Here I am again with another arrangement of origami flowers! I did my best to work on another entry to this project as soon as I could; I didn't want to make it seem like this idea was just a one-off. It did take me a little bit to think of a display that was completely distinct from the "vase" of the first entry, but I feel like I pulled something off here. Sometime after finishing the first entry of this project, I started thinking of other ways to display origami flowers. I couldn't really come up with anything that wasn't just another basic container (e.g. a box, or a basket), so I decided to look up and learn new origami flowers and go from there. I made a few test models and observed that there are models that (I felt) looked better displayed on a "stem" (as with the first entry of Project Ikebana), some that looked better facing the observer, and others whose shapes left me scratching my head with regards to how to display them. After this little exercise, I felt most inclined to make models that I could lay against a flat surface and whose blooms one could appreciate looking straight on. From there, I started thinking of ways to display the models that worked best with what I was going for. One of the first things I thought of was a wreath, and I was really happy with the idea that I committed to it. The only catch is that I had to make the wreath myself as well, which I'll get into in detail. I spent quite a bit of time trying to figure out what to use to make a wreath with, especially considering I've never made one in my life. I decided to look through my supplies for anything I could use and stumbled upon an unused illustration board. Seeing as I couldn't find any other viable material in the house that would make for a suitable circular base, I just cut out a sizable ring from illustration board and started there. My next challenge was figuring out what to do with the ring I just cut out. At this point, I just looked up pictures of wreaths on the Internet for inspiration on what kinds of materials people used to make the ring arrangement. I really liked the idea of making a wreath where the ring was rope wrapped around a base, but alas, I did not have any rope handy. Once again, I rummaged through my things for anything else I can use, and I ended up finding the next best thing: arts-and-crafts pipe cleaners that my younger brother never used as a kid. I decided to wrap these around the illustration board ring, and I was delighted that it worked more or less like the initial idea that I wanted to go for. My supply of pipe cleaners was quite limited, so I ended up messing around with a few different combinations until I came up with something that wasn't such a disjointed eyesore in terms of color scheme. You'll see that the last two pictures had different-looking wreaths, but I settled on the one you see above in the end. It still seems like a mess color-wise to me, but I am very happy with the overall fuzzy texture of the wreath. I still had some Tack-It handy from the Project Monarch years, and they worked well enough for sticking the finished flower models onto the wreath. Some models were definitely harder to stick than others, however, and the fuzzy pipe cleaners did not make things easier on the account that they're not exactly flat surfaces. Everything came together in the end (as seen in the first photo), and nothing falls off when the wreath is actually displayed. As for how it's hanging, I just punched a hole in the base and ran a rubber band through it, which works well enough since the entire wreath isn't heavy at all. Now, let's get to the actual origami models. Cherry Blossom and "Twisty Rose" I felt like these two models would work really well with the wreath setup, so I decided to make them again here. All the details on these models are in the first entry of Project Ikebana. Water Lily/Lotus Instruction Source: As far as I know, this is a traditional model. I learned this as a teen from my trusty copy of Classic Origami by Paul Jackson. Difficulty: While the actual construction of this model is easy overall with its simple folds and pulls, where one may face difficulty depends on the type of paper you use. Making this with regular paper may result in tearing if you're not careful with the steps that involve pulling the paper, so I'd recommend using thinner paper if you want to make this. The model you see here is made with a type of Japanese washi paper, which is considerably thinner than your typical print paper. Other things: While I really wanted to make the waterlily a centerpiece of the whole arrangement (this is one of my personal favorite flower models), this model comes out considerably small relative to the square you start with. I figured out a way to make it the center of attention despite its size, but I'll get into that later. Camellia Instruction Source: Again, I'm fairly sure this one is also a traditional model. Here's a link to some diagrams. Difficulty: Don't let its simple shape fool you; this flower is constructed with a few tricky squash folds. It may take some a couple of tries to nail exactly how to set up these folds and how to align them properly, but once you figure that out, this ends up being a simple model. Other things: The end result of this model is a simple-looking octagon, which I was not content with. I decided to modify this model by pinching each side of the octagon such that the whole thing looks more like a flower. Dahlia Instruction Source: According to these instructions, this model was designed by Makoto Yamaguchi. Difficulty: This flower is a kusudama model composed of eight "modules" stuck together, and each individual piece is very easy to fold. I'd say this is a great model to start with if you're new to the idea of kusudama. Other things: As you can see, this model is rather large relative to the size of my hand. This led me to put it on the top center section of the wreath to maintain a bit of symmetry to the overall arrangement. If you want to make this model, take note of the size of the paper you'll be using to construct the individual components; the end result isn't that much smaller from the starting square. Daisy Instruction Source: The instructions I used did not credit anybody for the design, I'm not convinced that this is a traditional model, but as of this writing, I haven't found any information on who originally designed this. Difficulty: I would consider this a somewhat intermediate