for months. Summer used to mean a huge relief from the winter cold and windows open and kids playing outside. With kids pent up inside almost all day from the heat, origami provided hours of fun. And this winter, on the rainy days, we’re still at it.
We borrowed origami books from the library then found some great origami websites. There are very easy things to make and extremely hard ones! But this site makes them all seem easy as it gives step by step animated instructions so you don’t have to learn any terms like “valley fold”, “mountain fold” and “inside reverse fold.” But if you ARE up for a challenge, you can learn all those terms, and make something like the ballerina I made for Drew. It took… forever… and I think I told her about 12 times that I couldn’t do it. But I did figure it out and it was fun. Paper folding is an inexpensive hobby with many applications. The figures make great party favors, you can make banners from origami letters, jumping frog toys, decorate your little girl’s room with flowers that won’t wilt… the possibilities are endless. They might end up on our Christmas tree this year.
For more about origami, there’s a documentary about the art and mathematics of origami called “Between the Folds” that is just incredible. My 7 year old was fascinated… as was I.
Origami paper can be a little expensive, especially if you go through it like we do and if you like the paper with cute patterns. Instead of getting origami paper I got a huge amount of scrap-booking paper on sale with a coupon. I’ve been cutting the 12×12 inch papers into 4 pieces each and they are just the right size for origami. They are slightly thicker but I haven’t had any trouble with them yet and think that makes the finished product more sturdy.
To cut them quickly, easily… 1. Fold your paper in fourths 2. Unfold second fold and cut along the crease (a paper cutter is best) 3. Unfold again, and cut each half along the remaining crease. 4. Done!
Drew’s favorite origami website: http://www.origami-fun.com
And tomorrow… I’ll show you another of my favorite origami projects!