Flexigon Fun

This is a flexigon book. It's made from a single sheet of paper 
(any size square) that is folded, cut, glued, and decorated. 
To write in it or look at it you need to "fold and open" it to
reveal each of the four faces. It's fun to make and even
more fun to receive. It folds up small, so you can put in an
envelope to send as a card, put pictures on it to make it a
mini memory/photo album, or use it as a note pad to carry
with you.


You'll need:
One piece of square paper of whatever type you like. It's
a good idea to make a plain (non-glossy copy paper) one 
to start. I am using 8" x 8"card stock for my sample.
adhesive (glue stick, double-sided tape, etc., 
depending on your paper type)
scissors
bone folder or Scor-pal


Instructions:
First (picture 1), fold your square into 16 equal squares.
If you don't have a scoring tool (like a Scor-pal), fold 
your paper in half, open it, then fold the edges to the
center. Open paper again, and turn it 90 degrees right
or left, and repeat the folds. This will give you 16 equal
sections.  Next,(picture 2) carefully cut out the four

center squares, making a window in your paper.

With a pencil (I've used removable paper letters), write the letters
 A-D in the squares noted in the picture below. Fold the top row of 
squares (that includes A) down so that A covers B. Glue (only) those 
two squares, being careful to keep glue from other sections. 
Next, fold the bottom row (including C) up so that C covers D.


Carefully 
glue C to D. Your paper should look like the one below the glue stick.
Without picking up or turning your flexigon, write the letters E-F
in the squares noted in the picture below. Fold and glue E to F and
G to H. This will give you a blank "face" with folds and a slit.

Use a pencil again (or post-it notes) to mark this face #1.
If you fold back the sides so that the slit is facing up, you'll
notice that the flexigon adjusts to show you a new blank 
face. You may have to coax the slit edges a bit by pulling
them gently apart, but, if your folds are well creased, 
the transitions will be smooth.

On this new face, mark a #2. Again fold the edges back, 

with the slit facing up to reveal a third blank face. Mark 

this with a #3. Repeat this flip one more time to reveal 
the fourth face, and label it #4. If you keep repeating
the motions, you'll cycle through all four faces of the
flexigon and get practice working it at the same time.

Now it's time to start with #1 and remove the post-its
or pencil marks so you can decorate the square. Just flip

and decorate as you go, then have fun sharing your flexigon.

Accordion Book (mini)

Since I like to share how to make things with paper, I'm starting with a simple, fun book that is easy to adapt to materials you have on hand. You can use recycled cereal or other product boxes for the covers instead of covering chip board with decorative papers. You might use magazine pages for the inside papers. Have fun, and recycle whenever possible.


For this book I am using:
5-7 square papers (2.75 inches) for the inside pages - Use any odd number.
2 chipboard squares (1.5 inches)
2 decorative papers (2.75 inches) for the covers
thin bead elastic (about 5 inches max.)
ball chain (small) about 4-5"
beads (or other embellishments)

These are the papers I'm using.

First fold the papers in half, open, and 
fold again in half the other way. In step 2 
turn the papers over and fold on the diagonal 
(only once). Step 3 shows how the paper  
wants to fold itself like a pocket if you
turn the triangle over and push down on 
the middle point.

Notice you'll have 5-7 pockets when you've 
folded all your papers (step 4). Make sure 
you bring all the points of paper together
and crease well. Next, hold one pocket with 
the opening pointed up (A), and another
with the opening pointed down (B). You'll 
notice that the flat squares of paper will fit 
nicely together when you drop B into A .
Continue adding the other papers until it 
looks like a chain. Glue the flat sides together 
one at a time (steps 5 and 6).

Cover the chipboard pieces (one side 
of each) with glue, and place glue side 
down on wrong side of cover papers 
(step 7 shows only one glued so far).

Trim the corners (but not right against the
chipboard). Add glue to the tabs and fold in
on the board, pinching at the corners (step 8) 
and smoothing down.

Squeeze your chain of papers together,
add glue to the end pieces, and sandwich 
them between the covers. Add clips (or 
rubber bands, etc.) until the glue is dry
(time depends on your choice of glue).

This actually is step 10 (incorrectly numbered).
In one of the covers, punch a hole 1/8" in the
top corner (see photo). Next punch a hole down 
from the first and on the same side. The third
hole should be opposite the second.

String whatever beads you want onto a thin

piece of elastic (about 4-5 inches max.) Thread 

through the parallel holes and tie on the inside.

Add the ball chain to the hole on the corner.  

Close the book, and pull the elastic piece 
around to the other side of the book to keep
it closed tight.

Here are some other finished accordion books,
two of them in a larger size. They're great little
photo albums, notebooks, journals, and cards.
A friend of mind made me one from a cold remedy
box as a get well card.

I plan on posting something new each week,
so check back next week.