This is a linear flagstone tessellation that I just recently created and folded. The idea for it came to me while I was thinking about some other tessellations that I've done that use trapezoids in an alternating directional pattern. And I thought to myself, what if I could do something similiar in flagstone style. And this is what I came up with.  Essentially, it's a cantilever pattern of trapezoids and hexagons.  Some might feel it's a difficult tessellation . While others might see it as only intermediate . I always find flagstones rather intuitive to fold. Sometimes it almost feels as if they sort of fold themselves.  But while the bulk of the folding process might flow rather smoothly, actually getting everything tucked close together can be a completely different situation.    If I had an iron, I would probably use that. But I don't have an iron, so I just use a heavy book and a dumbell. But not before I've spent far too much time pushing and cajoli...

This is a collapse based origami tessellation that I created pretty recently. It's all interlocked rhombuses and triangles in a back and forth repeating pattern.  This style of tessellation can be pretty difficult to do when using small shapes. Collapsing a multitude of small triangles requires patience and persistence.  On the other hand, these types of tessellations are fairly easy to conceptualize. Everything just tucks into everything else. There are no gaps to figure out how to reconcile. They pretty much take care of themselves.  Looking at the revesre side, I almost like it better. I do love the look of how those points converge in the y shape. And it shows the details of the work so much more clearly.  A crease pattern isn't really needed. Just fold all the shapes on the front tucked into each other. This tessellation holds no secrets.  Filed under: May 2025 Origami Tessellations

* This is a tessellation that was folded by 'Jessie'. We had a little e-mail exchange. They were interested in folding the ' hexagons and trapezoids tessellation ' designed by Peter Keller. I had previously posted my fold and solution for this tessellation back in 2022.  The crease pattern I had originally posted was pretty basic. So, they emailed me to ask for something a little more extensive.  I drew one and sent it to them the next day. And the day after that they emailed me again to show their completed tessellation (as shown above). It turned out quite well. Kudos to Jessie.  For better tightness on flagstone tessellations you might want to use sturdier paper or wait for a low humidity day. Otherwise, a really nice effort. Keep on folding! The  extended crease pattern is below. My original posting of Hexagons and Trapezoids fold and solution.  * photo used with permission from the creator. 

The inspiration for this origami tessellation was alternating rhombuses and triangles around six sided 'pyramid' shapes. As I was plotting out how to repeat it, I wound up with small hexagon twists on the other side.  When I went to fold it, I was thinking it was a pretty easy one. It is, provided you're familiar with how to nest six triangle twists around a small hex on the opposite side.  I hadn't done that particular fold in a long time, but it all came back to me pretty quickly. Even with thin printer paper, I had no problem executing it very nicely.  Had I realized before starting exactly how the design would fold (I had forgotten how this six triangle set looked in diagram form), I might've opted for thicker tant paper instead.  Which wouldn't have given me such a wonderful photo of the final product.  That's the dilemma I often encounter when beginning a new tessellation . Which type of paper should I use. There's no debating that thinner paper...

 At first glance this tessellation might not look very unusual, but it's somewhat different in subtle ways.  It begins pretty typically, with open back hexagons. But the rhombuses that twist off of them kind of go in the opposite direction than what you'd normally see. It's this deviation that creates the lines when I add the additional shape of open back triangle twists.  Personally, I find it to be an interesting variation. It's not hard to do. I'd say it's an intermediate level tessellation .  When you look at the opposite side you can see the hexagsons and triangles quite clearly. You can also see the long parallelograms that form in the remaining spaces.  It's not a very complex design, but it's an interesting one still the same.  My crease pattern is below. Filed under: May 2025 Origami Tessellations

I haven't posted an advanced tessellation in a while. So here is a new one. It's an unusual pattern that also features some very small folds. There are tiny rhombuses and compressed triangles with which to contend. It is an original origami tessellation that I just recently created. The main shape is a six sided polygon of alternating edges. One pleat bisecting the grid, then one pleat following it and so on until you close the loop.  One the other side are open back hexagons and some oblong six sided parallelogram-ish shapes.  When I folded it the small rhombuses weren't actually on the front at first. It was after I had completed it that I realized I could reverse some of the folds to bring them up to the top.  There are some very tight folds and also some very small ones, which is why I believe this to be an advanced tessellation .  Evenso, I actually used thin printer paper because I figured thick paper would never let me make some of the tighter/smaller fold...

