Triangular prism Box

I have been playing with the Fujimoto Cube for a while now and wrote about some variations I created here. Recently, I realized that this origami structure can be applied to an equilateral triangle to make a triangular prism box. Below are the stepouts for this box.

I started with paper that was in a ratio of 3:4 or 6 x 8 inches. After getting the first 60 degree angle drawn in the top and bottom left squares, I trimmed the top and bottom sections as shown in image 4. Then I drew all the other 60 degree angles and scored them all. You do not need to draw any of the red lines shown, just fold or score them except for the first 60 degree angles that need to be drawn in pencil so you can trim. The last image shows the whole process with steps that should make sense with the images I have provided.

I suggest using sturdy paper (cardstock weight or maybe elephant hide paper) for this box. Enjoy!

Spiral Boxes

I am currently obsessed with box making. I wanted to make a spiral box I found on Pinterest, but it was hard to fold and the diagram I downloaded was very small. I decided to try making my own based on Tomoko Fuse’s nautilus shell on pg. 67 of her fabulous book Spiral.

To create a box, I added a 1 inch border to the long side of the triangle to give the box a side and turned the first fold into a 1 inch side with a glue tab. This required modifying it a bit. My first few attempts at folding the box had folds along the long side corresponding with the mountain folds on the triangle, but when I reversed folds to make the box top, the angles on the two box parts were out of sync. I realized that folds along the side weren’t necessary.

Today I got out some nice papers to fold into box tops to go with the white cardstock bottoms I folded yesterday. The red paper is a good quality wrapping paper, the blue and white is thick handmade paper from Cave Paper and the map is thin paper from an old atlas. The Cave Paper was perhaps a bit too thick, but it looks lovely. The thick papers require glue on each triangle section bounded by the mountain and valley folds in the diagram. The atlas paper only needed to be glued on the smallest sections before I tucked them behind the long side where the shell curls. I think it is a good idea to make the box bottoms from cardstock if you intend to put anything inside as the atlas paper is a bit light.

I hope you try making this project. You can print out this pdf on any 8.5 x 11 paper, then cut, score, and glue to create a box. If you are familiar with the nautilus fold from Tomoko Fuse, you can draw any acute right triangle, add the extra paper for the sides and begin folding. To make the base transfer the folds from the top to a second sheet of paper so your folds allign. Enjoy!

Fujimoto Cube Variations

Packing my holiday origami things reminded me that I want to make more sparkly paper cubes. I learned how to make the Fujimoto Cube in 2018 and then played around with other regular shapes like hexagons. Hexagon boxes are fun to make and just require dimensions of a 30-60-90 triangle to get the spiral folds right. To make a hexagon box, start with paper that measures 10 7/8 x 9.5 inches. Yesterday (January 4, 2023) I decided to try a pentagon as well. It is a bit more challenging as there are an uneven number of sides, but with a bit of modification pentagonal prisms can also be folded. The pentagon can be made with paper that measures 6 x 9 inches. You need to trim off the top and bottom corners on the right as shown in the diagram. Below are the diagrams I created and some images of the finished boxes. I hope you will try making them for yourself. (Sparkly paper looks great, but any card stock weight paper will do.)

All three types of prisms.

Playing with Brass Shim

Lately I have been fascinated with a box of brass shim. It is as thin as paper, but harder to fold and once a fold is in place it is hard to unfold or reverse without breaking the metal. I am playing with how to fold some of my paper sculptures in brass without unfolding or reversing any folds. Here are some recent pieces and the paper sculptures that inspired them.

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Cut, Pleat, Twist Process

I recently taught Paul Jackson’s Cut Pleats Across Cut Pleats technique applied to alter book pages at the Form and Function From Afar Conference. You can still sign up and watch the recorded content from three days of presentations. Here I am showing the folding and cutting steps we took to make the finished piece, which combines imagery from both sides of a sheet of paper on a single side. It is a magical way to transform paper and images into something new. The possibilities for pleat placement as well as alterations you can make after folding and twisting are nearly endless.

