Have Paper, Will Travel

Welcome!

2063-10-07T20:48:00.000-07:00

The purpose of this blog isn't so much a journal, as it is a place where I can host my origami videos, for the purpose of sharing with Origami-L, as well as with friends and all who can appreciate the joys of paperfolding.

Special thanks to Michael Whitt for educating me on the wonders of modern technology.

This place is still under massive construction, and this post will remain at the top until I have all my videos from the past year uploaded. Don't be fooled by the dates. I decided to date them according to around the time they were made, so much of what you'll find will be in the archives.

Stay tuned!

Update 10/13/05- This blog is now pretty much current, as far as all my videos go. There might be a couple more old ones I'll upload later. The links column is ever-changing, as time permits. If you have an origami page (chances are I already have it, but just haven't put it up yet) you'd like me to link to, it'll probably go up quicker if you e-mail it to me (or leave a comment here) .

A reminder to those who don't know, since I get asked quite frequently: The tools I am using in order to make these videos is an old, beat up 2.0 Canon digital camera and Windows movie maker, which is a free feature with your Windows package. The camera only takes movie clips at 10-20 seconds in length. String 'em together, laced with music, and there ya go! It's really quite simple; and the ease of today's technology makes one feel like a genius.

Update 11/08/05 Someone asked me if it is possible to view the videos on a larger screen. If you click on the YouTube icon at the bottom right corner of the embedded screen (or double-click), it will take you directly to where the video is actually hosted. There, you will notice a new icon at the bottom-right in the form of a square with an arrow through it. Click that, and it will enlarge the screen for you.

I hope this inspires others on the O-List to share videos of what's going on in their neck of the woods, whether it's vids similar to mine or completely different.

Hope you guys enjoy what you see!

Update 04/28/07 I now have been using a Sony Cybershot DSC-H, which allows me to take much better videoclips, and not cut out after 10 seconds. With a 4GB memory card, I can take a pretty long video, now. In light of that, you will be seeing more videos, minus the music.

Won Park Interview

2012-01-18T12:32:00.000-08:00

Deb Pun Discoe posted the following video on her Facebook:

Happy to hear him make mention of Joel Bauer (Look him up if you do not know who this amazing man is).

I remember Joel returning from a trip to Hawaii, raving about this street artist he met. I was a bit skeptical back then that there were any "undiscovered" artists that no one has heard of (today there are many amazing origamists that many probably are unaware of); but Joel showed me some of Won's work. He encouraged Won to attend OUSA and that's where I first met Won Park.

I'd credit Joel as the one who propelled Won Park out of isolation and into the larger community of paperfolding enthusiasts.

Incidentally, speaking of Park, I remember coming across this video last year. Glad to see Won's generosity acknowledged in cyberspace:

Happy End of the Year!

2011-12-30T17:25:00.000-08:00

Origami Bottle by Jo Nakashima
Origami Rose by Phu Tran
Folded by Michael Sanders

Sok Song's $ Rose on a Stem

2011-12-19T20:33:00.000-08:00

Pam Miike brought these to the Origami Festival at the Van Nuys Japanese Gardens back in October. I believe she said Sok Song (his design) was giving these away at PCOC or something.

Looks to be a sort of Kawasaki rose/Stephen Hecht flower on a stem (incorporating an Elias stretch) hybrid.

Look for diagrams to appear in a future issue of Creased magazine.

Life's a Happy Song When There's Someone by Your Side to Fold Along

2011-12-18T10:24:00.000-08:00

Kermit the Frog
Created b Halle (Carlos Santamaría)
Folded by Michael Sanders
8 squares
Diagrams: Cartoon Origami Book 3

8 Side Box with Lid
Created by Mr. A'Kos Horn
Folded by Michael Sanders
Diagrams: NOA #361

It took the new Muppet movie to get me to finally fold this model. I folded this about a week ago.

♫♪ Everything is great everything is grand
I got the whole wide world in the palm of my hand
Everything is perfect its falling into place
I cant seem to wipe this smile off my face
Life's a happy song when there's someone by my side to sing along ♫♪

"My origami can kick your origami's @$$!"

2011-11-29T22:47:00.000-08:00

Hat tip to Russell Sutherland on his Facebook.

Feldercarb!

2011-10-10T09:03:00.000-07:00

I'm pretty upset! I tried adding a new link to the sidebar while in the new blogger interface mode, and it changed (they call it "upgrade") my old template to a new one- erasing all of my sidebar links to other blogs and websites and photo albums in the process! Argh! I think I probably had the largest collection of origami-related links out there (yes, a number of which were obsolete- but still....).

Not sure when I'll have time to figure out an easy way to restore stuff.

If you want to be linked, drop it into a comment.

Life is Beautiful

2011-09-08T10:06:00.000-07:00

These videos were made by Yami's friend, Satoshi Aoki:

Origami Festival 2010

2011-09-05T03:54:00.000-07:00

Sipho Mabona on TV Tokyo

2011-08-07T19:43:00.001-07:00

Hat tip: Kathy Knapp on the O-List

Shadowboxing with LaFosse

2011-07-10T21:36:00.000-07:00

Last month I went home to visit my folks in Colorado Springs. While I was out there, I folded some of my favorite Michael LaFosse models to display in shadow boxes for my mom.

(Note: The ranoshi on a lilly pad with the koi is a David Derudas model).

Momotaro (Peach Boy)

2011-05-21T23:18:00.001-07:00

Momotaro (Peach Boy)
Created by Mr. Katsushi NOSHO
Folded by Michael Sanders
Composite of 5 square sheets of Japanese commercial kami

Diagrams found in NOA magazine #429

Note: Yes....he is anatomically correct. I didn't embellish the model...it's diagrammed in there.

Michael LaFosse's Art-Deco Wing glider Off a High Rise

2011-04-23T06:52:00.001-07:00

This was originally taught to me by Tom Stamm years ago and I've always loved the folding sequence and the flight path of LaFosse's unusual glider- under "normal" circumstances it usually skims across the air in a bit of an up-down motion reminding me of a rock skipping across water. A truly ingenius design. I haven't filmed an example of that flight pattern; but what I did do was throw a couple off the 20th floor of my client's high rise:

*UPDATE* 4/24/2011

Michael LaFosse sent me this story regarding his Art-Deco Wing:

I designed this model while I was a freshman at the U. Tampa, in Florida, 1975. My dorm room was on the 8th floor of Delo Hall, which was situated near the athletic field (The building has since been replace, I believe.)

Many times a week I would launch an Art-Deco Wing out my window and watch it glide over the parking lot, across a street and continue across the athletic filed and out of sight. I never saw one land, but they all seemed to prefer the same path, across the athletic field.