model. It starts out pretty simple (just repeat a bunch of easy folds a couple of times), but you'll eventually end up having to make very specific creases so you can collapse the paper into a shape. This collapsing step can take quite a while to get down even with precise setup, but once you get past that, it's just a matter of repeating mostly simple steps again. The last part (actually shaping the flower) may prove tricky if you're going for absolute perfect symmetry, but you can get a satisfactory end result without expending too much effort here. Other things: This model can actually easily be put on a "stem" since it has a hole at the bottom. I will likely reuse this if I do another arrangement where I display the flowers with stems. Bamboo Leaf Instructions: I picked up the diagrams for this from my Japanese book centered around crane designs, so I don't know who designed this. It's entirely possible that it's a traditional model. Difficulty: This is pretty much a beginner-level model. If you want a quick and easy leaf-like decoration, you can make a bunch of these in five minutes. Other things: Obviously, this isn't a flower, but I felt like the wreath would feel weirdly plain if the decorations were exclusively flowers. I made a couple of these leaves to add a bit more flair to the whole arrangement. Rosette Instruction Source: Paul Jackson. the very author of the book I've been referring to in a lot of my origami blog entries, actually designed this one! Difficulty: The only thing remotely tricky about making this model is making sure the folds that lock everything into place are secure. Other than that, you just make super simple folds, and the end result is satisfying. Other things: I thought that this would be a neat thing to add to the wreath (I just really liked the way it looked), so I made one with green paper and basically made it the "lily pad" of the water lily I made. I stuck the water lily onto the rosette, and I was quite happy with how the combo turned out. Sticking the rosette to the wreath, however, was a bit of a nightmare given there wasn't much surface area on it to put adhesive on, but I figured something out. I feel quite accomplished with this arrangement, and I think that's thanks to the fact that I had to make the entire wreath on top of the models themselves. Of course, folding origami is always fun for me, but going on what is essentially an arts-and-crafts side quest and ending up with a neat-looking wreath made this particular project a memorable one. Perhaps I should consider another arrangement where I have to make the display again given how fun this was.
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I'm starting a new blog series, and it's another origami-based one! This is an idea I've had brewing for a really long time now, and before I get to the thing you probably came here to see, I want to talk about the backstory for a bit. BACKGROUND: The inception of this idea came about right as I was working on the first iteration of Project Monarch. I thought it would be neat to also create a patch of assorted origami flowers to complement the variety of butterflies I was making, but I ultimately shelved the idea because a) I couldn't figure out a neat way to mount some models on the wall, and b) I ended up wanting a cohesive theme for the wall (so I stuck to having purely butterflies). I resolved to one day push through with the concept (then named Project Blossom in my files, because I am not creative with names), but I really had trouble figuring out what I wanted to do in terms of displaying the flowers. It wasn't until recently that I became more motivated to work on this project. With Project Monarch more or less finished (there's a whole blog category for that) and the senbazuru completed (more on that here), I was free to dedicate my full attention to new origami pursuits. This was the first project that came to mind, though the problem of display remained. I have next to zero shelf space, and I wasn't really looking to do anything wall-related anymore, so I spent some time figuring out what exactly I wanted to do with origami flowers. Inspiration struck when I thought of the Lego Botanical Collection, a theme which offers display sets of various plant models. The most popular of these sets is the flower collection, which I've seen many people display like real flowers by putting them in vases and such. Seeing such displays led me to think that perhaps this time, I should try to scale things back and not go for something grandiose. After all, a single vase of those Lego flowers looked amazing enough. I decided that splitting the project into smaller scale parts instead of something ambitious like covering an entire section of a wall would make for an interesting change of pace. My goal for this project is to learn whatever origami flower models I can and figure out arrangements for them using a variety of display solutions. We'll start simple with this first entry, which I'll explain in detail in the next section. As for the new project name, ikebana is the Japanese art of flower arrangement (something I learned at random reading books as a kid). Ikebana itself is a rather specific practice with all sorts of approaches, and while I know nothing of those technical aspects (and thus will apply none of them in this project), I felt the name was nonetheless fitting as I aim to spend as much time figuring out arrangements as I will making the actual flowers. Anyway, enough of that. You're here for the pictures. Above is the finished arrangement. I decided to keep things simple for the beginning and simply display a few flowers in some sort of vase. The "vase" that I use here is actually not a vase; it's actually a toothbrush holder no one uses anymore. Don't worry, I washed it. Seeing as I know jack shit about arranging flowers, my entire mindset for this one was to simply arrange everything in such a way that you get a clear look at everything from the front. I don't know anything about what flowers and their colors mean, so I just tried to keep things varied in terms of type and stuck to lighter colors overall. Now, I'll go through each model I use in this arrangement. This will be a nice change of pace from Project Monarch's format, as I get to talk about everything at once instead of showing off each model incrementally. Tulip A Instruction Source: This is a traditional model, but I never actually learned it until