created by solvingorigamitessellations.com  This one just came to me as I was fiddling with open back hexagons. I wondered what I could do with small natural parallelograms around it. So I just added triangle twists in order to repeat and it came out pretty cool.  The original inspiration for this tessellation wound up being the back of the design to me. I really liked what happened on the other side as a result.  This is an intermediate level tessellation . It's not too hard if you're used to working with smaller shapes. It is important though, to not try to complete all the twists as you go. It will work best if you partially fold everything and then little by little ease them into place in unison.  created by solvingorigamitessellations.com I would say that it definitely has to be folded from the back side mostly and you just wind up with the front by default.  I used ordinary printer paper folded into a 32 pleat triangle grid.  This time of year is great for origami tess

solvingorigamitessellations.com  This is a twist based origami tessellation . I kinda just came up with this one because I wanted to do something with alternating rhombus and triangle twists that was a little different than ones I and others had already done.  It may have been done before, but it was new to me as I was creating it. So, I'll call it an original tessellation because that is how it came to me.  solvingorigamitessellations.com It features open back hexagons with triangle twists off of them. Then there is a layer of larger natural hexagons with alternating rhombus and triangle twists. It's at that point that the two layers of the pattern can be repeated.  This is an intermediate level tessellation .  Not too terribly difficult to fold if you have the crease pattern. No doubt, slightly trickier if you take it upon yourself to reverse engineer it. Though, even then, it's not that hard.  I folded it using ordinary printer paper trimmed to a hexagon and creased

created by solvingorigamitessellations.com  This new tessellation is kind of the inverse of another tessellation I created not that long ago called 'Interstellar Transmissions' . That one was small hex and triangle stars surrounded by trapezoids. This new one is small hex and trapezoid stars connected by triangles. The geometry tends to work like that. Equal and opposite and so forth.  created by solvingorigamitessellations.com The trapezoids connect to the hexagons not along the grid lines, but rather by bisecting them. I call this an offset hex. I don't think that's an official term, but it does describe how the connections between the shapes work.  When I got to the edges, instead of simply following the pattern, I used the shapes that fit best to result in nicely finished ends.  This is a difficult tessellation . Lots of small shapes all tucked into one another.  I used 10 inch by 10 inch tant paper trimmed to a hexagon. A 32 pleat triangle grid. All folds. No cuts

created by solvingorigamitessellations.com This tessellation reminds me of ones I've solved by Arseniy K because of the way the shapes interact and layer upon each other. This particular tessellation, however, it is an original origami tessellation that was created by me.  Despite being the creator, I found this hard to execute. Everything is on top of each other. It's a difficult task to get it to actually work as envisioned.  It turned out pretty good considering I was kind of learning to fold it as I went. A second attempt would, no doubt, turn out better.  created by solvingorigamitessellations.com These kinds of intense tessellations rarely photograph as beautifully as the simpler ones. The light simply doesn't shine through because of the thick paper required and the multitude of layers. It's a great shame because these are some of the most extraordinary tessellations of all.  They require patience, perseverance and a deep understanding of all the nuances of va

created by solvingorigamitessellations.com This is another twist based tessellation that I came up with while actively trying to work on my twist tessellation creation skills.  It's not too complicated, but it's a fairly nifty pattern.  Basically, it's rhombuses and natural triangles around open back hexagons. That then creates 1.5 triangles on the other side. This is the side where the magic of the pattern happens and you get that money shot that makes for a great picture.   created by solvingorigamitessellations.com This is an original tessellation that I recently designed and folded. It's a pretty easy tessellation to fold.  But I think the end result is very cool.  I'm not sure how easy or hard it is to reverse engineer . But you don't have to, if you don't want to. My diagram is available at the end of this post.  created by solvingorigamitessellations.com Filed under: October 2024 Origami Tessellations

created by solvingorigamitessellations.com  I've been attempting to expand my creativity in regards to my original origami tessellations . While I find it pretty easy to design new flagstone and collapse based tessellations, I do not so easily conceive of fully twist based ideas.  Many of my ideas incorporate multiple techniques including twists. But exclusively twist based tessellations do not come as easily. So I have been experimenting with that. Trying to expand my repertoire.  I've solved many twist based tessellations designed by other artists. This provides a good foundation.  created by solvingorigamitessellations.com So, recently, I've created a few new models that are all twists. They're a little simpler than my usual modus operandi. Anyway the Wind Blows is an easy tessellation , but I figure if I hone that skill, I can soon expand to more complicated ideas with them as well.  Some of it, I think, is just the nature of how a person thinks and perceives things