On day, towards the end of my second semester, I took up jogging with a friend. We would jog around the perimeter of the athletic filed, outside of its great walls. To my surprise and delight I found these wings, all in a heap, caught at the base of a fence!

~~~

The accumulation of wings was an interesting sight. They were mixed in with other windswept paper and plastic trash. They had been rained upon and covered with dirt from many months of exposure; though quite deformed they were recognizable. If I remember correctly, the collection spanned a length of the fence area for some twenty feet or so. The area looked as though it got little attention from groundskeepers and the city's cleaning force. I did reach through the fence, and grabbed a decent looking specimen to show my friend and explain what it was all about.

How I Spend My Early Mornings...

2011-04-08T11:11:00.000-07:00

I have a personal fitness client who I work with in the mornings. She's in her late 70s and lately we've been working out in her high rise rather than the gym, due to her health.

After our sessions, we go out on her balconey and fly my paper gliders (she lives on the 20th floor). She says it makes her laugh; and laughter is great medicine for the body and soul.

Won Park Sea Turtle

2011-03-29T12:24:00.000-07:00

Won gave this to me as a present, leftover from one of his OUSA exhibits

These photos were taken today, showing how well this model has withstood the test of time.

A few years ago I began reverse engineering it, then got sidetracked and lost interest.

The Paper and the Frog

2011-03-20T08:43:00.000-07:00

Jeremy Shafer entertains in his video tutorial for Prince Charming, a model found in his book "Origami Ooh La La! Action Origami for Performance and Play"

Another clever and fun model!

Jeremy Shafer's $ Attack Cobra

2011-03-05T22:24:00.000-08:00

Recent video posted by Jeremy Shafer of his Attack Cobra action pop-up model, folded from a dollar. Excellent!

The model appears in his book, Origami Ooh La La! Action Origami for Performance and Play.

Hat tip: Rodney on Moneyfolders Unite

New Year Display

2011-03-04T11:13:00.000-08:00

I will be at the Chinese-American Museum in Los Angeles tomorrow for their Lantern Festival, 12pm to 7pm, along with Yami and Jim Cowling and Yukie Parthos. Here's one of the displays I've been working on:

Rabbits are designed by MOMOTANI Yoshihide
Leaf-shaped dish YAMANASHI Akiko (NOA #254
Table and chairs by NAGATA Noriko (NOA #254)

Phyllis Snyder

2011-02-28T08:40:00.000-08:00

March 13, 2010, WCOG at Pico Library

I got word through Beverly Baudino that Phyllis Snyder passed away at around 7pm, February 27th:

She was in Torrance Memorial Hospital and suffering from several compilations. Her pneumonia with 3 blood clots in the esophagus made it difficult to swallow and breath. She was a real trooper and tried till the end. Her family was with her.

I learned a lot from Phyllis over the past decade that I've known her and the WCOG.

Around 2001/2002, when Herman Lau's $ flower-in-a-pot was not as commonly known, she was the one WCOG member who had kept notes (when Lau had taught it to members years earlier) and was able to refresh her memory enough to teach it to those of us who were in search of it like the Holy Grail of moneyfolds, at the time. (Later, Herman Lau went out of his way to teach it to me "correctly"- he said everyone was getting the proportions wrong- so I could teach it at OUSA).

Phyllis also introduced me to the angel designed by her friend, Louise Cooper, and derived from the Neil Elias angel.

Phyllis always loved the way I fold Montroll's horse and would repeatedly ask me to fold the head so she could watch and learn how I got it to be 3D.

Over the years, I've worked with her at festivals and kept company at WCOG meetings; and have enjoyed sharing and learning from her. She had a wealth of experience and knowledge and a generous spirit to share it all.

Phyllis will be greatly missed. More to come later.

February 20, 2009 Phyllis with a napkin rose folded and given to her by Won Park

Also blogging:

Origami Mommy's Blog

Joseph Wu on Studio 4 TV

2011-02-15T23:16:00.000-08:00

When Usagi Yojimbo Crosses Paths with Origami

2011-02-04T11:49:00.000-08:00

I believe I've posted on this before (too lazy to dig through the archives, at the moment)...

Story:

This four-page story opens with Usagi coming to a mountain inn. He notices a patron sitting at a table folding a tsuru (crane), who explains he does this to remember the many he has killed. He claims to be an assassin. Usagi orders a meal and decides to stay away from the assassin. However, after the assassin finishes folding the tsuru, he call's Usagi by name and puts it on Usagi's table before leaving the inn. Usagi is surprised the assassin knows his name. After Usagi finishes his meal and leaves the inn, the assassin accosts him on the road outside. He reveals he was hired by Yamanaka the seaweed merchant to slay Usagi for driving him out of business. A duel ensues, and Usagi strikes down the assassin and then tosses down the folded tsuru as the assassin gives out his dying breath.

Watch "Tsuru".

Happy Chinese New Hare!

2011-02-04T09:54:00.001-08:00

I was randomly flipping through pages in Vicente Palacios' "Origami from Around the World" when I woke up this morning; and Yoshihide Momotani's rabbit caught my attention, folded from a 2 x 1 rectangle. So I decided to adapt it to the dollar bill and it sorta worked. Folded two of these this morning right before seeing my client, while sitting in the car (first one is on the right, 2nd attempt is on the left).

Well, I would have been surprised if no one else had thought of it before me.

Better set of diagrams in Steve and Megumi Biddle's The New Origami.

Won Park Improvises a Newspaper for a Bottle Opener

2010-12-26T21:11:00.000-08:00

Won Park at the Japanese-American National Museum

2010-12-17T13:25:00.001-08:00

Won Park on CNN

2010-12-17T12:43:00.000-08:00

$pinning Tip by Wensdy Whitehead

2010-12-12T15:16:00.000-08:00

F.I.P.

2010-10-31T22:10:00.000-07:00

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

Hand Clawing Out from Grave created by Eileen Tan
About a 15" x 30" rectangle of steel grey Strathmore paper

Skull by Hojyo, Takashi
Folded from 4 3/4 inch square of tissue foil

Little Bird by Miyajima, Noboru
Folded from 3" unryu foil

Black Rose by Phu Tran
Leaf Stand by Kawasaki, Toshikazu
6" Tant commercial origami paper

Shopping for Dollars?

2010-10-12T09:54:00.000-07:00

Pega$u$ by Won Park
$hopping Cart by Sy Chen
Folded by Michael Sanders

If you're shopping around for a fun, complex dollar bill model, Marcio Noguchi has published his first run of diagrams for Won Park's popularly requested pegasus model. Go to the Moneyfolders Unite Group.

Eric Joisel (11/15/1956 - 10/10/2010)

2010-10-11T08:50:00.000-07:00

His friends and family have lost a loved one. The origami community has lost a master and pioneer. The world has lost a true artiste. His work deserves to be marveled at in every museum as art- definitely not "kid's craft". His sculpted origami work truly elevated the field of paperfolding into a respectable medium for artistic expression.

I always hoped to meet him one day at a convention; the chance to do so in this world has now passed.

My limited contact with him consisted of him granting me permission to sell his cartoon rat- one of my favorite folds. All of Joisel's models have charm and humor. They are enchanting and exquisite...like wooden sculptures and clay statues, not folded paper. To look upon Joisel's origami masterpieces is to be humbled by awe and beauty.

This is the legacy he leaves behind- a gift to the world.

Also blogging:
Nick Robinson

None of Your Bee's Wax!

2010-08-15T15:07:00.000-07:00

Arriving 2 hours late, Thea and I found 2 fire trucks outside the library and our origami friends milling about. Apparently the building was evacuated on account of a bee invasion.

So much for origami this month.

Celebrating 50 Year Legacy of Aerospace Corporation

2010-06-05T22:04:00.001-07:00

June 5, 2010
Aerospace Corporation, El Segundo CA

