Qulu Box
This box is the second design in the Zulu family. Instead of just triangles, the center of the molecule contains a square surrounded by trapezoids. The molec...
There are a group of models which I call origami-first designs and which could also be described as useful origami, origami objects, or practical origami. These are origami models such as boxes which can be used in and of themselves. They are not abstract designs, but they can’t be called figurative, either, since they do not try to represent any other objects. They just stand for themselves and are designed as origami from the ground up.
This box is the second design in the Zulu family. Instead of just triangles, the center of the molecule contains a square surrounded by trapezoids. The molec...
After folding this box for the first time, I thought its side walls were parallelograms and thus the whole box was a prismoid with the top polygon removed. L...
Another take on a crown-shaped box, with edges more jagged than in the original Crown Box.
A simple coaster that starts from a square twist and has a color change.
This model has a very nice folding sequence. It stays flat throughout almost all the steps, and is only popped into being 3D at the last moment. Proportions ...
A very simple box whose lid is divided into four identical squares. It is basically the back side of a single molecule of Four-Sink Base Tessellation plus wa...
Derived from Box with Woven Triangles IX by changing the layer ordering.
The tessellation molecule that decorates this box spent several years in my drawer before I finally made a clean fold, since I designed it shortly after Dune...
This box is decorated with a tessellation molecule that I called “Zulu” since the square with two diagonals resembles the maritime “Z” (Zulu) flag. Several p...
This is a simple box decorated with a molecule of Braided Pinwheel Tessellation variant C. It was one of my experiments with folding window blind fabric and ...
A Millwall Brick is an improvised weapon folded from a newspaper. Despite being made from paper, it can be quite dangerous as the tightly rolled layers becom...
A traditional bracelet decorated with a pattern of squares formed by color change. This model is very simple to fold, and depending on the number of iteratio...
Another box with a tessellation molecule from the Woven Triangles family. The triangles are visible in deep layers of the model, surrounded by a flat frame.
In this variant of Woven Triangles, the triangles are hidden in deeper layers of the molecule and surrounded by flat rectangular panels.
This box is a little gem I found in Fujimoto’s book Twist Origami III. I had never seen a picture of this model before, and I had to do a bit of reverse-engi...
This box represents the logo of Origami Deutschland, the German Origami Society. I designed this model in the evening after the last day of the 2023 German c...
This is an example of how the simple cookie-cutter design can be generalized by varying each side’s length and angles independently, and even applying curved...
This simple model looks like a cookie cutter, and if made with some stiff enough material (thick metal foil perhaps), could probably actually be used as one....
This design is derived from Box with Alien Pyramid by rearranging paper layers. While the latter molecule tends to rise up from the plane and become 3D, this...
The decoration on this box consists of just a few modified open-back square twists. It resembles a flat-topped pyramid such as found in Mesoamerican architec...
The name of this simple box, folded from a hexagon, comes from its jagged edge. It is closely related to Bowl Box.
A simple box folded from a hexagon. It is closely related to Crown Box.
I folded this simple book stand from the piece of paper left over after cutting a hexagon from a rectangle. This shape of the sheet, while unusual in the nor...
The digit “7” on this box’s lid is a tessellation molecule, derived from the one on Z-Box. Hiding one of the horizontal bars sounded like a simple enough exe...
This model is one of Fujimoto’s few figurative origami designs, but a very distinctive one. I really like it for its simplicity and elegance. Despite being a...
This box is decorated with a ladybug, which is a tessellation molecule. I used the same molecule for a BBU tile variant to make a decorated cube. While the f...
Design derived from Box with Woven Triangles XVIII by rearranging layers.
I folded this box in order to test John Gerard’s pure flax white paper. You can read more in my review of this paper.
These pictures show sixteen boxes decorated with tessellation molecules belonging to the Woven Triangles family, folded in the years 2020-2021. All boxes wer...
I designed this origami tie in order to illustrate a point I’m going to make in a not yet published part of my series on origami classification. The point is...
This wireframe vase is not very practical as a container, but the design is interesting. It can be used to hold a tennis ball in place and prevent it from ro...
This model is derived from Box with Woven Triangles II by sinking one edge of the triangle which results in a striking pattern of triangular flat islands bet...