Begin with a sheet of paper that has contrast between side A and B. Here I am using a piece of marbled paper that is white on the back side. Begin folding with the colorful side face up. If you are folding for the first time consider using at least an A4 or letter size sheet of paper.

Fold the paper in half and then fold each edge to the center fold to divide it into fourths.

Rotate the paper 90 degrees and fold in half, then in quarters just like you did in step 2.

Turn the paper over and you will have a series of mountain folds, 3 horizontal and 3 vertical. We are going to concentrate on these folds for the next several steps.

Create pleats by folding each mountain fold to the center point between mountains. Fold pleats in both directions.

Rotate the paper 90 degrees and create pleats in the same was as before. You now have 9 pleats that intersect with each other at 90 degree angles.

The next two steps are all about cutting. You will cut the pleats on the mountain folds between valley folds. Fold back the paper along a mountain fold as shown then cut the mountain fold perpendicular to it as shown. Repeat for all 9 intersections with the paper oriented as shown.

Here is what the paper looks like once the first set of cuts has been made.

Rotate the paper 90 degrees and cut the other set of intersecting mountain folds as shown.

Unfold the paper and you should have + shaped cuts where the mountain folds intersect. There will be 9 of them.

Now we will do a series of folds to help create the final magical reveal. Start with the first pleat as shown and fold down each section (there are 4 now that we have cut into the pleats), making them fold in opposite directions as shown.

Stand the second row pleat up and fold down the four sections as shown, making sure they fold down opposite each other.

Lift and lay down the third pleat as before then rotate the paper 90 degrees.

Lift the first pleat (the one nearest you) along the mountain fold and the two layers will open up revealing the image from the other side. This is the magical step.

Repeat lifting and unfolding the second pleat in this direction to reveal the second row of images.

Finally, repeat with the top pleat to reveal the last row of imagery. Use a bone folder to gently press down the pleats.

There are many ways to modify the finished piece. Here is an example of cutting curves on the four corners and the center rectangle that my friend Lauri showed me. Try folding back or forward the corners of each rectangle to modify it as well. You can also fold fewer pleats or place them at different spots on the paper. The only rule you have to follow is that when two pleats cross they must do so at a 90 degree angle.

This blog is a supplement to the Form and Function From Afar Conference video. If you are having problems following with just the photos and text here I recommend you check out my video at the conference.

How to make a woven book

I am taking Helen Hiebert’s Weave Through Winter class for the third year in a row. I want to make the 30 days of weaving a bit more cohesive this year than in the past. To that end, I decided to make a book to house all of my pieces. That way they will have a similar size and can all be viewed together. The book is inspired by the weaving class itself. I created a woven book structure that is sturdy and looks nice on its own. Adding woven pieces will only make it better.

To make a woven book you need a page template, lots of paper ( I used heavy cardstock weight magazine pages), and some patience. Here are my results.

Template for creating the book pages. Feel free to change the sizes and number of warp and weft strips.

The finished book.

Another view showing the weaving.

Beginning to weave the pages together.

Weaving from another angle.

A finished spread. I will add a woven piece to one side of the page and leave the other side as is.

A different page spread. You can really see the weaving well here. Note how I alternate the weave between the two pages.

Form & Function From Afar Conference

I will be teaching along with 8 other book artists, conservators, and collectors at the Book Paper Thread online conference February 18-20. Sign up here for free and enjoy three days of book arts related content. The online classroom allows you to meet fellow students, share work, share tips and tricks, and much more. I hope to see you in the classroom.

Here’s a sampling of what I will be teaching:

Red Lantern Tutorial

I recently taught a demo for San Diego Book Arts that showed participants how to pleat, cut and twist paper to alter it. The video of the demo is here. I have been playing with the concept ever since and trying out different variations. I made a lantern using this technique in Helen Hiebert’s online class Paper + Light in the summer and it seemed like a good project for the winter holidays.

Using red vellum to make it festive, I created this video so that you can follow along and make the project as well. Below are some photographs of the different stages as well as my very rough diagram of the folds involved. I hope you will make this project with help from the video. Try changing the size of the paper and see how it changes the dimensions of the finished lantern (8.5 x 11 inch size works well if you don’t have any 12 inch paper lying around).