I missed out on teaching gymnastics today to help Joe with his event, celebrating The Aerospace Corporation's 50 years of leadership in space programs. It might be the last opportunity to work with Joe since he says he's no longer doing these kind of things.

...So I had to get a picture of the three of us, "ruling the world" by supporting the earth and all its inhabitants with the fun of paperfolding.

Indoors, not a problem making the glider come back to me; but outdoors, it's pretty challenging, given the mercurial, fickle nature of wind patterns.

More pictures here.

Welcome to....Origami....IS.......Jerichooooooooo!!!

2010-05-20T08:34:00.000-07:00

I've been looking for this one on YouTube for ages. Finally someone on YouTube uploaded it (4 months ago), and I isolated the portion relevant to this blogsite:

I am a big Y2J fan (mainly, I loved how he portrayed himself from 1999-2001). Not only is he your party host and the most charismatic showman to ever enter your living room, via television screen; not only is he the Ayatollah of Rock-and-Rollah...your role model and hero for the new millennium...but the bad mammajamma Chris Jericho also has mad origami skills. Check it out.

Then put up your fat, grubby little paperfolding hands in the air and chant along with me:

Go Jericho go!

Go Jericho go!

Go Jericho go!

He Mele No Cherry Blossom Festival

2010-05-16T23:50:00.000-07:00

From the 2008 Monterey Park Cherry Blossom Festival:

Storigami Time....

2010-05-12T00:28:00.000-07:00

Anne Bedrick's teaching tale to deg farrelly's model has long been a favorite of mine. I hadn't told it in years, however, until last weekend, when I decided I wanted to include it in my Tarumpty Tum Tum transformation mechanism video. Should have rehearsed it first (my memory and delivery are not as polished as I once had it), but at least this should give you an idea of the power of the story and model. I flubbed the beginning when I said "snow begins to fall", instead of "snow begins to melt"; and I left out "...in the springtime, the flowers will begin to push up from the earth..."

Of course, I recite it in my own words, and did not memorize, verbatim, Anne Bedrick's story. The essence of it remains, but I think each storyteller should tell it in his own language, his own words that he feels comfortable with, and really "own it".

Paper "Iron Man" Mask

2010-05-10T21:12:00.001-07:00

I saw Iron Man 2 last Saturday. Today, I just felt in the mood to finally fold Brian Chan's "Armor Mask" (yeah, right...we know it's Iron Man- copyright be damned!)

Diagrams can be found in Tanteidan Convention Book 15

Seiryo Takekawa's Tarumpty Tum Tum (or "Tumbler") as Paper Metaphor Teaching Tool

2010-05-10T09:05:00.001-07:00

NOTE: If I have the energy for it, the video might see re-editing, as I notice where I get redundant in the latter half of the video...UGH!

(Video Transcript, more or less):
After reading some O-List mail asking for a simple model to teach as part of a presentation on origami, and after seeing the video Gilad Aharoni posted of the tarumpty tum tum tumbler in action, lined up like dominos, it gave me the idea that this model could be perfect as a transformation mechanism. From Pg 22 in Joel Bauer's book, How to Persuade People Who Don't Want to be Persuaded, a transformation mechanism is,

"It's a trick with a point. A mechanism puts people in a pleasure state, and that's where you want them. Off business, on pleasure. It sets a receptive atmosphere. When you use a mechanism, people are more likely to lower their defenses and give your ideas an honest hearing. A mechanism is a metaphor made physical, and thus made memorable and persuasive."

Joel Bauer is a mentalist and pitch-man who's business is to generate crowds for Fortune 500 companies- the very best at what he does. He's also a friend of mine who got into origami and saw the value of simple models as workable paper metaphors. While I was into super complex origami at the time, Joel, at his 1st OUSA Convention saw something relatively simple- deg farrelly's flapping butterfly- folded for him to a storigami (origami teaching tale), written by Anne Bedrick. Joel immediately saw the potential of that story to transform lives in deep and meaningful ways, as a transformation mechanism to get across the message- any message- he desired. He adapted his own story for the corporate world; and also one day challenged me to come up with a story on the spot, related to something I was familiar with- gymnastics- as a means of getting across the concept and principle behind the transformation mechanism.

So here, about 6 yrs later, another model I've all but ignored for all of my origami life, suddenly has great appeal to me and I am seeing it with new eyes. I am seeing it in the same light that Joel Bauer saw deg farrelly's model and origami storytelling.

The idea I came up with, to apply to my own situation, is to use it as a teaching vehicle for my gymnasts (and conveniently enough, the tarumpty tum tum is also known as "the tumbler").

At Broadway Gymnastics, for the past few months we've been having what we call "the word of the week" to help get the kids to think about the attributes and attitudes needed to cultivate a productive and vibrant gymnastics experience. Sometimes straight lectures on work ethic, proper nutrition, importance of conditioning, etc. just doesn't sink in the way you'd like...in one ear, out the other. Tranformation mechanisms are a great delivery system for stimulating the mind into being more receptive to learning and to absorbing ideas and taking lessons to heart.

So here's my idea for a summer camp game for the team girls:

Divide the girls up into teams.

Teach them how to fold the tumbler. This requires concentration, listening skills, memorization, thinking...ingredients needed in gymnastics as well. After folding, you explain what it is and what it does. For fun and to make it easier to tell which side should be at the top and which at the bottom, add googly sticker eyes (or draw them on). Yes, it "dumbs down the model" and removes the brain stimulation of kids (and adults) of actually having to understand which side of the model is top-heavy in layers; but the benefit is that it makes it quicker and more obvious visually to know which side should be up (kids can also have fun drawing the rest of the face on the model). I think so long as the kids understand why it moves the way it does, drawing eyes (or using some other visual means of instantaneous recognition of top and bottom) on should enhance the momentum of the occasion. Actually, having them draw the faces on themselves will make them have to think about which side goes up and which is down.

You then give the teams 5 minutes to make as many as they can (each team can also have a specific color to represent them).

After the 5 minutes of mass folding, the teams must then work together to figure out how to space the tumblers to make as many of them fall down as possible. This and helping each other fold the model utilizes one of the concepts we want them to value- one of team-work.

As a transformation mechanism, it can be a lesson on teamwork, time management/waste, listening skills to directions, etc. Maybe write on each ttt a word such as "time management", "conditioning", "parent", "Coach", "visualization", "role models/gymnasts who have come before", "work ethic", "dedication"- all those concepts and people in your lives who come together to lead you toward the path of success, with the last ttt domino knocking over your end goal.

Maybe also have the kids/folders write their own word choices on the models- whatever they deem important to achieving knocking down the final domino.

If nothing else, this should be a lot of fun.

Side note: I flubbed the Bedrick teaching tale in the video (hadn't rehearsed it, nor vocalized it for 2 or 3 yrs!), but you can find the original version here. Also, I know the video I made could easily have been cut down to 2 minutes in length; but I'm tired of editing and just wanted to share some of how I'm utilizing the model, personally.

Happy Easter!

2010-04-03T22:09:00.000-07:00

Decided to give Sara Adams' video a try and folded Peter Engel's Hatching Chick. Charming model for Easter!

Martin Quinn and Dennis Walker Stop-Motion Video

