Posts

All the Shapes Origami Tessellation

 This intermediate tessellation is from a while ago. It's from my layering phase. It seemed like a really cool idea when I mapped it, but I wasn't that thrilled with the final product. Which is probably why I didn't upload it when it was new.  I recently found it in a box of old tessellations and noticed that it hadn't been posted. Just because I'm not that thrilled with it doesn't mean that someone else won't like it.  I like the concept... I think I just chose the wrong color paper. That doesn't seem like a very important decision, but it can have a big effect on how the finished model looks and photographs.  The center is rhombuses tucked into each other. Then I add trapezoids tucked on top of them. All well and good so far. It gets a little strange after that.  I add opposite facing trapezoid and repeat the center. The remaining gaps have an odd assortment of shapes. There are natural triangles, double wide triangles and tall isosceles triangles....

Serpentine Origami Flagstone Tessellation

 I had the central idea for this tessellation a week or two ago. But, I had some trouble determining how to repeat it. Eventually, when I wasn't even really thinking about it, it finally came to me. That was so satisfying.  And I  was finally able to fold it to completion just the other day.  The crux of the pattern is trapezoids weaving around rhombuses.  It's not too difficult to fold . It just requires a lot of prep.  The back side is nothing remarkable. Just a whole lot of triangles.  My crease pattern is below. 

Quarks and Gluons Origami Flagstone Tessellation

 I thought that I had already added this tessellation , but I couldn't find it here. Probably had trouble getting a good photo and then it got left behind. It's probably from a few months ago.  It's here now though, finally.  It's a fun little flagstone . Center is a pinwheel of trapezoids. Then I add another trapezoid vertically with the opposite orientation and connect them all in the same way. This creates a large pyramidal shape where a large double sized triangle can be placed in the middle. And repeat.  It's one of your simpler flagstone designs , but it's a pretty neat pattern.  I don't have the diagram anymore. Still, it'd be very easy to map out. Just follow the shapes. On the reverse side... small hex twists at the centers of the pinwheels. All small triangles everywhere else.  If I remember, I'll sketch a new crease pattern and upload it. Update: drew a new crease pattern. It's at the end.

Sailboats on the Ocean Origami Tessellation

 I've been meaning to post this tessellation for a while now. It's very different from my usual modus operandi. Or it looks that way at least. It actually uses fairly common shapes and techniques even though it looks like I did something crazy.  The central shape is your typical open back hexagon. It's twisted with small natural trapezoids off of it. Then there are six sided triangle shapes to connect the next array of repetitions.  Because of the way things are connected everything on the back kind of lands on top of each other. And with the multitude of layers it has, it is very hard to flatten. But it can be done, sort of.  The first time that I did this origami design I used larger connecting shapes (as reflected in the crease pattern below). And I also folded over the hexagons on the back into their centers thinking the design would flatten better that way. It did, but it altered the look considerably. I didn't really like how that turned out.  So, I deci...

Orbitting Satellites Origami Tessellation

This tessellation is probably from at least a few months ago. If I remember correctly, I had trouble getting a good photo of it and then kind of forgot about it.  Anyway, I found it. Thanks to a power outage during the snowpocalypse. I went combing through my folds to see if there were any that I'd neglected.  It's a somewhat unusual configuration. Which are my favorite kind.  The center is a classic set of six triangles wrapped around a small hexagon on the other side. Then I connect vertically facing right triangles to them. Next, I add opposite facing right triangles and repeat the center.  In the gaps, I found that I was able to add open back hexagons in a tucked format to complete the design and flatten it.  It's definitely not my most precise fold. It could use some cleaning up in the seams. But the idea is sound and the concept is unique as far as I know.  I kind of wish it could be folded with thinner paper. It looks like it would back light nicely...

Bustles in the Hedgerow Flagstone Tessellation

 Here is a very recent flagstone tessellation that I created.  I've been messing about with trapezoids a lot lately.  A lot of times I have the beginning of an idea and it takes a little while to bring the whole concept to fruition. In this case though, the pattern came to me out of nowhere and solidified pretty much  immediately.  It's kind of nice when it happens like that.  It's an interesting series. Or, I think so, at least. The pattern stands out when you look at it vertically. A rhombus with a trapezoid at the top and the bottom. When that repeats, it does so one shape shifted upward or downward.  I've actually found a few other patterns of a similar nature that I've yet to fold. Hopefully, they will be coming soon.  I remembered to take a photo of the crease pattern after I had completed folding this tessellation . So you'll find it below. 

