My Design Process - Folding Experimentation

Yesterday I looked at the book 'How To Fold', which is filled with a crazy amount of folded paper variations. Very interesting and innovative ways of folding. Below are the methods of folding that stuck out to me and though I could incorporate into the project. Today I have tried to experiment with these techniques with paper stock I bought from the library.

Front/Back Accordion Folder

Folder

Table Top Fold Out 

Inside tab folder variation 

Dossier Type Folder

Envelope looking folds are a good way of presenting information. Envelopes are something we are all used, we carefully open them up to read and collect the information from inside. I'd like to try out other envelope folds, similar to this. Although this isn't quite an envelope it does tuck itself in, the drop down folded pages allow a good space to be used for content.

Fold Out Folder

With this fold I wasn't sure how it was going to turn out. It was one of the more complicated folds I did. However when I had finished folding it, I realised it was one of them item picker/combination things that little kids make and play with on the playground at school. So my achievement was short lived as I realised it wasn't too great. But the process of folding this was enjoyable. Interesting ways of folding out information can be achieved with methods such as these, wheres there is triangle folds used to pop out the corners of the paper.

Map Fold

This fold is quite basic and simple. It makes up for a nice compact booklet/leaflet, which folds out onto A4. This is one my favourites so far and I think it is quite practical for the brief. Content for my design process can be implemented and folded out in such a way that won't confuse the reader. 

The Maze Map

Folder

Double Barn Door Folder

I'm going more in favour of booklet type folds. I feel that they're easier to represent information inside them. This is probably because its a familiar format I'm used to when creating actual books. However I want to try and use more interesting folds in my design for this brief. I'm going to have to do further experimentation and research to find a fold I want to use. 

The book "Folding Techniques For Designers" is extremely useful for showcasing innovative and complex ways of folding pieces of paper into interesting shapes and forms. I took a look through the book and some of the folds looked difficult. I ended up choosing to create a cube, I wanted to experiment with something harder than the other folds I had done.

I really like this technique of folding an A4 sheet of paper into a cube. I think there is potential with this method for incorporating the information of my design process onto the a4 sheet in a poster format, that folds into the cube. However this shape isn't the most practical format for reading solely information, it's more of a packaging idea. Although an Idea I have for this is that the start of my design process could be informed in chronological order, starting as soon as the person unravels the cube. And when it's all folded out, the whole design process is visible on the A4 paper.

In todays folding session, we had a little competition and each of the tables had to put forward the best 2 examples of folding and we each voted who's we all preferred. This allowed us to see what other members of the class had been creating. Here are some examples of other students work