2010-03-23T14:27:00.000-07:00

Happy Chinese New Year!

2010-03-12T23:27:00.000-08:00

Photos of last Saturday's Lantern Festival at the Chinese-American Museum, here.

Happy Valentine's Day!

2010-02-14T16:15:00.000-08:00

Photos here.

The Paper Weight

2010-01-21T11:34:00.001-08:00

WCOG December Meeting

2009-12-25T00:01:00.000-08:00

Variation on V'Ann Cornelius' Origami Picture Frame

2009-12-24T20:29:00.001-08:00

Merry Christmas!

Diagrams of the 4 piece model appeared in OUSA's The Paper. A few years back, WCOG members were folding it, and Jim Cowling doodled with folding it from one piece of paper.

Recently, I revisited the model and refined it down to the proportioning shown in the video.

Joe's Double-barreled Newspaper Banger Yields Some Surprising Results

2009-12-16T09:43:00.000-08:00

When Origami is Just Plane Fun!

2009-12-08T12:26:00.000-08:00

I get a lot of ooh's and aah's when I launch my paper glider. But it's nothing new or unique. Just check out Sonny Ang's demonstration of his zoomerang:

Tutorial here, and fine-tuning tips.

Then be amazed at Paper Airplane Guy, John Collins:

Tutorial for a boomerang plane, here.

Excerpt of Yami's On-Stage Demo at 2008 Cherry Blossom Festival

2009-12-06T15:25:00.000-08:00

Demo excerpt of 2008 Cherry Blossom Festival

2009-12-06T14:13:00.000-08:00

Filmed on April 11, 2008, this is a performance demonstration of the Robert Neale dollar ƸӜƷ:

WCOG Meeting April 11, 2009

2009-12-06T07:40:00.000-08:00

WCOG September 2008 Meeting

2009-12-05T21:04:00.000-08:00

Aquarium of the Pacific Autumn Festival 2009

2009-11-14T20:11:00.000-08:00

From last weekend. Yami, Joe, and I missed PCOC; but some of us had to stay behind to entertain the masses...

Link to pix.

Joe's Twist Box Toy

2009-10-29T21:27:00.000-07:00

The first time I saw this was about a year ago. Joe Hamamoto said he got the basket-weaving slinky part from his granddaughter. I don't know if anyone in particular designed it. It's too simple, that I doubt it can be traced to any one person. However, it was Joe's idea to do this out of giftwrapping paper and glue the ends to the insides of a masu box. This is the results.

POP Beta testing twist box die

2009-10-25T22:22:00.000-07:00

I learned this collapsible model (designed by Akiko Yamanashi) from Boaz Shuval at WCOG in February of '05. I thought I"d invest $300 in an experiment, and have a die made of the crease pattern in the hopes that non-folders will be able to do this model. Even though they don't have to worry about putting in the crease lines, it's probably still a bit of challenge to put together and collapse for young kids.

I had a thousand sheets of cardstock scored with the crease pattern in time for the Aquarium of the Pacific's Autmn Festival. Joe, Yami, and I will be making our 5th year return (although I think I missed the last 2 years, personally), snubbing PCOC in San Francisco, same weekend (major OUSA Convention, like the one in NYC).

We just can't be everywhere, all at once.

Lame....

2009-10-17T20:51:00.000-07:00

I just figured out that YouTube has disabled my primary account, "due to terms of violation" regarding copyright infringement. A couple of days ago I got two back to back notices regarding my video uploads of Chainey on Mr. Rogers:

Dear Member:

This is to notify you that we have removed or disabled access to the following material as a result of a third-party notification by Family Communications, Inc. claiming that this material is infringing:

Chainey Returns to Mr Rogers Neighborhood Pt I MOV04802: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bfGDElz857M

Please Note: Repeat incidents of copyright infringement will result in the deletion of your account and all videos uploaded to that account. In order to prevent this from happening, please delete any videos to which you do not own the rights, and refrain from uploading additional videos that infringe on the copyrights of others. For more information about YouTube's copyright policy, please read the Copyright Tips guide.

If you elect to send us a counter notice, please go to our Help Center to access the instructions.

Please note that under Section 512(f) of the Copyright Act, any person who knowingly materially misrepresents that material or activity was removed or disabled by mistake or misidentification may be subject to liability.

Sincerely,
YouTube, Inc.

Given that there were 3 videos (with Chainey's second appearance in 2 parts), I didn't even think to head 'em off at the pass and disable the third video. I uploaded it so long ago, my mind wasn't thinking of preemption. So it seems 3 strikes and I'm out. Seems grossly unfair to have my account deleted in this manner. If I had subsequently uploaded more copyright infringing videos after their notice, then I'd say that qualifies as "repeat violation".

Ah well.....some 200 videos (origami, gymnastics, and others) that I have to consider whether or not it's worth the time to upload....

One blessing is that I don't have to receive all those comments blasting me for the WCOG video showing Phu Tran teaching it to members, but not being an instructional video of his rose. My God, if you people only knew what a headache that's been....

Japanese Gardens, Van Nuys

2009-10-12T08:58:00.000-07:00

Yami, Joe, and I were invited once again to the Van Nuys Japanese Gardens for another Origami Festival; this time arranged by Sylvia Wong (Michael Fritzen, our old contact, has since departed).

Here are a couple of video clips of Yami and Joe in action toward the end of the festival:

Photos here.

A Birthday Message

2009-08-28T09:30:00.000-07:00

Fun model taught to me by a Japanese lady at the 2005 OUSA Convention; I believe it's a Kunihiko Kasahara variation, found in Origami Omnibus.

Happiness in the Garden of Imagination

2009-07-18T22:02:00.000-07:00

This is from last Sunday's Origami Festival in the Japanese Gardens at CSULB:

Photos here.

WCOG Meeting July 11, 2009

2009-07-15T23:15:00.000-07:00

Origami pins donated by Mark Kennedy to Yami for distribution to the teachers at last Sunday's Origami Festival at CSULB

While the Cahuenga Branch Library undergoes renovations for the months of July and August, the folding must go on! So the WCOG came together at the Pico Union Branch Library last weekend.

WCOG 2009 photos here.

Monterey Park Cherry Blossom Festival from 2006

2009-07-11T07:55:00.000-07:00

Found these clips in a folder and decided to put them to some use. Not much of a video, as with my old camera, I could only take about 10 second clips, bad resolution, and just didn't do much filming that particular year for the yearly festival.

Chicago Area Origami Society

2009-07-06T08:22:00.000-07:00

ChAOS meets on the second Saturday of each month at the Garfield Park Conservatory.

Won Dollar Folding- That's What I Want!

2009-06-07T23:49:00.000-07:00

Photo by Mike Jittlov

Won made it to two different origami meetings out here, during his trip to Los Angeles in February. This video is from the POP meeting, in Roxbury Park.

Pacific Ocean Paperfolders (POP) holds its monthly meeting around the 4th Sunday of the month, from 1-4 PM at the Roxbury Park Recreation Center in Beverly Hills. The address is 471 S. Roxbury Drive, between Pico and Olympic.

Joel Stern took over the leadership reigns after Dorothy Engelman passed away.

Photos here.

Cherry Blossom Festival Music Video 2009

2009-05-04T00:50:00.000-07:00

There used to be a musician named Ken who would street perform on weekends in Little Tokyo. Whenever he saw me, he'd play for me one of my favorite tunes: Hana, an Okinawan song. A few years ago, he moved to Phoenix (incidentally, I saw him there at the Matsuri Festival the first year I was invited).

I used it on a previous Monterey Park video, from 4 years ago. I decided to use it again, this time with a Hawaiian version.

Pictures here.

Origami Whoopie Thingy

2009-05-02T21:21:00.000-07:00

The magic of Robert Neale's dollar butterfly

2009-04-30T13:51:00.000-07:00

My material is still slowly evolving and getting refined; I know exactly what I need to do to make the presentation better. I just haven't taken the time to do my homework and rehearse the material (I haven't done this model since the last festival).

