BASIC BOXES - SERIES ONE

This is the first in a series of boxes that have been designed as sturdy stand alone containers, insert receptacles for decorative origami wraps, or bases for pretty lids made from a different pattern.





As of today, there are ten different boxes in the Basic Boxes Series.  Each  has a different feature. I will post details of each as I complete the diagramming and instructions.





The first in the series was designed to have very strong ends.












This makes it a good insert for the Crossover Box that I posted about on this blog some time ago.  That decorative wrap requires some downward force on the top during the final part of its construction.  The original box tended to collapse which resulted in a couple of us origami enthusiasts coming up with some modifications to accommodate this.  This is an additional one. 

I will come back to this box in later months as I have designed other variations.

All variations of the box can be squashed flat.  This means that it can be sent through the mail, put in a pocket or transported in a purse or a binder for later reconstruction.

 



The simplest version is made from construction paper (12" x 9" --> 8 x 6 grid) or other material with a 4:3 ratio. This version has a single layer floor.

If you use construction paper I would recommend using high end heavy duty fade resistant alternatives. These fold much better than the cheaper versions.





The more complex versions of the pattern, made from square paper or generic oblongs, have a double layer floor.












Here are the Crease Patterns for the three versions. I recommend making the simple 8 x 6 grid one first as the others require that you pull out the second layer of floor from the side walls, and then lock the model by folding over the end walls underneath this layer.









Full instructions, with copious diagrams and photos, are available for purchase from my ETSY shop. This can be accessed from the Side Bar of this Blog.

CHECK HOLDER ENVELOPE OR LETTERFOLD

This item was designed for 24lb American Letter sized paper and meant to hold a standard American sized check.

The pattern can also be used with A4 paper, Construction Paper (typically 9 inches by 12 inches) and sturdy (kraft-based) gift wrap cut to an appropriate size.












The model looks particularly good when folded from Letterhead paper, especially one with a strong border.


 








Here is the Crease Pattern for the back of the model showing how it is folded up around the check/cheque.


 

This is a very easy pattern and is suitable for beginners, just as long as they are comfortable making a couple of "about here" folds when bringing in the side flaps and they can turn back a flap so that the gap between it and the crease it is lined up with is just a little over the thickness of the paper.









Full instructions, diagrams, photos and other images can be purchased at a very reasonable cost from my ETSY shop. See the side bar for a link.

FULL INSTRUCTIONS FOR MY WALLETS ARE NOW AVAILABLE

Over the years I have had many requests for diagrams and instructions to fold the wallet that is pictured on the Header for this site. Well all that whinging has finally paid off. Yesterday I uploaded PDF instruction files for this Wallet Pouch and the simpler Catera Wallet to my ETSY shop. You can find a link to that shop on the side bar. One of my customers has already succeeded in folding the Catera Wallet and sent this lovely photo. Well done, maohare!

WELCOME TO BERRY GOODIES

After a long break, dealing with health and other personal issues, "Creative Creasings" is back on active duty again.

 As usual, new models displayed on these pages will be accompanied by a basic crease pattern image for which there is, of course, no charge.  That is my continuing gift to the expert origami community.  Not everyone can make these items from this sparse information, especially when the construction is less than straight forward.  Many of you have asked for detailed instructions but, as you know, these are quite time consuming to prepare, and sometimes fiendishly difficult to illustrate in a flat 2-D format.  I have, however, been working on this task.   I expect it will take a couple of years before I can diagram every model that I have posted here, but I have managed to make some progress, especially on my newer models.

The first batch of fully illustrated and diagrammed instructions are now available.  You will find them at my new ETSY shop (Berry Goodies) where you can download them almost instantly.  Just click on the ETSY button in the side panel to the left of this text box.

This will cost you a token amount that will help cover some of the expenses involved in developing models, photographing them, diagramming them, listing them on ETSY and, of course, the cost of maintaining an active internet connection.   Some of them (like the 48 page booklet on Diamond Lock letter folds) are quite a bargain compared with comparable material sold on Amazon.  When I have more models available I will start to offer pick-and-choose combinations that will let you make your own book with just the designs you prefer for a lot less than it costs to buy the designs individually. 

I began the process by diagramming my Letter Fold Series of which there are 20 distinct types.  All the Instant Downloads available on the Berry Goodies site (except for the Free Gift) are from this series.  So far, just under half of them have been uploaded.  The rest will be arrive on the site as they are completed.   Then I will begin work on other and older models. 

Here is a LIST OF AVAILABLE ORIGAMI INSTRUCTIONS at Berry Goodies right now.  Enjoy!

 
Diagonal Slash Letter Fold - 5 pages

Central Square Letter Fold - 6 pages

Loan Diamond Letter Fold and Variants - 7 pages

Heart Letter Fold - 4 pages

Bow Tie Letter Fold - 5 pages

Pentagonal Letter Fold - 6 pages













Central Cross Letter Folds - 10 pages

Diamond Lock Letter Folds (lots of them) - 48 pages

FANCY LETTER FOLD

This Letter Fold is a little more complicated than the previous collection.  I would not recommend it for beginners.  There are a lot of steps, some squash folds, sinks, pushes, reverse folds and refolds . Trying to remember how to fold them without prompts led to a lot of mistakes and a lot of frustration.

