A weird name yes, but it’s because it’s a modular unit from which you can assemble anything you want. Courtesy of Charles Esseltine. I gave some examples of what you can assemble with the TSU, but there’s more. I made a total of 16 modules, you can assemble in any way you like from 3 modules to infinity. I’d recommend 4 or 5 units for starters. You can find some examples from Anniefolds website.
Diagrams here and video with some pictures after the break.
This Froebel star by Froebel Friedrich (1782-1852) is made from 4 strips of paper - it is also known as German star, Swedish star, Polish star, Danish star, Pennsylvanian star and advent star, Moravian Star. While tucking the strips it’s helps to cut the ends so that they would fit more easily. I used an A4 format paper and made 1cm wide strips, but I still had to cut off the ends in the end, so I guess you could made wider strips with the same format. On the website where I discovered it there are some interesting ideas like how to make a basket out of these.
Diagrams here and video after the break.
A shuriken like modular star by Robert Neale. It’s also called octagon star or Pinwheel-Ring-Pinwheel. It’s easy to make and once all the modules are assembled they slide in place. It can be either a ring or a pointy throwing star (that’s why the Pinwheel-Ring-Pinwheel name), unfortunately it doesn’t change shape on the fly. Made with 8 square papers, I used 10cm square papers, but for its function it might be better to use smaller squares. Enjoy and play safely.
Diagrams here and video after the break.
The sprinkler origami is not a very spectacular modular compared to some others on this site, but it definitely suits the beginners. Made by Paula Versnick. The modules only need 8 creases and the assembly is really straight forward. You can do as many modules as you want and assemble them differently, the video shows how to fold a module, how to connect it to another one and some examples. The modules can also be sinked, it’s a really good model for practicing that move.
Diagrams here and the video and some more pictures after the break.
Since a lot of people were asking for a slower video of the omega star here it is. Unfortunately I still had to speed it up a little, but I did it on the easier bits. The very last part had to be left out because I got to the 10 minute limit, but it’s just the same step over and over again, so nothing is really lost.
The other video was too fast, so I hope you can understand this one. But I will never repeat myself enough: look at the diagrams before you start to whine, I made it according to the diagrams, this video should help you, not instruct you.
Diagrams here and video after the break.
Happy new year and sorry for the absence… had to finish my school project. Here’s another great modular origami suggested by Castword. A spiked icosahedron made with Nick Robinson’s trimodules. It took me all holidays to fold it. You need 30 square papers for this one, I used 10cm paper and the final model is about 17cm from spike to spike. It might have looked better with 3 different colours.
At first, when assembling, it will not hold together very well, but once all the pieces are in place it’s pretty sturdy. You can also assemble it with less modules if you’re really fed up with folding. See the video after the break.
After castword’s suggestion here’s a lesser stellar dodecahedron. It’s a modular model made from thirty 36 degree isosceles triangle units. You can also assemble 6 or 12 units. Diagrams here and a video plus some pictures after the break. Made by Meenakshi Mukhopadhyay.
After a long time of absence, again, I’m hereby presenting another six pointed star. This is a modular composed of 12 pieces, very easy to fold, but a bit frustrating to assemble. When connecting the last module to the first I didn’t bother locking them because I would have torn the whole thing apart and it was sturdy enough as it was. A stellar origami by Carmen Sprung.
Diagrams over here and video after the break as usual.
A nice modular box by Robin Glynn. I made one of these a while ago, but couldn’t get it to hold together. I wouldn’t recommend trying to do this from the video, you should take look at the diagrams before doing anything. I tried to do the lid, but the modules didn’t hold together as well as I wanted, so I didn’t film that.
The diagrams are over here and the video is after the break.
Another origami star into the collection. A six pointed star that doesn’t fly very well. Made from a single A4 format paper folded in an equilateral triangle. The star is sturdy and won’t unfold. Made by David Petty, here are the diagrams.