I think what I need to do is research some material from the field of physics and aerodynamics to give some bs rhetoric about Newton's First and Third Law, wind current and wing lift, upwash and downwash, angle of attack, etc....you know: Get them thinking there's a rational, scientific explanation (other than the simple, obvious one- I'm squeezing a lever).

Also, when someone does question whether or not I am pinching, I should hand it to them while secretly undoing the petal-fold, so he can try it himself. Sometimes, even handing the model to a person untampered has the person failing to make the wings flap.

In Memory of Vernon Isaac, May 25, 1948 - April 10, 2009

2009-04-22T21:47:00.000-07:00

From L to R: Michael Sanders, Won Park, Vernon Isaac
Photo by Susan Dugan, OUSA 2002

Wendy Zeichner writes to the OUSA mailing list:

It is with great sadness that I announce that Vernon Isaac (our own
Metrocard modular man) passed away last week (from lung cancer) in
South Carolina with his family by his side.

The family is having a Memorial Service in New York on May 16, 2009 at 5pm.
It will be held at:
Garden of Prayer Cathedral Church
1874 Washington Avenue (off Tremont Avenue)
Bronx, NY 10457

I did not know Vernon well; but I knew him as soon as he entered a room, at my first OUSA Convention. He has the kind of presence and personality that floods a room..

For the benefit of those who did not have the good fortune to meet Vernon, and for the sake of those of us who fondly do remember him and who will miss his physical presence at OUSA in June, I pieced together some videoclips I took primarily from OUSA 2005. I'm sorry it's choppy, but in 2005, the digital camera I was using could only take 10 second clips:

As brief as it is, I hope it gives the viewer a good sense of Vernon's personality. Vernon is the kind of person one does not soon forget. He has this innate charm and ability to make instant friends. Following are email comments from the OUSA Members List (to be updated):

I met Vernon for the first time in New York 2002. He was very friendly and kind. We will all miss him very much.

Won Park

Hello.
Vernon was a very origami active person. I met him several times in all the New York Conventions I have been attendded, also in the last Charlotte Festival in 2002 and the last time at the LIFE Festival in Long Island in 2007.

His death was a very big lost to the origami world, because sometimes you remember more a person for his origami charisma than for the other things he did. He likes to be with the people teaching his modular models.

Jose Tomas Buitrago

Wow. I'm so sorry to hear this. I had no idea that Vernon was ill.
This is very sad news.

Vernon was a strong presence at every New York origami convention.
I know of many first-time convention-goers who were befriended by Vernon
and delighted by his enthusiasm and talents at teaching.

I, for one, continue to use a teaching tip that I learned from him:
Whenever I teach a model and we complete a step that has to be done
on the other side of the paper or on the other half of the paper (like
a cupboard fold), then Vernon would say, "And you know that last move we
did? We liked it so much, that we'll do it again!" I love that line,
and I think
of Vernon whenever I use it.

--- Tom Hull

I am heartbroken. I was one of those first-timers at the convention and at
NYC Folding Sundays that Vernon befriended. His pure joy in both origami
and life was always infectious. I could never talk to Vernon without ending
up with a grin on my face. Is there a way that we could establish an annual
convention award (no prize, just the recognition and appreciation) for
someone who personally contributes the most to nurturing the origami
community by taking others under his or her wings?

I would be happy to help make this happen as my own way to remember this
wonderful man.

Naomi Rodolitz

Seeing Vernon was one of those little things at
convention that I always looked forward to. He was always there with a
smile and a big bear hug, welcoming, funny and generous. I'll miss him
a great deal.

Anne LaVin

I didn't know Vernon very well. I don't know many of the folks I see
at convention very well (and my inability to attend regularly doesn't
help).

The tapestry of the convention is woven from many threads; Vernon was
flamboyant presence and his thread will be missed for many reasons. I
too did not know he was ill, and I am very sad that I missed the
convention last year and another chance to see him.

-D'gou

Douglas Philips

I am deeply saddened to read that Vernon is no longer with us. I have met
him at many OUSA conventions. He was a master of Metro card modulars and
always so generous with his time and a supply of metro cards. My prayers are
with the family.

Ravi Apte

What was the name of the really long metro card creature he made? Was
it Jake the Snake?

He will be greatly missed. He was such a kind and generous man to us
out of town folks.

Lori Gregory

I think the award should be a Metro Card Jake the Snake, about six
feet long, as close to Vernon's height as possible. The recipient
shall wear the award as a boa during the ceremony and for the
remainder of the evening.

This represents not only Vernon's interest in modulars, but also his
presence, which, like a giant snake, was impossible to ignore.

Plus, it's pretty darned funny, and I guarantee he would appreciate it.

I volunteer to help fold and assemble the units. I think we could make
at least two to three years worth of awards during this year's
convention, particularly if we start early.

Rob Hudson, who misses Vernon's bawdiness terribly

One of my favorite convention memories is teaching Vernon Isaac how to
fold the modular Jitterbug, a model that was wildly popular a few
conventions ago. I was explaining that you had to "fold this edge to
the imaginary line between these points," and he looked at me with a
straight face and said, "but I don't HAVE an imaginary line there."
He was a genuinely funny man - how sad to hear that he's gone.

Scott Cramer

Photo by Michael Sanders, OUSA Convention 2007

Hi all,
Thanks so much for sharing your memories of Vernon (I laughed and
cried.) I plan to pull together everyone's remarks to send to
Vernon's family. I especially enjoyed the stories about Jake the
Snake and I will see if we can arrange to have Jake make one more
Convention appearance.
/Wendy Zeichner

I will never forget, my first class at my first Origami convention
ever (in New York) and the teacher was Vernon.
Oddly, I am teaching an origami class today and was picking out models
to show the class and what comes out of the box, the same model, I
folded in that class.

Vernon will surely be missed. His personality and lively spirit will
be most missed at Origami Heaven festival, which he has religiously
attended and entertained several
attendees. I have uploaded some of his pictures (which captures so
beautifully who he truly was).

Please check his photos
(you dont need facebook account).

Shrikant Iyer

I met Vernon twice and liked him very much. He was very enthousiastic and was able to let everybody fold with the metro cards. He was a fun man. I am sorry he passed away, but I feel lucky to have met him.

I am happy to see all the reactions on this list and the initiative to create an award.

Best regards to his family and friends,

Paula Versnick from Holland.

I too knew him and liked him and looked
forward to seeing him at conventions and will miss him now that he's
gone. He was a remarkable (and remarkably outgoing) person, and he made
conventions more fun for a lot of people.

Michael Naughton

It was with deep shock and surprise to learn of Vernon's Death. We had no idea that he was sick.
Vernon had visited our house a few months back to attend a monthly origami meeting. He brought us a section of Jake the Snake made out of Japanese metro-cards. I had picked up some cards while in Japan. More were given to me by visitors and guests - what better place for them to live than with Vernon. Vernon said that he had decided to give up Jake. The last I remember was that Jake was over 53 feet.
We will bring the section to Origami Sunday tomorrow.
