Origami is a popular past time for people of all ages. This Japanese art of paper folding is used to make figures ranging from simple animal shapes to complex sculptural pieces. You can use most kinds of paper, even newspaper, but paper specific to origami is usually used.
Vintage is all the rage and origami isn’t immune. You can use vintage paper to make unique origami shapes as gifts and for yourself. I experimented with a vintage page from an old copy of Hans Christian Andersen’s Fairy Tales to make this paper crane.
Origami crane made with vintage book page.
The thing with vintage paper is that it can be fragile. It’s also not acid-free, so if you want your piece to last, then you’ll want to put some kind of sealant on it. I used artist’s varnish on this crane which is part of a hanging garland I made. To make the crane I cut a square out of the book page and folded it like I would any origami piece of paper but slowly and carefully because of the fragility of the paper.
Just like traditional origami, you can leave the shapes you make as is or transform them into ornaments for hanging or string several together to make a garland with beads and/or knots to keep the figures in place. For this piece, I used a tapestry needle to string the crane on green wool yarn. I placed knots and wood beads on each side of the crane.
I found my vintage book at a library sale. It was falling apart and ready for the trash heap. Otherwise, I wouldn’t tear up a perfectly good albeit old book. But you may have some old books that you were thinking of throwing away. You may also find them at thrift stores and yard sales. You can also add other craft elements like glitter, paint or ink. Just use your imagination and have fun with origami!
That’s a beautiful piece and the way you photographed it is also quite artistic! I was glad to hear that the copy of Hans Christian Andersen’s Fairy Tales was already falling apart, as I could not bear to destroy a book. But in this case, I think even Hans Christian Andersen would approve of this transformation from an ugly duckling trash heap book to a beautiful paper crane!
This is a beautiful idea. You could also try this with a less meaningful second hand book from the thrift store if you are reluctant to do this to a treasured book.