n. Garment worn by child when its mother is feeling chilly.
-Ambrose Bierce, The Unabridged Devil’s Dictionary
About the Money Origami Clothes
Claudia, over at Myfolds has been doing a fair amount of money origami recently, so I thought I’d do some myself this week. Thanks for the inspiration Claudia!
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Money origami has featured on this blog before. I folded a Baby Buggy designed by Dominik Meissner, a dollar bill origami cross, and a photo of George Washington in a frame, designed by Gay Merrill Gross which I folded at the OrigamiUSA Convention last year.
Folding the Money Origami Clothes
As you can probably tell, I’ve made these from $1 bills, but just about any currency will do – or a paper rectangle if you don’t have any banknotes to hand. You might struggle with the new British £5 note though as it’s plastic and doesn’t hold a fold very well. It might be more hard-wearing and not need replacing so often, but it is a nightmare for origami!
As Gay Merrill Gross notes in the book, a 2:1 rectangle you can get from cutting a piece of origami paper in half will work fine, you might need to adjust where some of the folds go to get some of the proportions right. The suit is made from two bills, the money origami dress is made from a single note.
Like all of the models in the book, these his and hers money origami clothes are pretty simple to make and ideal for beginners. No reverse folds, no complicated moves – just fold from ‘here’ to ‘there’ in each step. You can make both outfits in about five minutes each.
Money Origami Clothes Instructions
Diagrams for making money origami clothes are available in Gay Merrill Gross’s book Money-Gami, which is available from Amazon here. This money origami book includes 12 easy origami designs from currencies around the world and 50 practice play banknotes. You can also fold your own wallet using the specially sized paper that comes with the book.
Get Involved
I’d love to hear your views on these money origami designs. Feel free to let me know what you think in the comments below, or you find can me on Instagram or Twitter. Check out my Pinterest boards too!
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Thanks Russell. The reason I like folding with money is that the printed design helps a lot with understanding where to fold. The pattern on the dollar bills are guidelines for beginners like me!
Thanks for replying Claudia. I really like money folds, and yes the pattern on the bills does help. Sometimes the paper that banknotes are made from can be a bit tricky to fold though! If you want to see some of the most amazing models made from money, do a quick Google search for Won Park’s stuff. It’s amazing!