We had passed along the announcement to members of my local group, Vernon will be remembered fondly and missed by them as well. He showed up infrequently and larger than life; loud and boisterous and full of jokes.
Mark Kennedy - Arlene Gorchov

I too was very fond of Vernon. I guess I was sort of unaware
of what his presence contributed to the convention since I saw him at other
times in NY and he was always upbeat, fun to be with and greeted me with
open arms - literally - he was a great hugger. I can see as a first timer or
someone who only saw him once a year how his impact would be greater.

Jean Baden-Gillette

HI All
Vernon will always be a great person to know and will be missed.
I know I already miss him.
He touched a lot of people's minds and hearts.

Michael Verry

In 2001, my first convention, I met Vernon on the elevator between
classes. He was asking people about exchanging the state quarters
with the D mark on them for P marked quarters that he had. I was
interested in collecting these quarters so we introduced ourselves to
each other and from that point on at each convention we exchanged
quarters. Vernon was always the first person I would look for at the
convention because his smile and bear hugs were so welcoming. He
taught me one of his metrocard modulars. Being my first time to
create a modular, locking it together was a difficult task. He gently
took my hands and placed all the pieces in them and helped me lock the
last piece in.

This was the kind of person he was, kind and sincere to the last
"detail." I will miss him greatly.

Jennifer Gerring
Houston, TX

(Susumu Nakajima on the left, teaching the mouse cap)
Photo by Michael Sanders, OUSA Convention 2005

Sometimes, size does matter...

2009-04-19T23:10:00.000-07:00

...in origami. Yami teaches a simple banger to a small audience at the Monterey Park Cherry Blossom Festival, April 19, 2009; a couple of older ladies are having trouble; but changing the size of the paper to something large is not only much easier to have pop open, but also produces a much larger >snap<

A Plane Day at the Monterey Park, Cherry Blossom Festival

2009-04-19T06:43:00.001-07:00

Paper-f(l)ight at the O.K. Cherry Blossom Festival

2009-04-18T23:35:00.000-07:00

Tail-end of our demo has the audience members participate in a folding contest, after learning a simple banger....

Sircey is one of my gymnastics students. Cathleen, one of my adult gymnastics clients, also sits in the audience. I'm expecting a few more familiar faces, tomorrow.

Won Park Dollar Koi Tutorial

2009-04-05T12:00:00.000-07:00

Part I: Introduction and diagram corrections

Part II: Folding the scales

Part III: Folding the head and fins

Part IV: Continuing with the fins and crimping the head

Part V: Folding side crimps on the head

Part VI: Folding the lips and whiskers

Part VII: Rounding the body, shaping the lips and whiskers

Pt. VIII: Shaping the illusion of dorsal fin, shaping tail and finalizing body

Photo compliments of Yukie
From left to right: Michael (he doesn't drink), Won (drinks), Yukie (probably)

WCOG Meeting, March 14, 2009

2009-03-16T09:42:00.000-07:00

Besides bringing Thea, a couple of other gymnast-friends of mine also came to the library this month with their families. Ani and Paul brought Alejandra; Hanna brought Miriam and her brother Ethan.

Yukie now folds the best dollar koi, second only to Won. Actually, I'd challenge anyone to tell the difference between one folded by her and one folded by Won.

Fred had a few Won Park two-piece dollar dragons that he's been folding. He figured out much of it on his own.

Photos here.

Matsuri 2009

2009-02-28T08:28:00.000-08:00

While Won Park was here in Southern California entertaining us, Yami was in Phoenix Arizona as a guest artist for the Matsuri Festival. He and Phyllis Snyder, who also attended, did get to see Won on Friday, before heading out there last weekend.

Patty Grodner made a music video to showcase some of what went on at the Festival and origami workshop:

A "Won"-derful Weekend of Paperfolding Magic

2009-02-24T09:35:00.000-08:00

Won Park holds up his "Won" dollar bill crease patterns.

Won arrived from Hawaii Thursday night. I picked him up from LAX and took him to Yukie's house, in South Pasadena. He and Yukie stayed up until 4am, working on the dollar koi. From my Convention experiences, I knew this kind of late-night folding would happen.

Toilet CP for those of you who keep begging for toilet diagrams in order to flush your money down the drain.

Friday, after treating Yukie and myself to a shot of wheatgrass- a daily ritual for Won-, we hosted a small origami gathering at Yukie's house. Beverly Baudino, Yami, and Phyllis Snyder made it; John Andrisan did not.

Won folds a napkin rose and gives it to Phyllis.

Won taught us his dollar camera and a dollar ring I hadn't seen before.

Saturday, he was at the Peninsula Paperfolders meeting at the Malaga Cove Library. There, he taught his dolphin.

Andrew, a very talented WCOG folder

Sunday, I brought one of my gymnasts to the Pacific Ocean Paperfolders meeting at the Roxbury Park Community Center in Beverly Hills. There, Won taught a dollar bill jumping frog design and his double crane.

My friend Erin was looking through Won's model, picks one out and said, "Cool...Yoda". I turned the model over, right-side up so she could see that it was a toilet, not a Yoda.

Fred, one of the WCOG members, was shown the base of Won's two-piece dragon and was able to do much of it on his own, just from looking at photos. Won was greatly impressed. Won was also impressed with the skill level of a number of the children in Joel Stern's group.

Sunday evening we wrapped up filming for an instructional koi video (it will take me a bit of time to edit). Basically we stayed up all night, with just enough time for us to fold a toilet and Herman Lau flower-in-a-pot before taking him to the airport.

Won wants to help his moneyfolders group get through the koi, and get through it as accurately as possible. There are a lot of details that are just hard to get across in diagrams. I learned a lot from having Won here for the weekend, and even though my kois have been decent enough prior to this visit, my understanding is 99% closer to being more "accurate" now. Already, the couple I've folded since this weekend are looking much more "Won-like". Yukie also got a heavy-dose of koi immersion training. I think she deserves a diploma from the Won Park School of Hard-Core Orikane, saying she is a certified phase IV black belt instructor in teaching the $koi. Her family was very gracious in "surrendering" their home to us for 3 days of imposing ourselves in paperfolding and raiding the kitchen refrigerator.

Won was absolutely generous with his time, patience, and willingness to share his knowledge with others. He is extremely gifted and talented in other fields; not just in origami. Thank you, Won!

"Kanpai!"Won's secret elixer for how he comes up with such amazing folds; it's "won" AM in the morning, and he's just getting started.

Stay-tuned for a couple of videos coming out, plus a new, if imperfect (you might here a toilet flush in the background and the pitter-patter of Skunky) koi tutorial.

More photos posted to my shutterfly account:

Won Park visits.

Peninsula Paperfolders

Pacific Ocean Paperfolders

Won Park: Year of the Ox

2009-02-20T02:05:00.000-08:00

Happy Valentine's Day!

2009-02-14T12:06:00.000-08:00

A gymnast I teach made me the following card:

I handed out David Petty beating hearts to my Thursday class; I gave one to Thea's brother, Isaac, who couldn't stop laughing and playing with the origami model:

And Thea makes her....I dunno, she's made it to so many meetings of late, I'm losing count:

Know of Any Great T-Shirt Designs?

2009-01-30T13:46:00.000-08:00

Interesting T-shirt idea.

Hat tip: The Origami Forum

WCOG January Meeting

2009-01-11T11:41:00.000-08:00

Yami introduced a new die he made for a container designed by Clemente Giusto of Italy. Giusto's starbox has long been a staple of folding by Yami and Joe (just check the archives for festival videos).

In an email response to Yami by Tricia Tait:

