Origami Page:
Basket and Handle

Mary Ellen Palmeri

Welcome to our monthly "Origami Page". Origami is folding paper and ending up with delightful figures and models, such as flowers, boxes and animals. This feature will showcase a different origami model in each monthly issue, with diagrams and photos to help readers learn how to fold them. Most models use one square of paper, some use a rectangle, and others use more than one piece of paper.

Click for printable file.

Origami containers are fun to make and use, and this particular basket is one of my favorites! I often use it to hold a small gift to accompany a "Get-Well" card or a "Thinking of You" greeting. Also, it is great to fill with origami flowers to celebrate Springtime. And of course, it makes a great little treat basket for the Easter Holidays, filled with your favorite chocolate treats!

Another way to use these baskets is to write names on them to use as place cards for a festive table; they can be filled with after-dinner mints or other treats your guests might enjoy.

If made without the handle, the resulting box is handy for storing small household or office items. Make several from different sizes and nest them inside each other when not in use. Find different paper patterns and colors to fold for a colorful array of baskets or boxes; if only one side of the paper is colored, the inside of the box will be white.

Happy Folding!

Origami originated in ancient Asian cultures and has been adapted by contemporary artists worldwide to reflect their own cultures. Local artist Mary Ellen Palmeri has incorporated paper folding into many of her mixed media art paintings, and teaches origami classes locally and nationally. Some of her work can be seen in a Tucson Happenings feature here: Artist_Profile

All of her Paper Dream Paintings can be seen in her Etsy shop where custom matted art prints of her original work can be purchased. Go to: www.etsy.com/shop/LyricFineArts

Ms. Palmeri's original origami models have been published in books and magazines, she has been featured on broadcast media, and her mixed-media fine art works often include various original origami models. Origami LAFF (Lyric Arts Folding Fest) is a Tucson based club founded by Ms. Palmeri to provide a venue for sharing this art. The group meets monthly at a local library; for more details please contact the artist at info@lyric-arts.com