created by solvingorigamitessellations.com  Here's an interesting flagstone tessellation that I recently created. The concept isn't very complicated, but the pattern is pretty cool.  It begins with trapezoids twisting around a small closed hex twist on the reverse side. Then I add more trapezoids connected to the tops of the central ones. But those trapezoids face the opposite direction.  That allows the second set of trapezoids to then repeat the central pattern.  In the remaining gaps you can fit double wide triangles.  Small triangle twists on the back side rotate around the front double triangles in a star like pattern.  design by solvingorigamitessellations.com It's an elegantly simple structure.  For a flagstone tessellation it's not too hard to fold. It's not easy either, but it's probably only an intermediate level of difficulty.  My crease pattern follows.  created by solvingorigamitessellations.com Filed under: September 2024 Tessellations

Collapsing Vortex by solvingorigamitessellations.com  This tessellation is a variant of my ' Rocket Ships ' tess. While Rocket Ships used trapezoids and rhombuses, in this case, I used wider trapezoids which allowed me to use small triangles instead.  Whenever I come up with a general pattern for an original origami tessellation , I  often like to explore the different ways it can be altered using rearrangements and switching out sizes, distances and shapes.  Geometrically speaking, altering the sizes of some shapes directly impacts what other shapes can be paired with them. Changing distances can have the same effect. Everything is connected. It's always a kind of equation that you must work out if you want a workable flat fold. That's the fun and the challenge.  created by solvingorigamitessellations.com This tessellation is a difficult one. Everything collapses into everything else. Collapsing so many small triangles can be quite challenging. There are a multitude o

Kaleidoscope Tessellation by solvingorigamitessellations.com  This tessellation is a variant of my ' Wheel of Fortune' tessellation . Kaleidoscope  actually came first. Then I later, decided to try the same idea, but spacing things further apart and that became 'Wheel of Fortune. Kaleidoscope is a dense configuration of small and 1.5 triangle twists all precariously overlapping each other.  On the other side there are open back hex twists and small right triangles.  It's a very tight fold. My paper wasn't really too keen to cooperate, but it was mostly successful nonetheless.  It's an advanced tessellation to be sure. It requires sturdy paper.  It's not the prettiest of  origami tessellations , but it's interesting with all abundance of triangles smothering and banging into each other.  I knew that before I started it wouldn't be a showy, ooh and ahh design, but I like the concept and wanted to see if I could pull if off. Layered tessellations are s

Flower Tessellation solved by solvingorigamitessellations.com I actually solved this tessellation before I solved her 'Bouquet' tessellation . Both are designed by gatheringfolds. This one is a little simpler. Straight up repeats of the central pattern. In 'Bouquet' it takes that central idea and gets a little more complicated by adding small hex twists.  This one is just the 'house' shapes and some large triangle twists.  I'm pretty sure she called if 'Flower'. Although, I'm not 100% certain.  I can't seem to find the post again on her instagram.  The center was easy enough to figure out. It did take me a minute or two or more to realize how the  'houses' connected to each other. I simply didn't suspect that she would use that technique in what appeared to be a mainly twist based tessellation. I think that I'm just out of practice for solving other people's designs. I've been doing so many of my own lately that my ski

solved and folded by solvingorigamitessellations.com  Another interesting origami tessellation by gatheringfolds. Utilizes an unusual shape. Looks like a house. But in origami/geometric terms it's an open back hexagon with the bottom sliced off. Or you could say it's a rectangle with an isosceles triangle on the top. Whichever way you wish to classify it, it ultimately means new possibilities for origami designs.  The center pattern didn't give me any trouble figuring it out. However, I did get blocked for a bit on how the small hex twists connected to the rest of the pattern. My stubbornness prevailed though. And after more time fiddling than I care to admit, I did come up with the solution. I really should have figured it out sooner than I did, but we all have off days.  solved and folded by solvingorigamitessellations.com The back side of the tessellation is exclusively small triangle twists. When I was stuck on how to connect the small hexes, I used the triangles on th

an original tessellation by solvingorigamitessellations.com  This is an original tessellation idea that I had that I really like. It's somewhat complex and therefore difficult to fold.  This is my first attempt. While I was able to complete the design, it was not as successful as I would've liked.  I don't know if it was the weather or some other factor. But for whatever reason, the paper became very weak half way through folding it.  created by solvingorigamitessellations.com I had hoped to be able to re-orient some of the folds to create a more consistent design, but the paper was just too far gone by the time I'd gotten everything into place.  At some point, I would like to give it another go and see if I can execute it more to my satisfaction.  The idea itself, is one that I really like, so I figured that I'd share it now.  It's an intense array of trapezoids and triangles all collapsing into one another.  It's a lesson in expectations. Especially when