 I made quite a few models along the way, mostly because I kept mangling the paper while trying to recall how I had folded it before.  It didn't help that I had made a couple of models with the creases marked in colored pencil and the folds reinforced so that  (at least theoretically) they models should refold themselves.  Ha ha, not funny. 

It took me two days (or was it three) to make a set of Step Folds .  I actually got the Step Folds wrong the first time around (the colors were the wrong way around on one of the ends).  I had to redo them today. 

Once you get the hang of it the model only takes about ten to fifteen minutes to fold.   The first attempt with unfamiliar instructions will take longer. 

There are couple of tricks-of-the-trade that I will teach in classes that are too complicated to put into diagrammed instructions.  They create greater accuracy and neater folds. If you are an old folder you will figure them out for yourself.  

The model ends up as a long pleated strip that is connected together at the ends.  The two ends are connected across the center line and covered by the diamonds in the center of the "bow".  The pleated ring is squashed flat so that the decoration is mid center.  It will stay flat  provided that you are using ordinary weight writing paper rather than wallpaper or thick paper, both of which try to bounce back into a ring shape.  Warning: the model is not suitable for cheap letter head paper which will crack and tear.  This goes for cheap wrapping paper that will also crack. 

The only part of the writing surface that is visible is the part that makes the outer part of the bows.

The model is connected together in two different ways.

There are a couple of triangles on the back of the decoration.  A single layer triangle is fitted inside a double layer triangle, which is then bent down.  The triangles that you can see at the tip of the models below is the double "female" triangle.  The tab (male) triangle (not shown here) is on the other end or the paper strip.

The model is further secured with a couple of tabs that are pushed between the layers of the double triangle.  The connection is fairly secure but still comes apart fairly easily when gently pulled. 

You may agree that the end result is worth all the effort 

There are a number of variations.   Here is a sample of what can be done with the end that has the decorative center part on it.  There are other variations not shown here, including a set of hearts in the middle.  

Some of these variations are easier to undo quickly than others.  Bear that in mind when deciding which one to use for your special friend.  You don't want a letter fold than looks good but is ripped open because the reader cannot figure out how to pull it apart quickly.

I am not going to bother providing the Crease Pattern for this model.  Unless you are of the caliber of Robert Lang you will not be able to figure out what to do with it.  So if you want to fold this model you will just have to wait until I finish the diagrammed instructions.  I'll let you know when that happens.  It will not be tomorrow and maybe not even next week.  I anticipate having to do a fair bit of hand drawing in order to make the tricky parts clear.  Be patient.

WALLET LETTER FOLD

Today we continue with more letter folds.  

I've called this one the Wallet Letter Fold because it has similarities to one of my origami wallets.  Unlike the real wallet, this fold does not have sides;  it is for letters only.

 The model is based on squares with sides that are equivalent to a quarter of the width of the paper.  There are two rows of these at the "bottom" of the sheet, and two rows of them at the "top" of the sheet.  The creases that don't fit this pattern (marked in orange and green instead of red and blue) are made in the last couple of steps when the model is folded in half.  They occur because, as you may have figured out by now, you are working with paper that is rectangular and not the traditional origami square.  

To help you figure out how this folds up, here is a diagram from my instruction sheet (which will you will be able to buy from my Etsy Shop very, very soon). 

You are not restricted to using standard letter sheets or letter head.  You can use any sheet of paper that has at least one side that you can write, print or draw on.   The examples shown at the beginning of this entry show letterhead paper (left), sturdy wrapping paper (not the thin stuff that crumples and cracks) (top) and wallpaper - the kind that is not pre-pasted and is crisp enough to hold a crease (right).  

 Nor are you restricted to writing letters on your carefully folded sheets.  You can use these letter folds for paper that contains recipes, instructions, poems, drawings, paintings, music manuscript, graphs, formulae, puzzles, and so much more.  Be creative! 

CENTRAL CROSS LETTERFOLDS

These letter folds are almost identical.  They have different additional crease patterns with the easier version having a lot more of them.





Here is the easier version (Type One).

The angled flaps are derived by folding a diagonal from the edges of the outside columns and then reflecting a marker crease from the orthogonal direction.

And here is the cleaner but slightly more difficult version (Type Two). 

This time the angled flaps are derived from diagonals that are creased between sections that are an eighth of the overall height or width.  To that end the pre-creasing divides the sheet into eight in both directions.




















Since publishing this blog I discovered that this design was first invented by Romie Halabaso from the Philippines.  The diagrams and crease pattern do not appear to be in the public domain so I cannot tell whether our patterns are identical or not.

You will find Romie's letter fold here:
http://www.origami-resource-center.com/letter-envelope.html