I designed and folded this simple origami tray in 2017. Due to the way the bottom is structured, it could also be used as a picture frame. The tray is square...
The tessellation molecule decorating this box is one of many similar patterns I designed after my visit to CfC conference in Zaragoza in February 2020. While...
This winter hat features a crane on the forehead and color-change “fur” around the face. You can tie the side panels below the chin, ushanka-style, or leave ...
This design is pretty much like Box with Woven Triangles XII but with different layer ordering. The change results in the triangles being covered by pleats a...
This box, designed in late 2020, is decorated with a shamrock, and folded from a single square of Tant paper. In contrast to most of my box designs, in which...
Top edges of this box look as if they were chipped, hence the name. The whole top area is a tessellation molecule, derived by a simple change from the base t...
This model from Woven Triangles series features a frame that surrounds the four interwoven triangles in the center of the molecule.
In this variant of my Z-Box, the serifs on the letter Z are truncated and the letter has a more rounded look. At the time I designed the original and the B ...
This variant of Woven Triangles is very similar to number XIII except for the pleat visible on the box’s side having a different layer ordering.
This version of Woven Triangles molecule looks very similar to Woven Triangles I at first glance but has a different arrangement of pleats. These seem to ci...
This hexagonal box by Shuzo Fujimoto uses his typical technique for locking the bottom with folds that resemble an iris diaphragm. He also devised similar de...
Decorating Easter Eggs is a popular Easter tradition in Poland, Ukraine, and other Slavic countries. This one is folded from a single sheet of paper rather t...
In this Woven Triangles variant, pleats are not locked as strongly as in others, which will probably make folding a real multi-molecule tessellation neatly h...
When you fold variants of my Lucky Star Box, you can extend the star to its fractal form. This particular variant emerges when you apply that procedure to th...
This box is decorated with a tessellation molecule representing the letter Z. Though it may not be obvious from its looks, this design is closely related to ...
In this member of the Woven Triangles family, the triangles have different proportions than the √5:√5:√10 sides found in most other variants.
This box features a tessellation molecule which I called Shy Flower. I derived it from my earlier Braided Pinwheel Tessellation. The flower is 3D and its mos...
This Whirlwind Box is folded from a full 16×16 grid on copy paper. You can have a look at a fold from Tant paper and without the grid for a comparison of the...
This is the first box in the Woven Triangles family to be based on a structure modified by twisting the square on the back side of the molecule. This also ma...
This cup is a design derived from Lucky Star Box (Simplified) Variant B and the PreCP (Precrease Pattern) is the same. The paper used to form the star in the...
Yet another variant of Sawtooth Box. This vaariant is almost identical to Tilted Square Box by Tung Ken Lam.
This ring uses a set of simple pleats for its jewel. This technique, somewhat similar to Goran Konjevod’s, made me think of Art Deco style, hence the name. T...
This is variant B of my Lucky Star Box (Simplified). It is derived from the basic variant by pushing inside the box the empty areas around the star, which va...
This model, which includes tessellation elements, has a 3×3 field of squares which reminds me of a tic-tac-toe game board. The pattern is based on Square Pix...
As in Box with Woven Triangles VII, in Box with Woven Triangles VIII the triangles are located below other layers of paper and only partially peeking outside.
When folding this box, I thought I was making a clean fold of Box with Woven Triangles XVI, but I missed one detail and ended up with yet another design. You...
This is a simple box with a molecule of Woven Triangles Tessellation I. My first attempt at folding this model resulted in a slightly modified molecule and e...
In this variant, the triangles are located in a deeper layer of paper, as if peeking through an opening in a wall.
Just as is the case with Predictable Box I, the purpose of Predictable Box II is to have predictable inner dimensions, which in turn makes it possible to use...
This is a model I designed and folded back in 2016. It is made from the same kind of units as Single-Module Modular Heart. Any number of units can be used si...
This variant of Sawtooth Box looks most similar of all my variants to the designs of two authors who had an almost identical idea before me (see the main var...
Traditional Masu Box, often used as an example of a simple origami box.
Another variant of Sawtooth Box. It differs from variant A by having the triangular flaps locked to the walls of the box. This creates a nice diagonal color-...