More Paper + Light

I am still taking the online class Paper + Light with the amazing Helen Hiebert. We are working with wire, LED lights, balsa wood, and so much more to create lanterns, bendable paper and more. Here are some more projects I have made in this wonderful class.

Bendable Paper:

Light embedded paper:

Sewn Lanterns:

Shadow screens:

Paper + Light: an online class by Helen Hiebert

I am in the midst of an eight week online class with Helen Hiebert. She is teaching us all about combining paper and light in different forms; some flat, some 3-D. It is a combination, not unlike alchemy, that is more than the sum of its parts. Each week I think, “this is my favorite form” and then we move on to a new one and I am smitten all over again. The other participants’ ideas and creations give me plenty of new ways to think about each assignment. The second 4 week class is opening soon so it’s not too late to join in on the fun.

Here are just a few of the things I have created so far. Enjoy!

My Bird Album

Recently I have been enamored with collage as you may have noticed in my 100 Day Project choice. I bought a lovely antique photo album that has blue flowers on the mats and thought it would make a nice place to create simple collages using some of my favorite types of ephemera. I used only birds, backgrounds (maps, music, or ledger pages) and labels with the bird’s Latin name. It was fun to make and I hope you like seeing the pages.

Making Art In Viral Times

I don’t know about you, but I am struggling to make art during the pandemic. I am in the company of others all day, I am having trouble sleeping, and each day seems to bring news that is disturbing or maddening or devastating. I am making small collages daily and taking some online classes to help guide me in the creative process, but making a large project that takes multiple days to finish seems too daunting.

There is only one exception to this; a new artist’s book called Art I Can’t Make Right Now. It is a palimpsest; a book written over the text of another book. It is mostly a stream of consciousness about our times that I typed on my vintage Underwood portable typewriter. I want to shout, but my voice is so small. Who will hear what I say? Maybe you will.

The 100 Day Project

In this strange time we find ourselves living through, I thought it might motivate me to make art if I was following a challenge. Enter The 100 Day Project. It is on its 7th year and although I have followed others journeys for these 100 days, I have never been brave enough to commit to doing it myself. I decided to choose something relatively simple and straightforward as my personal challenge and here it is.

I will make collage postcards with a theme inspired by the alphabet and my collection of ephemera. I will then mail out the postcards to friends, family, and people who ask for them via Instagram. Here are my first 10 postcards with architecture and birds as the themes.

Mica Sample Book Workshop

I will be offering a mica book workshop this fall (probably early November) through San Diego Book Arts’ Book Art Basics class. Below is the sample book I made for the class. We will learn different surface techniques, ways to attach mica to other materials, and a binding style that I invented for this class. I will post again when the date is set and the class is available for sign up through SDBA’s website.

Weaving Through Winter

I spent 30 days in January and February taking an online weaving class with Helen Hiebert. I took the same class last year as well and it was worth repeating. Helen is a generous teacher and the other participants shared their weaving talents as well as daily encouragement. I recommend taking this class if you are any kind of paper enthusiast. Here are some pictures of my favorite woven pieces from the class.

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Are You Book Enough

A while back I saw a book arts challenge on Instagram called” Are You Book Enough.” The idea was to create an artist’s book on that month’s theme, post it and choose your nine favorite books and post them as well. I watched for several months as very creative people posted and finally dipped my toes in with the July prompt: Time. To learn more about the project check out Sarah Mo’s website. She is the creator of this challenge and has given me a much needed inspirational boost.

Here are the books I have made so far and their themes. If you want to see more go to Instagram and search the hashtag: #areyoubookenough.

July Are You Book Enough-Measure: “Ancient Stories”

“Ancient Stories” open

August Are You Book Enough: Into the Woods “Pinwheel Poem”

“Pinwheel Poem”

September Are You Book Enough-Ticket: “Whirlwind Japan”

The Paper Year

This blog has been on hiatus for a bit and now I have so many things to share with you. I plan to create several posts this week to catch up.