The star (twist) box you are referring to is by Clemente Giusto of Italy. Sara Giarusso, from the Italian origami society, saw his little box in a pizza shop. She asked the owner about it and he hooked her up with Clemente. He was a "closet" folder and didn't know others in Italy did origami, as well. She invited him to his first convention (and my first Italian one) about 8 years ago. I remember that he had many creations that he was sharing with the other folders. He was teaching way past 4am when I finally went to sleep!

Through some correspondence with Tricia, Yami acquired knowledge of another design by Clemente Giusto: Scatola Rettangolare Chiusa. You can see it in last month's WCOG video; and in this month's, Yami introduces a new die he had made that scores the paper with a crease pattern for the Scatola Rettangolare. Yami's done this before for his Doodle-Bug, having index-sized cardstock scored by a die (actually, the cards are perforated off from an 8 1/2 x 11 sheet of paper).

Why bother? Because Yami enjoys sharing the joys of paperfolding with the world. Even though folders are "cheated" out of the challenge of starting at scratch, and folding all the creases themselves, it allows beginners (Yami often has children in mind) to experience the magic of being able to complete what is otherwise a fairly complex (to non-folders) model, with a feeling of accomplishment that they did the work themselves. My friend Thea, who is 11, has some folding experience- but not extensive. Within a few minutes, Yami had successfully taught her how to collapse the model along its crease pattern, and follow the proper fold sequence to the model's completion.

Yami, Joe, and I often work with teaching and entertaining non-folders who come by our tables at festivals; so this is a great addition to our repertoire of origami.

Also uploaded to YouTube (Blip TV is higher resolution).

I also finally gave Thea her Christmas present. A Montroll Horse and a Kasahara cube that opens up with a Christmas scene inside (I've made a giant one before with miniatures nesting inside, each opening into various scenes and landscapes, similar to the one advertised in the inside cover to Origami Omnibus):

Origami on Local Public Access Broadcasting

2008-12-20T19:51:00.000-08:00

Carolyn hosts this, and invited me to do two programs. The first one, "Origami 3", I used up the entire airtime to demonstrate the folding pattern of Montroll's horse (I didn't dwell on teaching it slow, as I only had 25 minutes tops.

This is from a Long Beach public access program. Teaching the Robert Neale dollar bill flapping butterfly with John Andrisan's cosmetic modifications.

Unscripted and dry...funny toward the end...hey, it's public access! What more can you expect?

Thanks to both Johns for their permission to teach this on the airwaves.

Another video on Folding the Fins on Won Park's $ koi fish

2008-12-20T19:34:00.000-08:00

Many folders still complain about steps 37-39 on Marcio Noguchi's diagrams of Won Park's koi. I've started folding some more as Christmas gifts and thought I'd film myself doing part of the fins.

Sorry if it's not great quality, but it was a challenge keeping the model in focus since I had the camera around my neck; I'm surprised nothing came out blurry. I forgot to turn the tv off in the background. So I replaced the natural sound with music. If that annoys you, just turn the volume off. I guarantee the sci-fi channel program in the background was so stupid, you'd thank me for replacing the sound.
Step photos can still be found here.
Also, I've been experimenting with applying methyl cellulose to the dollar koi model. I find it a bit challenging to keep the model from "expanding" when moistened too much with it, after it's already been shaped. I've had more enjoyable success at applying it when after the scales have been pleated, and the model is still flat. I then apply a dab here and there as I continue folding and shaping.

Merry Christmas!

2008-12-15T07:20:00.000-08:00

Luminary and one of the WCOG Founding Folders (well....not exactly, but member since 1986), Terry Hall, returns after a 6 year sabbatical.

The last time Terry folded with the group was at my first meeting. I arrived late, and he was folding a beautiful Montroll horse for a young girl. That inspired me. The only other time Terry came in the last 6 years was to drop off a couple of boxloads of folded models to be given away.

Catherine Ortiz took over leadership chores from Terry; but now, she stopped attending on a regular basis for about the last 2 or 3 years. No more newsletter, no one really in charge, although John Andrisan takes on some leadership tasks.

WCOG May 10, 2008

2008-12-12T23:40:00.000-08:00

This is a video of raw footage from our WCOG May 10th meeting:

The opening scene is from an event that Yami and I did at Griffith Park for the mayor, for a couple of hours prior to heading over to the library.

Have you folded a book, lately?

2008-12-12T10:03:00.000-08:00

I have David Brill's "Brilliant Origami", but never got around to folding the books, until I happened upon Mari Michaelis' instructional videos. It was her bookcase design, though, that got me out of my malaise, and I just started folding to her videos.

Books

Bookcase.

I think there's a bookcase design in Origami Omnibus, as well (I'm too lazy to go look it up at the moment- the real book sits on a real shelf, in a real bookcase, gathering dust). But this 3-piece bookcase worked just fine. Loved using the wood print paper, finally (as well as the brick printed wall and wood print floor). Anyway, another charming model set.

Well, this about covers it all....

2008-12-10T11:00:00.000-08:00

Found this video by Mari Michaelis:

"Life is Beautiful" created by Yoichi Yamauchi (Yami), is an arrangement of 427 individual models.
Top left: Health. Bottom left: Happiness. Top right: Have Dreams. Bottom right: Most beautiful.

More at Yami's Corner
(Don't forget to check out the two articles by Yami:
The Magic of Origami (Check out the original Nippon Keizai Shinbun article)
Folding Myself from Grief to Joy)

My New Fave Fold

2008-12-09T14:21:00.000-08:00

Rocking horse, designed by origamist redpaper (seo won seon). Other models from his book, Creative Origami, here.

I ordered through Jassu, and it arrived from Korea in less than a week, even though I was told to give it two weeks.

Love it!

The Fun of Paper Gliders

2008-12-04T10:47:00.000-08:00

Apparently, my simple video entry is ineligible for the competition, since I live outside the UK/Ireland. (That's ok, though....I don't really feel a strong yearning to ride around in a helicopter- so there!). You can see more entries here.

This was brought to my attention when I saw Nick Robinson's post to the Origami Mailing List.

Here's my entry:

Michael Sanders' Cicada Boomerang Glider @ Yahoo! Video

Very simple, "on the fly" quick-take video. Also uploaded onto YouTube.

Here are a couple of Nick Robinson's designs:

"Little Nicky"

"Triplane"

Natural History Museum's Art & Science Family Day: "Beautiful Birds"

2008-11-27T20:56:00.000-08:00

This is our second time at the Museum; we were there, maybe two years ago. The theme was birds. I've never been much for origami birds, so didn't have much in the way of exhibit models, pre-made. I wanted to do more complex ones, but ran out of time.

I was pleased to see two friends from my gymnastics life come by for a visit.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Photos here.

Happy Thanksgiving!

2008-11-27T12:25:00.000-08:00

Hat tip: Douglas Philips on Origami-L (mailing List)

Yami gets away with "Grabbing the breast and pulling the tail"

2008-11-24T23:16:00.001-08:00

This is Randlett's flapping bird.

I sometimes wince at Yami's humor when it borders on the edge of "inappropriate for children's ears".

There was one year that Yami apparently offended some wife of some program director at the JACC in downtown Los Angeles, during Children's Day. I only learned of it sometime later, when we stopped getting invited back, after two years of doing it. My contact didn't know the details, but I it's hard to imagine Yami offending anyone since he's so generous and kind; but I wonder if it had to do with humor like this?