This is a simple box with a color change. I designed several variants (posts coming up), most with the triangular flaps (“saw teeth”) locked onto the walls. ...
After a break, I’m back to presenting variants of molecules from the Woven Triangles tessellation series. Again, it’s a single tessellation molecule used to ...
My Heart Bracelet II alongside the Traditional Bracelet with Squares from which it is derived.
I designed this simple bracelet with hearts based on a traditional bracelet that has a decoration of squares (check out a comparison of these models).
I derived this design from my Shamrock 1.1 Box. Just like the former, it can be tessellated. It is named after a rare flower which grows in the mountains.
If you wear glasses like me, you are probably quite frustrated by the fog which the mask creates on your glasses, especially in winter. This simple origami d...
This box is decorated with Whirlwind molecule which can also be used for a tessellation. Its design is closely related to my Woven Triangles family, but I ga...
A new fold of my Shamrock 1.1 Box — compared to the previous one, I managed to fold and shape the stem in a cleaner way. The shamrock can be tessellated.
Another simple origami container whose bottom is not flat. It looks like a green mound, on top of which you can place a plant or some other object.
A simple geometric origami container whose bottom is not flat.
Another member of the Woven Triangles family, single tessellation molecule on a box.
This origami box is decorated with a tessellation molecule from the Woven Triangle family. In contrast to Woven Triangles I, II, and III, Woven Triangles IV ...
This is the third tessellation pattern in Woven Triangle family, and it looks good as a single molecule on a box as well.
Another box with a tessellation molecule from the Woven Triangle family.
Naming this box, the first in the Woven Triangles family, was a little misunderstanding. I originally labeled it number I since it was the first to be publis...
Recently, I came up with a family of patterns which result from placing four modified twists around the corners of a rectangle or square. Some variations are...
The technique used for this hexagonal box can be used for other polygons as well, resulting in boxes with a different number of sides. However, the minimum n...
This very simple model is folded from an equilateral triangle, and based on a pattern which corresponds to the hypar but on a triangle grid. You can use this...
Box with a heavily stylized Maltese Cross. The molecule can be tessellated or used on a box as in this picture. This design uses my Flagstone Paneling techni...
Another approach to the subject of Maltese Cross. The molecule can be tessellated or used on a box as in this picture. This design uses my Flagstone Paneling...
An origami box featuring the heraldic Maltese Cross. The molecule is based on the one used in Maltese Cross Framed and a slight variation of the one used in ...
Making a tessellation representing boats on the sea had been on my mind for quite some time when I finally came up with this design. It represents not just a...
An origami box featuring the heraldic Cross Pattee. This model uses my Flagstone Paneling technique in order to achieve a completely clean space around the m...
An origami box featuring the heraldic Cross Pattee. This model uses my Flagstone Paneling technique in order to achieve a completely clean space around the m...
An origami box featuring the heraldic Cross Pattee. This model uses my Flagstone Paneling technique in order to achieve a completely clean space around the m...
An origami box featuring the heraldic Cross Pattee.I used the same molecule in Cross Pattee Tessellation, and just as the tessellation, the box also uses my ...
A simple origami box, based on my Woven Rhombi Tessellation. Folded from a sheet of unique paper with a subtle floral motif, whose name I do not know.
Just in time for St. Patrick’s Day, here is a new version of my Shamrock Box (previous versions: 1.0 and two simplified variants). Current version was design...
A simple box lid derived from a modified Propellers Tessellation molecule.
Today, on November 11th, Poland is celebrating 100 years of regaining independence. This origami box which represents an outline of Poland is an example of t...
This is a model I will be teaching in just two weeks at a workshop during the 2018 CDO origami convention in Italy. The star can be used as a tessellation mo...
A bracelet with heart motif, folded from a single strip of red-gold duo color Washi paper.
This hexagonal dish is created as an intermediate step while collapsing my Sunk Star Box.
Origami box with Lucky Star molecule. The molecule can be tessellated and is based on hexagonal 8×8×8 grid.
Two folds of my Sunk Star Box with different twisting directions, side by side. Wherever there’s a twist in origami, we get two possible versions of the fold...
The star in the center of this box is a kind of twist which does not lie flat and therefore can form a box but not a tessellation. This model is a part of a ...