First, an announcement… I am thrilled to be included in the 2020 calendar created by Helen Hiebert called The Paper Year. In this workbook, paper projects are offered for each month of the year. There is a calendar feature as well as space for you to save paper samples and write about the project or how you might want to modify it. In short, you get a multi-function book with calendar, workbook and project features. Helen asked me at the beginning of the year to contribute a project and I chose my crane card. I hope you will check out the link here and order your copy. Early bird orders (before October 15) receive a free gift while supplies last. If you love to make beautiful objects with wonderful papers then this is the book for you.

30 Paper Weavings in 30 Days

I recently completed a 30 day online class run by Helen Hiebert called Weaving Through Winter. The class had a very open structure, Helen did a 30 minute video introduction each week on a theme and workshop participants could take the concept and run with it. We posted pictures of what we made and offered comments and suggestions to each other. It was a wonderful daily practice and meditation. If you want to see all 30 of my pieces check out my Instagram posts at @gina_pisello. I will show you my favorites below and tell you a bit about what inspired them.

Enjoy!

This is one of the last pieces I made in class. I was inspired by weaver Kay Sekimachi and light streaming onto the red paper before sunset.

This weaving went through several stages before becoming the piece at the bottom. I tried folding an origami bowl with it, but the shape and size of the weave was wrong for this particular origami piece. I would like to try again with a different weaving pattern.

I wove abaca paper strips together then folded it into a Tomoko Fuse spiral. I love the way this turned out.

A simple weave around a silhouette.

I didn't know what to weave on this day but found inspiration in torn paper torsos I made years ago that sit framed on my desk. This one was hard to weave, but I really like the results.

This is a Danish heart basket, commonly made at Christmas time. I used folded paper and wove a love letter with a Japanese paper bag for this simple weaving. There are many more designs for this if you search Pinterest.

One week of the course was about weaving shapes. I wanted to do a simple circle and the tension of the weaving caused this to curve nicely off the page.

I experimented with hexagonal weaving trying to work out the formula for doing so. Turns out quilters have a way of doing this called triaxial weaving. I liked building this out from the center, but want to try doing it the "right" way sometime soon.

The completed hexagon weaving.

Another hexagon weaving.

I remembered that Claire Van Vliet and Hedi Kyle invented ways to weave books together in the excellent book Woven and Interlocking Book Structures. This one is my favorite with its crossing shapes and locking structures. I created the pages with eco-dyed paper.

This was an early weaving from the class. I wanted to explore strips that were angled. I like the optical illusion of it.

This is one of the later weavings. I cut warp strips around the leaves on the eco-dyed paper. Then I cut weft strips one at a time to bend around the leaves. I wanted to enhance this central image. 

Nesting Blizzard Boxes

Hedi Kyle and Ulla Warchol have written a wonderful book called The Art of the Fold.  My last blog post was about samples I made from the book. Today, I want to present a modified version of one book that I have come up with. I will introduce other works I have made using Hedi's structures as a jumping off point in a later post. I am including a diagram of measurements, divisions and how I folded this new work. You will need lightweight, but sturdy paper that measures 6 x 18 3/8 inches. You will also need to score many of the divisions between sections. Do so accurately and you can fold this project. I used Hedi's directions for folding the boxes and added the extra "bridge" section between boxed so that they can fold inside each other. Each box gets slightly wider to accommodate the precious one.

I hope you try it and let me know in the comments what you think.

Enjoy!

Diagram showing how to divide the paper before folding. Each 3 square division represents 1 inch. The first 8 divisions are exactly 1 inch each. The next 2 are 1 1/16 each followed by three 1 inch sections ( labeled side, bridge, side). Finally there are two 1 1/8 sections followed by three 1 inch sections. I made a model of this on graph paper to make it easier to score the lines. Then I moved on to decorative paper.

Here is the structure folded and ready to pop into boxes with bridges between them.

Here are the boxes from the back showing the extra section between them. This extra paper is necessary to act as a hinge to allow each box to fold inside the next one.

The boxes beginning to be nested.

All the boxed are nested inside the largest one. You can make this with more box sections by increasing the width of each box by 1/8 inch. Good luck.