Both the recent projects posted here were books —The Orihime Binding with a Drumleaf Variation, Part One and Part Two, and The Language of Flowers (a little drumleaf binding). It’s time for a different sort of paper project, though still with flowers: a DIY slide-together Rose Kusudama. This uses no glue, but is a bit tricky to assemble, especially towards the end.
I had been thinking about what kind of project to make for August, and looking at 3-D paper models of the dodecahedron. (The image below is from Wikipedia, and was created using Robert Webb‘s Stella software.)
In searching for ways to construct dodecahedrons, I found this post from howaboutorange and was attracted by the flowery version created by Jessica Jones.
If you would like to make the howaboutorange flower ball, you can download three different sizes from the post linked above, and follow her instructions. (You can also download the files here: small (one page, 3 inch ball), medium (2 pages, 5 inch ball), or large (12 pages, 10 inch ball.)
I decided to make a variation that is even more like flowers. I did a trial with just the rose centres. So far, so good.
I added the petals, and created today’s paper project: the slide-together rose kusudama.
If you wish to make one, print out this one-page file. The file should fit both 8.5 x 11 in/A4, though you may have to use the “Fit” setting if your printer has wide margins. I used 176gsm/65 lb card stock to make my model. I started by cutting the printout into strips.
I used a knife to cut the sharp interior corners between the petals, and the slits where the petals interlock. When you cut the slits, try to stay on the outer edge of the line (indicated by the upper pointy finger), so that the black printing will be hidden after the kusudama is assembled. Don’t worry about being too precise about cutting the petals. I consistently cut off a bit on one particular petal (lower pointy finger).
I finished the cutting with scissors, but if you are happier using a knife/scalpel, do so. If you are better with scissors than a blade, you can use them for all the cutting.
The flowers all slide together to form a dodecahedron. Here are my first two attached.
Three together.
If you wish to hang your finished kusudama, the howaboutorange instructions suggest punching a hole in the centre of a unit. I thought that would spoil one of the flowers unnecessarily.
There is a tiny hole where three flowers come together. I attached a fine cord to a bead and threaded the other end through the hole.
Rather than writing out a long and complicated description of assembling the rose kusudama, I refer you to this video made by dutchpapergirl. (Please ignore her instructions to turn the pieces over to hide the printing. You want the printed side out for my version.)
I added one final step. To finish, I flattened the petals toward the centres of the flowers to make them look (slightly) more realistic. Here is my finished rose kusudama.
If you enjoyed today’s project, you can help support the blog here. ; ]
In other book arts news:
I recommend this article (with video) on a type catalogue designed by Casa Rex and printed by Visão Gráfica in São Paulo, Brazil. It’s a lovely use of an Exquisite Corpse variation, allowing multiple comparisons across a two-page spread.
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If you are interested in the history of type, you might wish to read the Tanya George article, How Type Travelled Across Nations and Foundries.
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The Punk movement was revolutionary in more than music. Check out this article about an exhibition of Punk graphic design currently on at the Pacific Design Center.
In other news:
Here are the dreams for the week.
From the garden:
I don’t know why this happens. There are absolutely no rocks in our garden and most of the carrots grow perfectly straight.
In conclusion, here’s another flower. This one is from the current kitchen counter bouquet.
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