LETTERFOLD: BOWTIE

PREAMBLE

This is the first post on this Blog for a while. 

We are recovering from the effects of a serious IRS mistake. They thought we had earned 3 million dollars in 2000, and took away most of my husband's wages for several years.  This  resulted in us using up all our savings in order to survive, being evicted from our previous house while I was still recovering from major back surgery (which did a lot of harm), learning how to be lawyers so that we could represent ourselves in a dispute with our ex-landlord (we won), missing two Christmases for lack of cash, dealing with the problems of having to drive unlicensed vehicles to stay alive and managing to avoid bankruptcy due only to the extreme generosity of a couple of people.  And of course we had no money to pay a lawyer to fight with the IRS.  We eventually told them that our son was on food vouchers and if they milked any more money from us we would die, suicide or become homeless and unemployed - any of which would result in us paying no more money to them.  They have backed off.  They have all our paperwork (the third copy of these - they lost the first two) but have not yet processed it.  That was almost a year ago.  Sigh.

I developed a thyroid deficiency problem as a result of the extreme stress and am gradually getting that under control. 

On the plus side, our seventeen year old managed to graduate from High School in spite of all the drama and uncertainty.  This is particularly amazing because he suffers from Asperger's Syndrome which makes any change stressful, let alone what he has been through for the past few years. 

We are rather battered, but we have survived.  I am now able to concentrate on origami design once more. 

This is the first of several letterfolds that I designed over the past few days.  I will deal them out as I complete photogenic models and crease patterns.  I aim to complete some diagrammed instructions (time consuming) and teach at least one of the models at the upcoming Berkely Convention.  If you are a San Francisco Bay resident then perhaps I will see you there.


BOWTIE LETTERFOLD (AMERICAN LETTER SIZE)

Although this was designed for  American Letter sized paper it will probably work for A4 as well.  If one of you tries this out please photograph the results and share them, and your comments, with us.  I'll post them on this Blog.

Here is the Crease Pattern. 

A word of warning.  In order to fold this without tears you will need to refold the two vertical  valley creases on the short side so that they are temporarily mountain creases. 

Push the points of the orange triangles on the long sides to the center to collapse the model. 

Then refold those mountain creases back to valley creases.

Push these center flaps so that they are facing along the center in the other direction (90 degree turn). Flatten.

Turn the points under.

Tuck the four flaps in the pockets below (not into) the ears of the white bow tie.

If this is about as clear as brewed coffee then you will just have to wait until I complete the diagramming - or come to the Berkley convention and I'll show you. 

Remember:  all broken green lines are valley folds and all unbroken orange lines are mountain folds.  (Except for the alternating vertical folds on the sides.)