origami tissue holder

this paper tissue holder can hold 2 or 3 tissues.  i use them because i like to go light on the things i carry around with me. i don't use the whole plastic pouch of tissues before it gets destroyed.  so i feel like i'm wasting them.  it also has a higher cute factor then the plastic pouch of tissues.

start with a piece of 9x9 craft paper.  i cut mine down from a 12x12 piece.

fold it in half making a triangle

open it up

fold it in half again and open it up. y'all should have an X folded in the paper.

fold the corners into the center

now open it all back up

fold a corner to the line made in the last step.

open it up

fold the opposite corner to the same fold line

fold the corner back to the edge

fold the center edge in.  take it slow there is a hidden fold line on the colorful part of the paper there. use that as a guide.

now fold the opposite corner the same way

flip it over

fold one side in

if you flip it back over it should look like this

fold the other side in

then tuck one side into the flap of the other

flip it back over, it should look like this

fold it in half along the opening

stuff the tissues in

i like to use a piece 9x9 craft paper.   but we don't always have a piece of craft paper on hand so a standard piece of printer paper will work.  y'all just need it to be a square.

fold one of the long edges over to the other long edge making a triangle shape.

fold the rectangle bit sticking out along the edge of the triangle. then open it up and fold the edge the opposite way to weaken the edge of the rectangle along the side of the triangle.

carefully cut or tear (we don't always have scissors with us) along the edge of the rectangle piece

y'all should have a square piece of paper and a rectangle now.  toss the rectangle or keep it for another project later.  we just want the square right now.

head back to the beginning of this tutorial and follow the steps with the square you made.  the first fold is already done.

it's a little tighter fit to get tissues in then the 9x9 paper. so be careful not to tear the opening.

812

of 1000

1000 paper cranes

Cranes pair for life and represent faithfulness, longevity, prosperity, wisdom, loyalty, vigilance and peace. In legend it is said that they carry the prayers for those lost in war and take the souls of the deceased on their backs to the Western Paradise.

In the 11th century Kamakura period of Japan, during the celebration of a Buddhist festival, the people tied prayers to the legs of cranes for those who were lost in battle. Then set them free to carry their prayers of peace off to the world.

This reminds me of a quote by a 12 year old girl.

“I will write peace on your wings

And you will fly all over the world.”

Sadako Sasaki was born in Hiroshima, Japan. She was two years old when the United States dropped an atom bomb on the city. When she was 12 years old and sick in the hospital with leukemia her friend Chizuko brought some paper and reminded her friend the story of the old crane that lived 1000 years. And if someone folded 1000 paper cranes, the gods would grant that person a wish.

Sadako started to fold paper cranes and was able to fold 644 before she died. Her class mates folded the remaining 356 and all the cranes were buried with her.

There is a statue in the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park at the Children’s Peace Monument of Sadako holding a paper crane. Every year on August 6th thousands of paper cranes are placed at the memorial.

I am working of folding 1000 paper cranes to add my voice to the plea at the base of Sadako’s statue.

“This is our cry,

This is our prayer,

Peace in the world.”

origami medallions

I like to keep busy even when I am relaxing.  Kind of odd I know.  I just have to be doing something.  I have been folding origami medallions lately as "busy work."  They are a simple pattern and very easy to make.

So easy that I have made quite a few of them.

There are more.......

There are so many of medallions that the box they are kept in is full.

I was thinking of getting a bigger box to store them in.  But there are more than 100 of them and who needs more than 100 origami medallions, right?

Any ideas for what I should do with them?