Stationery Holder - Origami using Paper Scraps

"The purpose - where I start - is the idea of use. It is not recycling, it's reuse." Well said by a famous Japanese fashion designer - Issey Miyake

There are lots of things we just throw away without thinking twice - after all who has the time in today's fast pace world: work, kids, family, festivals and life, in general, is moving fast. In this entire process called life, who has the time to collect junk and then reuse it? Well...me neither...but once in a while I just resist myself from throwing away the junk...and keep it aside thinking maybe someday I will make use of it...and if it lasts for a long time on my shelf I do throw it away...if not I find ways to make use of it in my everyday life. 

A lot of paper scraps end with me after my craft classes and paper doesn't come free...for that matter, nothing is for free in this world. I always stack them to make use of them later. 

This is a small effort from my side to make use of some paper scraps and a waste shaving cream packet, to recycle them into something beautiful and something useful. Origami is something I love doing and I try to find ways and means to incorporate origami into our everyday lives. So this recycling project is all about origami using paper scraps.

Recycling and Origami

What would you do with packets like toothpaste packets, shaving cream packets or such small cartons which usually end up in the trash cans? This is one DIY recycling project you can also try at your homes and reuse these packets/packages instead of throwing them away. Here's how I did it. 

Recycling a shaving cream packet

The width of the shaving cream packet is about 4cm. For using it as a stationary holder, cut away the top flaps with a pair of scissors.

I had some paper scraps of the size of about 6cm x 12 cm, out of which I made some square patterns with blossoms in the centre. The square patterns each are of @4cm x 4cm in size and would exactly cover the packet along the width as you will see ahead.

Square origami units with blossoms in the centre

Following is the tutorial for making the square origami units with the blossoms in the centre. 

Materials required:

Rectangular sheets, glue

Step 1:

Start with a rectangular sheet. You can cut a square sheet into half and use one rectangular part of it. 

Note the creases made as in the right inset. The black lines indicate mountain folds and red hidden lines indicate valley folds. 

You will first need to fold it in half first so that you get a mountain fold in the centre of two squares. Thereafter note the two vertical valley folds on each of the square parts indicated by the red hidden lines. Now make diagonal mountain folds in both the square parts as indicated in the picture below.

Left inset: Rectangular sheet
Right Inset: Note the creases for squash folding in the next step

Step 2:
Turn it over and start collapsing along the creases to get the shape as in the right inset.

Left inset: Turn it over
Right inset: Start collapsing along the creases made

Step 3:

After collapsing along the creases, this is how it would look - a perfect square shape as shown in the left inset with two triangular halves.  Thereafter, fold in the flaps on both the sides, to meet at centre as shown in the picture below.

Left inset: After collapsing, you will get a square shape with two triangles
Middle inset: Fold in the flaps
Right inset: Fold the flaps to meet each other at centre

Step 4:

Squash the four triangles to get four mini squares in the centre. Now focus on the mini squares. Fold in both the flaps to meet at the centre. Repeat the same for all the squares.

Left inset: Squash fold to get four mini squares in the centre
Middle inset: Fold in the flaps to touch at centre
Right inset: Repeat folding the flaps for every square

Step 5:

Now open the folds and squash them one by one to get the blossom pattern in the centre. You have one square unit ready. Make similar 6 units.

The origami square of size @4cm x 4cm

Step 6:

Meanwhile, take the packet and cover it with a similar colored or contrasting colored sheet to hide the packing details.

Step 6: Covering the packet with a sheet

Once the sheet is glued on all the four sides, just glue a contrasting coloured strip on the top for decorating it. You may even skip this step.

Cover the packet and glue a strip on the top edge

Step 7:

Now glue the blossom square origami units made earlier one below the other. Three square units were required for each of the two sides, so I had made a total of 6 square units.

Step 7: Glue the blossom squares on the two sides of the packet

Stationary holder - front view

Stationary holder - side view

You can also use toothpaste packets, perfume packets, deodorant covers, etc. for making such stationary holders. Such packets/packages can also be decorated in a similar manner and be reused for gifting purpose also. 

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