Origami is the ancient art of paper folding. Although it’s an old tradition, it’s now stylish to use origami pieces as a focal point or an embellishment to bring life to handmade cards.
Run a search on the web for “origami” and you’ll find a wealth of sites with descriptions on how to fold all of the standard pieces. There’s a great Dover Publications book called “Easy Origami” by John Montroll, where you can find the sailboat and pinwheel used in this article.
The thin origami paper is the easiest to use, especially when you’re first learning to fold, but there are plenty of other lightweight papers out there in paper and scrapbooking stores that you can use to integrate origami into your designs.
“Sail the Seas” shows the classic sailboat origami piece in an encouragement card. Torn handmade paper creates an abstract “sea” for your boat to sail.
The photo corner pieces featured in the next card were designed by Patty Cox and are found in the book “Creative Paper Folding” by Mickey Baskett. I found these to be a great use for small scraps of recycled gift wrap, and they are so easy to fold!
Be sure to start with a piece of paper that is a precise square, and fold very carefully. Use your bone folder to make the creases, as some of the creasing in origami serves to pop sections out of the creation, such as in the pinwheel.
The last two projects are variations on gift envelopes. Clearly, these aren’t meant to be mailed, unless they’re in a larger envelope. These are only to be handed to the recipient, with a card and/or gift certificate tucked inside, or as a fun topper to a wrapped gift.
