Origami paper is a specialist paper designed for paper folding. The majority of paper is 80grams in weight: just the right weight to take the crisp folds that are the basis of this traditional Japanese technique.

Folds are an essential part of the paper-folding process. If your chosen paper won’t hold a fold neatly then your project won’t be worked to its best. Choosing the right foundation paper will bring you more success.

And as any crafter, and teacher knows: the more success, the more motivation to continue onto bigger, brighter and better things.

But first things first. Where to get your papers.

It’s now becoming increasingly easier to get origami and tea bag folding supplies. Times were when you had to order stock from abroad – and take all the accompanying frustration that waiting brought. Now though, the larger paper suppliers are up with trends and realize that there’s a hungry market for these wondrous specialist papers.

So what’s your choice, once you’ve tracked down a reputable and reliable supplier? In a word – loads.

As with a 2D sheet of paper you’ve got the bonus of using both sides in your folding. So one of your options is whether to go for single sided or double sided paper. Or, as another group of papers offers you: two-tone paper. That’s 4 squares of 2 colors on one side of paper. The joy here is that you can use both sides to your advantage in your project.

Because Origami generally folds into a 3D creation from a flat plane, both sides of paper can be visible (depending on the folds involved). It helps to have a picture of the finished article to guide you to the best choice.

Most projects will recommend a particular type of paper to show off the finished ‘fold’. You can be sure that the creator really is suggesting the best type of paper because he/she will have practised on many alternatives before settling on a particular one. Follow their lead and you’ll be part way there.

If you have the freedom to do so, you can decide on what double colors to use and whether to combine plain with patterned. The combinations are awesome.

Most Origami projects are worked with a single sided paper, with the folding begun white (wrong side) up. This is particularly true when working tea bag folding unit.

So that’s the first decision out of the way: single or double.

What if you know the paper type you need and now need to ‘just’ choose which paper to use. Well there’s no ‘justs’ about it. Your selection now is really mind-boggling and I challenge you to make that decision quickly. If you’re a serious Origami fanatic then just reading the list below will have you drooling, and that’s before you’ve clapped eyes on them:

paper-aluminiums

mettalics

irridescents

opalescents

holograms

glitters

Yup, even the vocabulary is enough to get those creative juices and fingers itching to get cracking and folding! And the joy of the Internet is that you can see (but not touch sadly) the papers you might elect to buy, to do justice to your project.

And that’s one of the joys of doing Origami. It’s not just a mind feast, it’s a tactile one too. Oooh, the joy you have when handling, stroking, touching, folding and creating your paper folding projects.

Whilst Origami is a disciplined craft it’s certainly kinesthetic as it plays to the visual and touchy-feely senses.

You’re not alone in just loving both the choosing and creasing of sumptuous Origami papers. There are thousands of aficionados of this traditional Japanese Art and their techniques are now well established in craft circles worldwide.

Take your time in exploring and experimenting with your paper options to really get to know their properties.

Learn their properties, how they bend and how they lie. Store then carefully so that they will always be ready for your next project. Anticipate and plan what you’ll work on next to keep your enthusiasm high.

Paper folding has never been so much fun and Origami paper has well and truly hit the marketplace.

Origami is a creative art done with the paper. It is the ancient art of Japan but said to have its origin in China. This art involves paper folding and creating some amazing images which otherwise seem impossible to create from a medium like paper. The origami or papermaking was developed in China and some of the oldest folding paper models found are from china itself. Later it was adopted by the Japanese people but still many are of the opinion that origami took its birth and developed in Japan. The traditional form of origami was based on a square piece of paper from which endless variety of shapes could be created with the help of various small numbers of folds. This art form when practiced in ancient times did not involve cutting and pasting.

Other than china and Japan, Spain and France started practicing this art in 16th century. The people of Spain used to fold the paper documents or baptismal certificates in the form of little birds called “Pajarita”. In the similar fashion “Cocotte” was done in France. Origami is an art where the designs you make can be simple like that of birds or aero planes or complex with lot many intricacies’ like buildings or spring made of single piece of paper. To make a complex structure foil is preferred than paper as it can be folded more with less bulk.

The standard origami paper is mostly 15cm and there are some standard folds which help in creating bases. Once the base is shaped then other folds done will create different shapes. One of the most famous shapes in Japanese Origami is the shape of a Crane as it is considered to be very lucky. One of the many legends pertaining to Origami declares that the person who makes thousand paper cranes all his desires will come true. Since then the origami crane symbolizes peace in Japan.

Many new artists gave their contributions in this art form like the credit of creating curved and spiral shapes in origami works goes to Joseph Albers, and Akira Yoshizawa introduced new techniques and intricate art forms. His wet paper folding technique helped in holding the shape better when the designs were complex structures.

The American Museum Natural History in New York since last 30 years erected a Christmas tree which is every year adorned with different Origami shapes like birds, turtles, lobsters, dinosaurs and crabs. The different shapes created held people spell bound. The people with special liking and inclination toward creativity can try their hand on origami with the help of books available for the beginners. The books available are the complete guide with proper instructions and several diagrams to help you out.

Kits with illustrated instructions and materials needed for origami art are also available. These kits are amazing and even children can give a try and make this miniature work of art known as Origami.

How to make origami paper weapons. The best way to find out how to make paper weapons form origami is watching a video of it.  My kids both tried making some by following directions in a book.  They found watching the videos below much easier.

The first is for making a origami folding knife!

The second video is how to make a origami pistol.  I was really surprised how easy this was.

My kids were impressed that I was finally able to make something with paper. The little showoffs do it all the time!

And the last video shows how to make an origami throwing star. It’s another easy one to follow.

Well, thats if gor now. Hopefully this will get you on your way of making origmai paper weapoms