 This is a wacky one. A just to see if I can pull it off kind of tessellation . For the most part, I was able to do so successfully. Could be better, but it's a tough one .  It's basically just layers upon layers of elongated hexagonal folds around open back hexagons.  I used thin paper because I figured I would never be able to layer everything using anything thicker.  When I first plotted it out using a small grid of only 16 pleats it seemed so easy and worked beautifully. However, as with many tessellations , adding more repetitions made it exponentially more difficult.  The crease pattern looks pretty innocent, but it's anything but.  As I was folding it, I found myself wondering if maybe medium thickness paper might've been a better choice.  Most of the folds are mountain folds with the exception of the open back hexagons and a set of convergence points. In the diagram the blue dots indicate where the paper should be tucked under. When I drew it I...

 This is a simpler tessellation . For when you're feeling like something a little less intense. Or for when it's rainy outside and the paper is feeling especially flimsy. This will do very nicely.  It's a pattern of small and large triangle collapses as well as rhombus collapses.  If you examine the reverse side, it's not quite as easy as it appears. There are a miltitude of very small folds required, but even as small as they are, they're not too hard to pull off.  There no need for a crease pattern for this tessellation . The front view reveals all the shapes rquired and exactly how they connec to one another.  I used regular printer paper folded into a 32 pleat triangle grid. It worked fine. While thicker paper may make the execution easier, a tessellation such as this one really benefits from the translucency of thin paper when you go to take the finished photo.  When I looked at the finished tessellation it reminded me of the old paper chess game that ...

 This is a really cool tessellation that I created . It's trapezoid based tirangle shapes connected by offset small hexagons with alternating small triangle twists around them.  Inspired by a previous tessellation I had created called 'Twister' I set out to create a new one that utilized the same trapezoid triangles in a new way. This is the result.  When I had finished mapping it out, I wasn't entirely sure if it would work. It seemed logical, but some of the gaps were unfamiliar to me in the context of flagstone style tess . Which is essentially what this is.  I guess, technically it's a hybrid of flagstone and classic twists. It's intriguing to think about what other hyrbid folds might be out there waiting to be found.  At any rate, it looked promising. So I forged ahead.  Relatively certain, but not 100% sure. Turns out it works beautifully. A lessson to trust your experience.  This is a difficult tesssellation , but it's also a fun one. The way th...

This is an unusual tessellation that I recently designed . It's a dense collapse of various shapes that is based off a an open back hexagon with small right triangles around its edges. From there it just gets even weirder. I collapse some teardrop shapes around the center and add triangle twists. In order to repeat the pattern I used some oblong rectangle type shapes. It's all very unorthodox, but it does work.  It was an interesting exercise in how tightly shapes can be manipulated.  I would label it as a difficult tessellation to fold. It's full of strange shapes and troublesome overlaps.  I used thin paper because I knew that everything was very close together and I figured that would make it more feasible to execute the many overlaps. Which it did. However, it also made it hard to keep the smaller shapes as neat as I would've liked.  Would this work better with thicker paper? Maybe. Probably.  You can see my center is slightly askew because one of the smal...

 This is a rather simple tessellation that I recently dreamt up. Open back hexagons with triangle twists a few pleats away. Nothing terribly interesting there. But then I add some six sided pyramids and triangles twisting off of their short sides.  It kind of reminds me of the fold where triangles are twisted on an offset small hexagon. Like in this tessellation , just to name one. But it is different for sure.  The back side of this tessellation is pretty humble as well. Basically just repeating trapezoids connected by triangles.  I have a crease pattern. Need to take a photo of it. Will hopefully upload it soon.  * name of the tessellatino is from the Tool song 'Third Eye'.  Added crease pattern.

 If you're a fan of rhombuses, like I am, you'll be interested in this tessellation. It layers standard rhombuses and longer parallelogram style rhombuses around open back hexagon twists.  It's not too difficult. Intermediate level for sure. The trickiest part is just making sure that you crease the folds for the parallelograms correctly. Those 1.5 pleat creases can be a little elusive. Especially if you don't use them often.  The intersections where three parallelograms meet can be a little finnicky. There's only a small natural triangle joining them.  Other than that, it's smooth folding all the way.  Crease pattern is below.