Birds in Winter Flagstone Tessellation

 This is an unusual flagstone tessellation that I came up with a little while back. I, then promptly forgot that I had already folded it and proceeded to fold it again a couple weeks later. That's what I get for not uploading things promptly. If I had, I would've seen it here and known that I'd already done it.  Still, it was kind of a fortunate mistake because it came out much better the second time around.  What makes this particular tessellation interesting is that I used isosceles triangles attached to open back hexagons, but then doubled them up. So they look like rhombuses that have been bisected.  From there, it's just some triangles and repeat.   It's a difficult one to fold. There are a lot of overlapping things happening on the back of this one. It's hard to get narrow gaps on the front because of this. But it can be done with some persistence.  Looking at the finished tessellation , I'm confident that there are numerous other possibilitie...

Insects in the Walls Origami Tessellation

 Here's a new twist based original origami tessellation that I just completed the other day. It's pretty simple . I needed something to do on a rainy day. Thin paper and uncomplicated tessellations are perfect for those soggy days when more complex tesses just won't work.  Turns out if you connect six trapezoids to each other you get the central molecule seen above. It was a discovery to me.  From there I just added some small hexagons and repeated the trapezoids.  Where I had some additional corners, I added the triangle twists just for fun. They're not required. You can just leave the corners.  The reverse side is kind of neat. Lots of intersecting and tucked shapes.  I don't currently have the crease pattern for this tessellation . I only worked out the center before hand and kind of figured out the rest on the fly.  But I'll unfold it and add one sometime soon. Update: crease pattern added. Filed under: February 2026 Origami Tessellations

Interlocking Diamonds 2.0

 I had totally forgotten about this tessellation. Honestly, I've probably forgotten many. Hopefully, I'll rediscover them again soon. They're all waiting in a pile for me to do so.  This is a sort of unusual flagstone . Which I've just realized that I have done before. I did it in purple paper then and called it interlocking diamonds .  I was sure as I was folding this one that I had done a similar, but different tessellation. Using all isosceles triangles and no rhombuses.  It's possible I've done that as well, but I can't seem to find it. It's also possible that I thought of doing that, but decided it was too hard. I might've also done it, but didn't like the finished product.  At any rate, it looks way better done with white paper. It backlights really well.   The crease pattern already exists in the original post.

Fairy Tales Tess

 Something much less intense. Just some fun with classic twists. A bunch of triangle twists and a bunch of rhombus twists in a slightly strange configuration.  Some of the triangle twists are hidden. You could do corners instead, but I like how it looks with the hidden triangles.  Back view is kind of interesting.  This is an easy tessellation . Sometimes it's relaxing to just breeze through something simple.  I meant to fix the edges that aren't quite matched, but apparently, I forgot. Had to upload it anyway. Trying to catch up. So far behind on adding the new stuff.  Crease pattern is included below. I'm pretty sure this is the right one. Do let me know if it's not. 

Capital Gains Origami Tessellation

This is a tessellation that I did probably a month or two ago. It just got lost in the shuffle. I think a lot of them have. I'll have to go back and check for others that have been overlooked.  I realized this hadn't been uploaded when I was in instagram and the photos of it showed up there, but not here.  When I saw it again, I remembered how much I like it. It uses the same starting point as ' Disco Dancing ', but then I go off in a completely different direction for the rest of it.  Interesting note... I actually had an additional rhombus where the four triangles intersect and decided mid fold to change it to the current config.  As with 'Disco Dancing' the triangle twists on the reverse side that surround the open back hexes spin in the opposite direction of what is typical. So it's a little tricky to fold them over.  Other than that, it's a fairly straightforward design. A difficult tessellation , but not a crazy hard one.  My crease pattern is inc...

Triangle Complexities Origami Tessellation

 This is an origami tessellation that I just completed a few days ago. I thought of it a few days before that, but failed to successfully execute it the first time around.  It's a really tricky one. I'd say that it's an advanced tessellation , for sure. I found it quite difficult to fold. Maybe partially because it's a style that I don't do that often. But also, because it's a style that is just inherently finicky.  I came up with it by folding an ordinary open back hexagon. Then I decided to do reverse folds on three of the six edges. That's how I got the center triangle.  Reverse folds are something leftover from the days when I did origami animals and things like that. Other people's. Not my own.  Every once in a while, those techniques that I picked up doing those early learning models still crop up in my mind to use in a new tessellations.  The other folds of the molecule were just simple natural edges I used in order to be able to repeat the pat...