The Origami Forum

I noticed almost all sheets sold at the origami USA shop are 6 inches, biggest ones being 10 and smallest even 3m do you guys usually use that size, even montroll's stuff looks a little small for me using a 10 by 10

I usually fold quite coplex stuff, so 20-30cm is what I normally fold.

Remember, paper isn't limited to OUSA's paper shop. For example, many of us buy cheap tissue paper (that often comes in large sheets!) and glue it together with foil to make a nice large paper with a low prize.

my standardsquares are 30cm (11,8 inch) and 43cm (16,9 inch). I seldom fold from the big squares so I have only one already cut (and thats only because I want to fold another ancient dragon).
thats my current already foiled pile. there are also some mc sheets within.
[img]http://freenet-homepage.de/origamichris ... h/pile.jpg[/img]
the uncut sheets are around 50x75cm (19,6x29,5inch) so 50cm is the maximum size I can get without patchwork

As you can see there are quite a variety of sizes that are useful.
You will want to think in terms of a repertoire , instead of simply one size.
Small paper for easy models, large, thin paper for complex, larger paper to practice, then progress to smaller when competent.
I like to have rolls of " school" paper, gift wrapping paper and kraft paper in several thicknesses , colors , and sizes.
Nice fadeless colour rolls by http://www.Pacon.com and kraft paper at http://www.creativityinc.com
Buy a L square
http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/3 ... SS500_.jpg
as well as cutting board and T-square.

I use 30 cm to try models, 45 to try even more complex models and to make the official version of the one of 30, and 60 to fold the official 45's trying.
(I hate my english... )

These are the three sizes I use most often:
25cm - Anything with a grid of 50 or less, and the vast majority of non-box pleated models.

35 cm - Anything with a grid of more than 50. (I rarely use this size)

50 cm - Anything by Hojyo Takashi, complex models like Ancient Dragon and Bahamut, and (in box pleating) models with a grid of more than 64, and lots of diagonals.

The only model I have ever used paper bigger than 50 cm for is Ryuzin 2.1

MJ25 wrote:do you guys usually use that size, even montroll's stuff looks a little small for me using a 10 by 10

Every model John Montroll has published is quite foldable from 10in/25cm kami. End of story. If you think you have an exception, post the name of the model and the book it's in and I'll fold it from 10 inch or smaller.

Nearly all of Montroll's stuff can be folded out of 10 by 10, even his lobster for that matter, maybe its just that I've using paper that size all my life, making it easier.
I usually use 10 by 10, though I've used an A3 square before and the biggest was an A2 square.

This is what I usually use :
22,5cm for simple and small models and grids of less than 36 for boxpleated models.
45cm for more complex models and between grids of 36 to 48 for boxpleated models (most commonly used size).
60cm for boxpleated models who use grids of 52 or higher or just really complex models.
The biggest I have used though is 90cm for Satoshi Kamiya's two dragons (Ancient and Bahamut.)

Most paper isn't big enough to get a square larger than about 20" out of it. In the case of tissue foil, I use 17" squares (18" foil minus 1" from cutting to size) and in the case of wet-foldable paper I generally use that size or larger, depending on the model. For simpler designs I generally use 10" or smaller paper.

I usually use squares of 20cm. Sometimes I use 30cm when I can get it.

My standard paper is 10cm to a side.
I also have some 15cm that has different colours on each side.
At work I mess around with ideas from 8cm paper.

Using such small paper I often find that the very complex models are just not achievable for me.
When I need larger paper I make squares from A4 paper. That's 21cm I think.

legionzilla wrote:Nearly all of Montroll's stuff can be folded out of 10 by 10, even his lobster for that matter, maybe its just that I've using paper that size all my life, making it easier.

I wasn't sure which Lobster you mean, so I folded them both, 7" for the pink one (from Origami Sea Life) and 6" for the green (from Animal Origami for the Enthusiast).

Now that I think about it, most of it's foldable from 6 inch kami if you've got the patience.

you can fold that model from this paper with that size, but it really looks horrible. sometimes size matters as much as technics.
chosing the right paper can be like an aesthetic surgery to that lobster
[img]http://freenet-homepage.de/origamichris ... hummer.jpg[/img]

gordigami wrote:Buy a L square
http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/3 ... SS500_.jpg
as well as cutting board and T-square.

I find that using a steel carpenters square is the best. Something like http://hand-tools.hardwarestore.com/21- ... 54805.aspx. The aluminum seem nice because they're so light (and very available) but I find my blade is just too likely to bite into the aluminum. Its just too soft. You won't have that problem with a steel square.

Also, the 24" steel carpenters square isn't quite big enough for some of the papers I cut, so I've picked up a 48" steel straight edge. I can use this with the carpenters square to cut much larger sheets 'mostly' square.

Kim