The star in the center of this box is a kind of twist which does not lie flat and therefore can form a box but not a tessellation. This model started a serie...
A hexagonal variant of my Wedge Flower Box. Due to the different angles than in square grid, petals do not automatically align in a nice way, so they have to...
This box is decorated with a variant of my Wedge Flower molecule in which the central part is flat. Folded from Textured Paper from BOS Supplies.
A fold of my Box with Leaves (tip-to-tip) where the leaves were folded using a 32-division pleat instead of the usual 16 divisions. I taught this model at Ou...
A new, cleaner fold of my Box with Leaves (tip-to-tip). I taught this model at Outdoor Origami Meeting in Kraków, Poland, this year.
Origami box decorated with a molecule of my Wedge Flower Tessellation. Folded from Via Felt 100 gsm paper stained with tea using a technique developed by my ...
A larger fold of my Ridges Corrugation, folded from a 32×32 grid. Folded from the big grid, the model curls up more than the 16×16 version and can be used as...
A recent design of mine, a box with the Star of David, seen from the top. Folded from a single sheet of Tant paper without cuts or glue. The star can be tess...
This origami box represents a flower of the genus Houstonia, also known as bluets or Quaker Ladies. Some species, in particular Houstonia Caerulea have four ...
My goal when designing this box was reusing the strips of paper which are left over when a square is cut off from an A4 piece of paper. This strip also happe...
A new box design based on Propellers Tessellation molecule. The molecule is depressed, meaning that the layers of paper forming the sides of the box are abov...
I designed this box as a container for corrugations (one of the pictures shows such use, for Monument Valley Corrugation). Some corrugations are springy and ...
A Greek meander pattern folded as modular origami. The bent frame technique is the “Thoki Yenn style” which I also employed in a number of other models, for ...
A box designed on my way back home from BOS50 convention (I had the idea for the molecule earlier, though). Folded from a sheet of gold-red Washi.
A new box, aptly named Her Majesty’s Box, taking shape on the train back from the 50th Anniversary Convention of British Origami Society. Both the convention...
Here is a slightly simplified version of my Shamrock Box. The original was based on a molecule which can easily be tessellated. However, with a single molecu...
Here is a fully simplified version of my Shamrock Box. The original was based on a molecule which can easily be tessellated. However, with a single molecule ...
This picture shows a comparison of two variants of Simplified Shamrock Box: Simplified Shamrock Box (on the left) Slightly Simplified Shamrock Box (on the ri...
A box with a heart, which is also an action origami model. When things go wrong, the heart can be reshaped into a broken heart. The heart itself can be tesse...
A color-change version of my Box with Pajarita v. 1.1. In contrast to folds using harmony paper, here the different color of the Pajarita is the result of an...
An origami box with leaves, with the leaves’ stems in the center, based on an earlier coaster design. There is also a variant with leaves oriented tip-to-tip.
A box with a ribbon bow, constructed using a molecule of my Sunflower Tessellation and with color change. This is a variant where the ribbon runs along the d...
A box with leaves based on this coaster. There is a color change between the walls and the leaves, though a variant using the same side of paper for both is ...
After folding the first coaster with leaves, I wanted to try rotating the leaves so that in the center they touch stem-to-stem rather than tip-to-tip. This i...
An origami coaster with a pattern of leaves. After designing, I found out others had done the same before, for example you can check out this picture [update...
An envelope for a wedding day card, featuring two hearts. The hearts are molecules of my Twisted Heart Tessellation. Basically, they are modified square twis...
This is version 1.1 of my Box with Pajarita. In this improved version, I took advantage of the fact that the box only has one molecule, and so I could get ri...
An origami envelope which looks almost like a classical glued envelope, but can be closed by folding only. If you use it for sending a letter by actual posta...
Box with a single molecule of my Shamrock Tessellation. Folded from 16×16 grid, of which the molecule consumes 12×12.
Box with a ribbon bow, constructed using a molecule of my Sunflower Tessellation and with color change added to make the ribbon stand out better from the bac...
Box with a single molecule of my Pajarita Tessellation. Folded from Harmony paper which allowed the Pajarita to better stand out from the background.