I got the diagrams as a pack-in from the origami paper my mom got me for Christmas last year (which is what I use for all but one of the models here). Here are some online instructions. Difficulty: This is more or less a beginner-level model that anyone can make. The most you do is start with a waterbomb base, and the rest of the folds are simple. The only tricky bit is inflating the model through the tiny hole at the bottom; a thin straw may help with that. Display: Although the image here has the bloom on an origami stem I also folded, the final arrangement sees this tulip on a chopstick (of which I have many extras due to ordering too much udon). Mystery Flower Instruction Source: I have an origami book entirely in Japanese that focuses on crane-inspired models, and I got the instructions for that. Unfortunately, I cannot read Japanese, so I can't tell you what the book's title is or who designed this model. I also don't know what flower this is supposed to be, either. Additional Information: If you look closely, this flower is actually made of multiple pieces of paper folded into petals instead of being a singular model. Moreover, the "petals" are actually unfinished origami cranes bundled together to look like a flower. I think it's quite ingenious, and it's a novel example of kusudama, a style of origami where you combine identical paper units together to create something. Difficulty: Making the "petals" isn't too difficult, especially if you know how to make an origami crane. Simply stop at the point where you've folded the neck (but not the tail) and repeat 14 more times (you can reduce or increase this number depending on how you want the flower to look). The actual challenge is bundling them all together... Display: I used a paper straw as the stem and some tape to stick everything together, which I honestly could have done much cleaner. The instructions I was reading said to run wire through each of the cranes then bundle the exposed wires together, but I'm not exactly rich on wires over here. There might be an easier way to bundle the petals, but I couldn't think of any alternative at the time. Cherry Blossom/Sakura Instruction Source: I got the instructions for this from the same book I got the mystery flower from, but as far as I can tell from my searching, this is likely a traditional model as well. Here are instructions from another website. Difficulty: The only steps that may pose a challenge are cutting the petals into shape (the paper is folded to be rather thick at that step, so you may have trouble cutting a smooth curve) and folding everything into shape at the final step (which involves you carefully opening up tightly folded paper). Otherwise, the construction is largely simple, and it's a neat way to get pretty flowers that are more than just cutouts. Display: Cherry blossoms grow on tree branches, so I took a cue from that and stuck a couple onto another chopstick. I wish I had a longer, more natural-looking piece of wood for this (so I could display more than two), but I like how this came out. Tulip B Instruction Source: If you've followed my origami-related entries on here, I've likely mentioned my photocopy of the book Classic Origami by Paul Jackson more than once. That is where I learned this model, which was designed by Kunihiko Kasahara. Difficulty: This is another really simple one, as after you construct the crane/bird base, the folds are extremely simple and "inflating" the model is easy. I would be careful not to cut out too much of the bottom bit where the stem will go, and I'd recommend using smaller paper, as the bloom is quite large relative to the size of the paper you use. Display: Remember the green origami stem for earlier? I use it for this flower instead. This proved to be quite the annoyance in the arrangement, as it takes up quite a bit of space in the container. Me not scaling down the paper I used did not help, either, as the oversized bloom did not leave much room for the other flowers, and it also flopped around on the stem due to its weight. That said, this tulip's size and the fact that it's the only one with the origami stem makes it a solid centerpiece to the whole arrangement. Lily Instruction Source: This is another traditional model that I somehow never got around to learning. Here's a link to some instructions. Difficulty: I think this is a solid introductory model for beginners, as you have to perform some important techniques (squash folds, petal folds) repeatedly in order to construct it. It's not complicated at all, and it's great practice for the aforementioned folding techniques. Display: I had to cut a hole at the bottom of this model so I can run a chopstick through it. I wanted to display this one in such a way that the bloom was facing forward (I think this model looks its best when you look at it straight on), but attempts to display it at such an angle led to it drooping too low and blocking other flowers from view. "Twisty" Rose Instruction Source: I stumbled upon this model a few years back when I used to take origami diagrams from Pinterest. People are apparently allergic to crediting designers on diagrams, so this is either a traditional model, or I still don't know who designed this. In any case, here are the instructions. Difficulty: I'd say this is another easy one, as you just have to construct a bird base and repeat a bunch of relatively simple folds to get to the final step. Actually making it look like a rose is the most fun part, as you have to hold the paper and twist it to form the shape (hence the nickname). Display: This flower is actually a pain in the ass to display even on its own, as you have to secure the flaps at the bottom so the rose's shape doesn't fall apart. Having to do that while also trying to attach the entire thing to something else is an extra hurdle, and I ended up with a haphazard tape job in the end. Again, there's probably an easier way. I really enjoyed making this arrangement, and I'm looking forward to learning new models and coming up with entirely different displays to go along with them. Don't expect a regular upload schedule with this one as I'll have to practice some models and acquire the containers I have to work with, but I hope that this format of presenting a more or less complete arrangement provides a different kind of satisfaction from Project Monarch's gradual build into a complete piece.
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