The Origami Forum

Howdy fellow origamistas!

I read lots of material about box pleating designs and would like to design something on my own. But at this stage I'm rather intimidated by the perspective.

Does anyone have ideas about some simple stuff I could try to design? Maybe on a small grid first? Looking for a shallow and calm waters to get my feet wet

The book origami design secrets by Robert Lang is pretty much THE bible for that sort of stuff... Other than that, since I haven't even attempted designing anything, I can't give you any advice.

I started with insects on a 16x16 grid. An insect with nothing more than six legs and two antennae isn't that hard. Later you can try more difficult things like a stag beetle, a longhorn beetle or a flying insect.

I actually didn't completely start by designing specific subjects. I started by drawing up simple stick figures, representing nothing, and tried designing them. Didn't even take the purist approach of making a crease pattern that fits in a square.
I started with simple molecules, and built from there. Adding a circle or adding a river and checking what happened. From the simple molecules you can build more difficult crease patterns.

Best way to start designing is do something you like and that is simple. Do you like fantasy, maybe start with a weapon (1 big flap and 3 small ones can make a sword), do you like nature, make a leaf, etc etc.

Good luck, hope this helps a bit:)