A simple business card holder in the form of an elephant I recently designed. With minor modification it can be folded from a square (a rectangle was used he...
An origami bookmark (two pieces folded from different papers) featuring an elephant motif. Other animals’ heads can be designed in a similar fashion. This mo...
This box is decorated with a pattern of Square Interlace Tessellation. I designed it as a container for a matching bracelet which is visible in some pictures...
Most boxes I design are two-part boxes: the lid and the bottom part are made from two separate sheets. This one is a flat, single-piece box (almost a tato): ...
This seven-sided star shape can be used as one half of a two-piece box or alone as an ornament. This heptagonal star design is based around my Chevron Corrug...
These boxes are decorated with a molecule of Super-Ninja Star Tessellation which is an extension of Ninja Star Tessellation. The super-variant has larger bla...
A box decorated with a molecule of Super-Ninja Star Tessellation which is an extension of Ninja Star Tessellation. The super-variant has larger blades.
A box decorated with a molecule of Super-Ninja Star Tessellation which is an extension of Ninja Star Tessellation. The super-variant has larger blades.
Box with a single molecule of my Twisted Bird Base Tessellation.
Another tessellation disguised as a box so that I can get away with folding just a single molecule, but I do plan to fold a full-fledged tessellation some ti...
Box with a single molecule of my Two-in-One Flower Tessellation. This pattern is derived from four molecules of Double Spearhead Tessellation slightly modifi...
This box has just one layer of paper in most places, so it uses paper effectively, allowing you to make a large box with given sheet size.
Origami picture frame with two little hedgehogs on the bottom bar. The frame is based on this design. The hedgehogs are a prototype of what later became Hedg...
I designed this box during the annual meeting of Polish Meteoritical Society (meteorites are one of my hobbies alongside origami).
A single molecule of my Maltese Cross Tessellation, which is closely related to the Cross Pattee Tessellation presented in the Coat of Arms of Rzeszów model....
This origami box is decorated with a single molecule of Nuclear Flower Tessellation, a variant of Two-in-One Flower Tessellation. The name stems from the fac...
A modular version of this picture frame. Folded from 4 units, each from 1:2 paper.
Origami picture frame, folded from a single sheet of paper without any cuts or glue. There is a slit going around the inner perimeter of the frame where you ...
I folded this Tension Pot model during a workshop held by Robert J. Lang at 15th Origami Outdoor Meeting in Kraków, Poland. It’s an interesting shape that us...
This ice cube tray was folded from a single sheet of Elephant Hide paper sandwiched with aluminium foil in order to make it water-tight. The tray itself is a...
A brain in a vat is a thought experiment related to consciousness and the perception of reality which has, in one form or another, interested people ranging ...
Coaster made from 4 slightly modified Woven Slit Modules (WSM) folded from square paper. The two sides of the coaster display different patterns. Six coaster...
These fir cones make nice Christmas tree decorations. Designed by myself, they are based on the pleated part of Super Pineapple Tessellation.
This is a picture frame for 16:9 format, decorated with a variant of my Lily Pond Tessellation. The lilies were modelled on top of four-sink bases instead of...
Bracelet featuring a new design of mine, the Square Interlace Tessellation.
Another design of mine with octagonal symmetry. This is a fairly simple model, so it may have been developed by others independently.
Own design, inspired by Meenakshi Mukerji’s Wondrous one sheet origami. Folded from a square, but you can trim it down to an octagon if you accept cutting th...
This is the octagonal version of Pinwheel with Color Change.
I came up with this model when playing around with hex twists. It’s quite simple, so it may have been invented before. This pinwheel shows a nice color chang...
I rarely fold boxes [update: no longer true], but recently I needed one and could not find any satisfying model online, so I designed this one. In contrast t...
This picture frame can hold a standard 15×10 cm photograph. It consists of four molecules of the Hydrangea Tessellation (designed by Shuzo Fujimoto), spaced ...
This is a simple name plate on which you can place your name and put it on your desk. You can also use it to place descriptions near your origami models on y...
This is a practical box made from Building Block Units connected using the hook method. I use this box to store all my Crease Pattern drawings of BBU variant...
This particular model is made from 3 modules, but any number of modules from 2 upwards can be used to create similar models. The only limitation is paper’s t...