If you're thinking "I already know how to fold paper," you're right of course. But there are some general techniques for folding precisely that help arrive at a consistent end result.
It's also no longer "paper" in the conventional sense, but many materials can be "folded" - with care, aluminum foil (foil backed paper has both the benefit of great "memory" - the fold stays where you fold it) can be folded and "stays" in place, where conventional paper tends to "relax" and lose its shape.
Speaking of losing shape, one technique for keeping a paper folded piece in place is to use "sizing" (also called "starch" in ironing). Wet folding can produce very natural looking shapes, and once the sizing / starch dries it can be as stiff as a starched, pressed shirt.
Whatever you fold, here are some general suggestions:
* Do Not Hurry
* Find the points that should match, and watch that they do not slip out of alignment (say match up corners), and starting with a large circular shape gently reduce the size of the curve (reduce the radius of curvature) until you're ready to "press home" the crease.
* A sharp crease makes a precise mark from which later folds are made - if the first one is not exact, later folds will be farther off the desired mark.
* At all times make sure your alignment points have not shifted while everything else is being handled, particularly if there are many layers under your fingers.
* When handling multiple layers, grasp all the layers together and do not let the layers on the inside of the bend / fold escape: make them stay under the desired crease.
* As the paper or media allows, make a crisp sharp crease, either using your fingernail, or a flat, hard, slippery object to "set the crease". A Sharpie pen is ideal, or see if you can find a "whale bone" (a smooth piece of plastic, many years ago polished bones were also used).
* Apply the crease evenly; don't start on one end and "push" the folding tool to the other end, This will often result in an uneven fold with stretches and sags.
* Use square paper (as perfectly square as possible) if you can get it, if that is what the design calls for it.
The next section will talk about squareness.
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2012-01-08
Copyright 2012
