Home > Book Reviews > Origami Kit for Dummies
Origami Kit for Dummies
By Nick Robinson
Published: 2008 by Wiley
Pages: 292
Binding: Paperback
Language: English
ISBN: 0470758570
Buy from: Amazon.com
| Skill Level : | From simple to intermediate |
|---|---|
| Clear diagrams? | Yes |
| Tinted diagrams (to show 2 sides of paper)? | Yes |
| Photos of completed models? | No |
| Is there indication to the model size resulting from size of starting paper? | No |
| Are the models "Pure" origami (From square - no cuts)? | Most are |
Overall Impression
This book is fun! Nick Robinson brings his passion and sense of humor to this work, which, other than
containing dozens of models to fold, many of which are new or hard to find, also reads like a book, with the
author's notes, tips and anecdotes about the art.
It comes with a pack of paper for folding, although, at least in the US edition, this isn't the typical origami
paper, but paper with the same color on both sides.
The book opens with an introduction to origami, discussing folding materials and tools, followed by a detailed
explanation of the basic symbols. Next is an examination of different methods for drawing diagrams, some
creativity tips, and a touch of copyright issues, important these days.
Despite being designated as a book for beginners, the diagram section avoids the traditional models usually
included with such books (in fact, the crane depicted on the cover is not in the book!) instead choosing to
introduce more modern creations, moving from the simplest there can be to intermediate-level models. I like the
selection of models, as many of them are fun and humorous, and they show a wide variety of folding techniques.
It would have been better to have the text of the diagrams displayed next to to the drawings instead of on
separate pages, but Robinson's diagrams are usually clear enough to suffice.
The book ends with a flavorful "Top Ten" section, with tips and some more information about origami and about
some influential origami artists.
I would recommend this book as a great introduction for beginners, and a fun read for everyone who loves the
art.
The Models
| Model | Creator | Notes | Photo (click for a larger image) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ducks | Nick Robinson | A variation on a traditional model | |
| Nick's fish base mask | Nick Robinson | ||
| Black sheep down a mine | Bronco Sinkin | Simpler than it sounds... | |
| Sheep during winter | Ron 'Bonsai' Nichols | Even simpler | |
| The horizon | Boris Chanson-Lion | ||
| Slightly seasick | Boris Chanson-Lion | ||
| Sailboat | Traditional | ||
| Flower | Traditional | ||
| T-Rex head | Nick Robinson | Cute | |
| Bookmark | Nick Robinson | ||
| 3D star | Rachel Katz | From 5 squares | |
| Coin trick | Nick Robinson | From a rectangle | |
| Japanese schoolgirl | Nick Robinson | ||
| Three crease head | Paul Jackson | Nice and simple |
|
| Dunce's cap | Nick Robinson | With an extra square for a "D" | |
| Miniphant | Mike Dilkes | Nice and simple | |
| Elephant's head | Nick Robinson | ||
| Shell | Steven Casey | Nice color-change |
|
| Thoki's butterfly | Thoki Yenn |
|
|
| Boaz's butterfly | Boaz Shuval | ||
| Triplane | Nick Robinson | A toy-plane | |
| Chick | Kunihiko Kasahara | ||
| Fishy sequence | Nick Robinson | A fold changing from a fish to aliens and to a butterfly | |
| Fish | Steven Casey | ||
| Biscuit packet closure | Edwin Corrie | ||
| A fishy tale | Michel Grand | Storygami | |
| Fox's head | Wayne Brown | ||
| Envelope | Doris Lauinger | ||
| Ali's dish 2 | Nick Robinson | ||
| Pureland figure | Marc Kirschenbaum | ||
| Sailboat envelope | Michael G. LaFosse | ||
| Dracula | Robin Glynn | Nice. Also published on Robin Glynn's website |
 Folded by Robin Glynn |
| Lazy winston | Nick Robinson | A 3-compartment version of Lazy Suzan | |
| Hen | Tony O'Hare | ||
| Chair | John Montroll | Nice | |
| Jaws fin | Nick Robinson | Nice |
|
| Boat | Martin Wall | ||
| Container | Nick Robinson | ||
| Face envelope | Michel Grand | ||
| Mystery object | Nick Robinson | ||
| Bluebell | Traditional | ||
| Shining heart | Nick Robinson | The heart is seen when model is against the light | |
| Tulip bowl | Peter Borcherds | ||
| Little nicky | Nick Robinson | A toy-plane | |
| Makotokoma (Spinning top) | Makoto Yamaguchi | From 3 squares | |
| Flood bowl | Nick Robinson | ||
| Flapping bird | Traditional | ||
| Droodle | Nick Robinson | ||
| Vase | Gay Merrill Gross | ||
| Hearts | Eric Kenneway | ||
| Lazy suzan | Traditional | ||
| Four thirsty birds | David Lister | Nice | |
| Lovebirds | Robert Neale | From a rectangle. Very nice pop-up action |
|
| Dragonfly | Anita F. Barbour | ||
| Snail | Robert J. Lang | Very nice | |
| For dummies man | Nick Robinson | Also available on Youtube | |
| Modular star | Nick Robinson | From 4 (or 5) squares | |
| Hexahedron | Nick Robinson | ||
| Emblem | Edwin Corrie | ||
| 60 degree star | David Petty | From 6 squares | |
| Gomez bowl | Nick Robinson | ||
| Pentagonal star | David Brill | From 5 squares | |
| Fluted module | Rocky Jardes | From 6 squares | |
| House | Wayne Brown | Very nice. From a rectangle |
|
| Frog | Traditional | Also diagrammed in Origami Essence | |
| Chinese frog | Roman Diaz | Very nice. Also diagrammed in Origami Essence |
|
| Dragon | Eric Joisel | Cute |
|
| Twist flower | Yoshihide Momotani | ||
| Twist decoration | Jeff Beynon | ||
| Four-compartment box | Philip Shen | ||
| Perro liberando | Luis Fernandez Perez | Very nice! Gets great reactions... Requires an extra, small piece of paper. Also published in Papiroflexia Coleccion |
|
| Santa | Ted Norminton | Very nice |
|
| Aladdin | Max Hulme | Very nice |
|
| Beetle | Grzegorz Bubniak | ||
| Mouse | Guspath Go | Very nice, with a clever lock |
|
Website content and design ©2000-2010 Gilad Aharoni. All rights reserved
