WHAT PAPERS ARE FOR NEWBIE FOLDERS.

General discussion area for learning about paper, and the different types available.
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mrhoangtuanori
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Joined: May 6th, 2019, 3:19 am

WHAT PAPERS ARE FOR NEWBIE FOLDERS.

Post by mrhoangtuanori »

What are the best papers for new folders?

I received this question coming from the newbies many times even when I hadnt made my shop.
So, I create this new topic for all of you, from the tallents to the newbies to share your opinions. For the next time, should anyone ask me this question, I will directly send them this thread.
What do you think are the best kinds of papers for beginners ?

I wrote a post about "RYUJIN PAPERS" in my Vietnamese Origami group. There was a part of the post that I want to share to you here again.

That is " Choose the paper by its standards, NOT ITS NAME"
A guy told me last months, "I have tryed the Ancient Dragon up to 10 times but they all ended up ripped apart. What should I do? "

I asked him what paper he used. "Copy Paper A3" -He said

That is a real story that I was told times to times.

So, being new, which steps to choose your papers?

1. Determine the complexity of the models you want to fold.

- Read the diagram, tutorial, ... is it easy or difficult, complicated or simple, with lot of creases ?
- If you have lots of experiences, read the CP.
- If you are a beginner, check out tutorial, diagram, see how that work is. From there, select the paper standards. This step may be a bit difficult for newbies, but you just need to practice on 1-5 models with A4 or newspaper, you can get experienced.

2. Determine your level.
- This is important, because according to my experience, you need to know how good you are to choose the right paper.
- For example, when your level is not high, do not use too special papers such as rice paper (etsy.me/2Q5w9Ws), canson or Processed Unryu (etsy.me/2YColyF) ...
- Low skills should choose the easy kinds, not too special criteria like ultra-thin, extremely sturdy, or extremely hard- ribbed paper, ...), just choose the most popular type.
- When your skills are high, your paper standard will be expanded, you can easily fold models from any kind. (I know a man who can folds complex models from A4, kami paper, plastic paper, ..).
- Do you like to fold the trend of thick paper or thin paper.
- Unless you are a master, if not, please know your level.

3. Choose paper according to CRITERIAS, not the NAMES.
- What are the criterias to consider:

+ WEIGHT (Gram/square meter - G/sm also written as Gam or gsm - the thickness of the paper, the higher g/sm, the thicker and heavier the paper)
Your folding pattern is complex or not? Is there a lot of overlapping layers ? Do you need to fold it tiny ? If necessary, you should consider choosing low gsm. According to my experience, it is best at 30-58 grams.
If you don't need to fold a tiny model, but fold it from large size of paper, then you just need to pay attention to the sturdiness, toughness of the paper.

+ SIZE - This is too obvious, no master can fold Ryujin with 20x20cm sheet. As mentioned in the first criteria, the large size can compensate for high thickness.

+ CAN IT HOLD CREASES WELL?
See if the model needs many creases. Some kinds of paper like crumpled or kraft are good at this criteria. But for some, their crispiness can be changed due to the degree and humidity in the air. For example, Dó paper, Dướng paper and papers made from crushed bark will generally be crisper in the hot and dried weather than when the weather is moist.
Metallic papers, (tissue foil, mars foil, tin paper, etc.) are the king of crispiness, which sometimes can make you uncomfortable with your folding.
Types of oil paper such as candle paper , rice paper, transcan, can keep the creases well.

+ STURDINESS
The type of paper you choose, it should be sturdy. Durability depends on the paper making process, can be easily tested by hand if you have a sample.
 
+ COLORS, PATTERN: This is easy to choose, so I wont write much.

Note:
- The above criterias are all described detailedly in any online stores, so it is easy for you to choose when buying online. Such as: etsy.me/2JKYYX7

- When you buy paper directly at the store, you need to ask for opinion from the experienced folders who has folded the paper for a long time.
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