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How to Make an Origami Flower Ball

By Cheryl Trowbridge 2 Comments

an image of an Origami Flower Ball

The Japanese art of making an origami flower ball always seems like a fitting thing to do at Christmas. It’s peaceful and calming, almost meditative to work on, and it makes a beautiful decoration when finished!  As with many origami projects, this origami flower ball ornament looks much more difficult than it is. It’s really just the same simple sequence repeated over and over … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Birthdays, Christmas, Flowers, Folding, Holiday / Event, Japan, Mother's Day, Origami, Paper, Paper Folding, Product Reviews, Valentine's Day Tagged With: DIY holiday decorations, ornaments, snow day projects

Basic Japanese Notan Designs for 1st Grade & Up

By Cheryl Trowbridge 1 Comment

Basic Japanese Notan Design for Grades 1 and Up - great for practicing cutting and gluing!

Are you looking for an easy project that will give your youngest students more practice with scissors? This very basic Japanese Notan lesson is perfect for working on cutting and gluing skills, and kids will love the striking designs they create! Notan is a type of Japanese art that uses the contrast of light and dark to make an eye-catching composition. (Pronounce it just like … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Abstract (Non-representational), Collage, Cutting, Japan, Multicultural, Paper Tagged With: contrast, Notan, positive/negative shapes, scissors

Origami Crane Ornaments

By Cheryl Trowbridge 1 Comment

Threading a cord for hanging origami crane

Students love to bring home these exquisite origami cranes to hang on their Christmas tree! I make these with my 5th & 6th graders, and even though this is not a beginner level project, every year I have at least one student with a passion for origami who already knows how to make them! While these cranes are challenging, they're definitely do-able, … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Birds, Book Reviews, Books, Christmas, Holiday / Event, Japan, Multicultural, Origami, Paper, Process, Subject

How to Make a Japanese Notan-Inspired Ornament

By Cheryl Trowbridge 1 Comment

Notan Ornament back

My 5th graders loved making these Japanese Notan-inspired ornaments. "Notan" is a Japanese word meaning "dark/light". It represents the design concept of arranging dark and light (2D) shapes together in a harmonious way. The Japanese Notan effect is easy to achieve with cut-paper. It tends to look more complicated than it really is, and students are fascinated with the finished … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Christmas, Collage, Cutting, Holiday / Event, Japan, Medium, Multicultural, Op Art, Paper, Process, Style Tagged With: 5th grade, contrast, Notan, ornaments

Origami Lotus Book

By Cheryl Trowbridge 10 Comments

Here's a fun project that both kids and adults really get excited about!  The Lotus Book may look complicated, but its folds are actually very simple.  Don't be intimidated by all the steps.... once you've made one you'll have it down.  It's so much easier than it looks!Materials:Heavy-weight paper or card stock for pages (5 pieces, 8½” x 8½”)Heavy-weight paper or card stock … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Bookmaking, Japan, Lessons, Multicultural, Origami, Paper Tagged With: bookmaking, origami

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