I vaguely remember him phrasing something in a really funny way (I'm absolutely sure it was unintentional, and just came out funny) once, while teaching the Thai tulip. I don't remember the exact wording, but it had to do with the moment when you expand the model, like the waterbomb, by blowing air into it. To orient the students s to which way to hold the model, he said "this is the top and this is the bottom...." and pointed to his rear end.....then talked about blowing through the hole. I wish I could remember the way it came out, because it was hilarious. But I'm sure you can just imagine...

Have Furoshiki, will Travel

2008-11-24T10:45:00.000-08:00

While closing up shop, there were still a few odds and ends on the table that Yami hadn't packed away yet. Yami showed us what to do with it.

From Wikipedia:

"Furoshiki (風呂敷, furoshiki) are a type of traditional Japanese wrapping cloth that were frequently used to transport clothes, gifts, or other goods. Although possibly dating back as far as the Nara period, the name, meaning "bath spread", derives from the Edo period practice of using them to bundle clothes while at the sentō (public baths;public furo). Before becoming associated with public baths, furoshiki was known as hirazutsumi (平包), or flat folded bundle. Eventually, the furoshiki's usage extended to serve as a means for merchants to transport their wares or to protect and decorate a gift.

Modern furoshiki can be made of a variety of cloths, including silk, chirimen, cotton, rayon, and nylon. Furoshiki are often decorated with traditional designs or by shibori. There is no one set size for furoshiki, they can range from hand sized to larger than bed-sheets. The most common sizes are 45cm (17.7 inch) and 68-72cm (26.7-28.3 inch).

Although there are still furoshiki users in Japan, their numbers declined in the post-war period, in large part due to the proliferation of the plastic shopping bag. In recent years, it has seen a renewed interest as environmental protection became a concern. Furoshiki are, however, commonly used to wrap and transport lunch boxes (bento) and often double as a table mat for the lunch."

Yami also sent me this link diagramming how to do this.

Yami Folds Under Pressure

2008-11-23T23:30:00.000-08:00

While showing my friend Thea how easy it is to piece together Kenneth Kawamura's butterfly ball using a "third hand" template, Yami goofs it up the 2nd time around- a rarity:

Joe Charms the Women with a Change of Heart

2008-11-23T19:47:00.000-08:00

I can't tell you how often Joe charms the ladies with this model.

Steve Hecht has diagrams for anyone interested in folding one.

Joe Demonstrates the Flying "Catch" Fish

2008-11-23T19:33:00.000-08:00

Unbelievable how Joe can take something so simple as to not raise my eyebrow, and turn it into a thing of magic that delights kids; adults find their hearts melt back to the wonders of childhood, as well.

This video shows you how to make the cuts for the tail (calls it a paper blimp).

Origami Redpaper

2008-11-23T11:06:00.000-08:00

I love these models by Origami Redpaper (Seo Won Seon):

Blogsite here. He has a few teaching videos, including this flapping bat and a very cool peacock, where you can position the feathers to spread out or remain closed.

Yami's Magic Wallet

2008-11-11T00:57:00.001-08:00

Chris Palmer's Hat Tent

2008-10-26T18:48:00.000-07:00

I learned this around 6 years ago. I've had the opportunity to meet Chris Palmer a few times during my annual trips to OUSA. His work is amazing!

Chris Palmer's website

Here's one with a slower paper memory:

Just be warned: It's a 3 minute video, and by half-way through, it becomes like watching paint dry and grass grow.

Origami Sighting- The Great Uncle Sam "Bill Out"

2008-10-04T18:44:00.000-07:00

Cartoon from USA Today

Hat tip: Kathy Knapp of Peoria, Illinois

The Paper Trix

2008-08-10T22:58:00.000-07:00

Spinning Top in Under 4 Minutes

2008-07-22T14:17:00.000-07:00

Sara Adams has a video on how to fold Manpei Arai's spinning top. I made the following video a while back for the purposes of showing how quickly you can fold this model. Why you ask? It's been a staple "giveaway" model of mine, so I produce them en masse, even folding several sheets together at one time to form the base. Sure, you sacrifice a bit on neatness, but not by much.

Annie Pidel's photo-steps can still be found here.

All the World's a Spinner

2008-06-22T19:09:00.000-07:00

I haven't attended a POP meeting in ages. The late Dorothy Engelman arranged the group (I believe I attended the first meeting), and Joel Stern has since taken over the helm. I first met Neil Eisman at POP, and later, Jared Needle.

Joe Hamamoto seems to see every modular as a model he can blow and make spin between his thumb and finger; and Yami seems to see everything as a challenge to turn into a spinner. He did that about two months ago with a model someone showed him, where he added a center unit to make it spinnable, and I joked that everything can be made to spin, and proceeded to turn my John Szinger turtle over onto its back and spin it on its shell.

I missed last week's WCOG meeting, but it sounds like Bennett brought a model shown to him by Mark Kennedy 20 years ago and Yami added one more unit to make it spin. Author of the original design is not known, but maybe Mark can shed some light on it.

I believe Bennett said he submitted diagrams to OUSA.

No Bones About It

2008-05-25T21:28:00.000-07:00

*ahem*:

12/13/2005 - A folded eagle appeared on the TV series Bones in "The Man in the Fallout Shelter" (Christmas episode # 108). In the show, the forensic team is quarantined just before Christmas and prepare handmade gifts for each other from items in the lab. FBI agent Booth (David Boreanaz) makes an origami eagle for Dr. Goodman, the director of the Jeffersonian. The model was the eagle from "Origami Zoo" by Robert J. Lang, and was folded by Michael Ujin Sanders.

That would be yours truly!

I only just viewed the episode in question. I have no idea what the premise of the show is about.
If I remember correctly, I folded 2 Robert Lang Eagles from Origami Zoo, and about 2 more that were partially folded, in case they decided to film David Boreanaz "folding" the model (they settled on showing Boreanaz ripping a sheet of paper, fading out to the next scene)

The model only makes a brief appearance toward the end of the episode. I like where Dr. Goodman, who opens the present with the origami eagle, asks, "You made this?" And Boreanaz gives a modest "yeah."

You can view the episode in its entirety here.

Jackie Chan Adventures- "Origami"

2008-05-25T15:47:00.000-07:00

Never saw this before, until recently; although I've seen it discussed on the O-List in the past:

Description:

A Jackie Chan Adventures episode #221 was called "Origami" an[d] aired 12/2001 on the WB Kid's Network.. A paper man steals an ancient Chinese painting from the Louvre, then changes into an eagle reminiscent of Lang's Eagle and takes flight. Jackie next appears at a famous art collectors house to offer to guard his collection. Viper is already there offering her service to Mr. Kasahara. The paper man appears and steals something of Mr. Kasahara's and Jackie again pursues the origami man. At one point, Jackie realizes that Kuniko Kasahara is the Origami thief. The climax starts with the origami man trying to steal a vase from the Louvre, but it is too heavy for the eagle to carry. There is a dramatic scene where Origami man has changed into a pterodactyl (Montroll-ish) and is chasing Jackie up the Eiffel Tower and his wing tips cut the steel cables supporting the stairs. The final scene shows Kasahara in jail folding little Jackie's and crushing them.

The character background states that Origami got his super powers because he found an enchanted square of paper with the power to transform. The paper REMADE him. Now us has some kind of "folding power" to transform into all kinds of shapes. Some pictures here

Episode Number: 27 Season Number: 2 First Aired: Monday November 5, 2001 Production Code: 221

Has anyone seen Origami Warriors before? I dunno....it kinda looks like crap.

Sipho Mabona's Koi

2008-05-12T14:18:00.000-07:00

Amazing video, and beautiful model:

Hat tip: Saj's Origami Forum