Inflatable Mouse

At the OrigamiUSA Convention in June this year I learned how to fold this inflatable mouse designed and taught by Robert Lang. I particularly enjoyed shaping the tail by curling it and inflating the mouse by blowing into it. My brother came with me to all of my classes at the convention because he wanted to spend some time with me while he was having a break from his summer research job at college, and he folded the red mouse.  Origami is not exactly his forte (I had to help him quite a bit during the classes) but it was very nice of him to join me and get a taste of origami at the convention. We enjoyed taking classes together, and the mice turned out to be very cute together!

 

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Folded by Sophie and Thomas Usherwood                                                                                                    Designed by Robert Lang

Over-Sized Folding

At the OrigamiUSA Convention in New York a few weeks ago, I really enjoyed an activity called Over-Sized Folding; each team got a nine by nine foot piece of paper, and they could fold whatever they wanted out of the sheet. My brother and I were on the same team – folding such a large piece of paper is quite difficult for just one person to do, because multiple people are needed to hold the paper in certain places to perform the different kinds of folds. I was surprised by how difficult it was to fold the large piece of paper; it was very thick so creasing it was a challenge, and maneuvering such a large, thick piece into the right position felt like wrestling a vicious beast. We folded a flower that I had designed, but because of its very large size and the paper drooping down from its own weight, it was slightly difficult to tell what it was. Nevertheless, my brother and I enjoyed the experience and we would love to try this challenge again at the next convention.

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Phoenix

I folded this phoenix at the OrigamiUSA Convention during a class taught by Paul Frasco. I really enjoyed taking part in the class because usually I am the one teaching origami, and when I am not at a convention I do not have a chance to learn origami from someone else – I usually learn from youtube videos or books. If someone is actively teaching, you can ask for clarification, or for them to show the step in a different way, whereas in a youtube video or book you have no such luxury. I liked this design because of the unique color change on the wings when double sided paper is used. By a clever maneuver of the paper he showed us how to reveal some white triangles onto the wings and legs of the phoenix that made it much more special to look at.

Folded by Sophie Usherwood                                                                                                                          Designed by Paul Frasco

Flower, Leaf and Vase

I enjoyed designing this flower, leaf, and vase that I taught at the OrigamiUSA Convention in New York this year. The design process of the leaf was particularly unique. Initially, I folded a traditional iris, and then unfolded it. I pressed the protruding tip and the paper popped inside out, and then I refolded the paper along the existing creases in the way it seemed to want to go. The result had eight flaps function as leaves, four long ones and four short ones, and a cup-like opening to insert a flower of my choice! I designed the flower in a slightly more methodical way. I used a flower base and experimented with the different ways that the four flaps of the base could be folded. The result of my experimentation was this beautiful flower with a pretty color change in the middle when you curl out the four tips. The wide base of the flower fit nicely into the leaf cup that I had designed; to finish off the piece I decided to design a vase. I folded the paper into eighths, tucked two rectangles inside to make a hexagonal prism, and then added a few diagonal folds to create the narrow neck and flared out rim.

I was so pleased with the final product that I decided to teach this design at the OrigamiUSA Convention. This was my first time teaching at the convention, and I really enjoyed the teaching experience. There was a very large range of ages in the class: from second grade to seniors (older adults, not high school seniors). I was inspired by how eager everyone was to create the model that I had designed, and how satisfied they were when they had completed the project.

Folded and designed by Sophie Usherwood