makigami: recycle newspaper into beautiful jewelry

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Makigami: Recycle Newspaper into Beautiful Jewelry teaches how to tur

newspaper into amazingly complex braided jewelry. 131 pages filled w

photos and diagr

with detailed step

by-step instructio

14 videos in high

definition ensure your

success!

Detailed planningguide for earrings,

pendants, rings, a

much more!

Make gifts that friends

and family will rave

about for years tocome!

http://www.origamibonsai.org/makigamibook.html

http://www.origamibonsai.org/makigamibook.html



M A K I G A M I: Recycle Newspaper into beautiful Jewelry

C o p y r i g h t © 2 0 1 1 B e n j a m i n J o h n C o l e m a n

Copyright © 2011 Benjamin John Coleman, All Rights Reserved.

Special thanks to my cousin Gretchen Anderson who helped develop the makigami rolling solution

presented in this book, and also to Helen Coleman for teaching me how to braid.

Thank you “Mops” and “Pops” for proofing, editing and contributing to this book.



M A K I G A M I: Recycle Newspaper into beautiful Jewelry

C o p y r i g h t © 2 0 1 1 B e n j a m i n J o h n C o l e m a n

Table of Contents

Introduction i

Learning to Braid 1

Learning to Make Makigami 18

Braided Jewelry 39

Working with Color 57

Clip On Designs 74

Working with Grayscales 104

Project Reference Guide 111



M A K I G A M I: Recycle Newspaper into beautiful Jewelry Introduction

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Introduction

A Short History of Braiding

Ask the average person about braids and they’ll prob

ably respond

with references to hair braiding. Interestingly, that’s probably not

the first material humans braided. Like just about everything

we do, braids were invented by early humans to solve a

problem. What that problem was isn’t known, however

the solution, braiding, was widely adopted all over

our planet thousands of years before electronic

communication. That all these early peoples

invented, developed, and taught subsequent

generations how to braid is testament to its

usefulness.

What’s particularly interesting about a braid ishow it strengthens the materials from which it is

made. If you pick three stems of tall grass, line

them up in parallel, grab the ends with your hands,

and pull, you’ll find the grass pulls apart quite easily.

Collect three more stems of tall grass, braid them,

and apply the same pulling pressure and you’ll find

something else happens. Instead of immediately breaking,

the braid tightens! If the grass is strong enough you may be

unable to break the braided piece.

Braiding becomes particularly advantageouswhen pulled and then pushed. These forces

are similar to those applied to a leash when a

dog is attached to it; alternating hard pulls and

relaxations quickly weaken three unbraided

stems of grass. Three braided stems retain

their strength despite these additional

forces. When you consider a key element

of early human development;

domestication of animals, the need for

braided rope becomes clear. How else

could a small early human control, without

killing, a large beast like a cow or horse?

According to Deborah Harding, collection

manager at the Carnegie Museum of Natural

History, braiding is an ancient craft. “A

waterlogged braid from somewhere between 6,000

and 4,000 BCE has been found in Windover, Florida, USA,”

she said. However she added that because braids are made




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from natural materials, like grasses, braiding

probably began much, much earlier.

We won’t find evidence of these

ancient braids because they

have biodegraded.

According to

Harding, braiding

is defined as

interlacing a

number of

elements

(strands) on a

diagonal. The

smallest number of

elements that can be

braided is three. Three is also

the most common braid found, used to braid everything from hair to rope. Braids allowed earlyhumans to quickly make strong cord from fragile materials, like grasses. “Braids are made up of multiple

strands in opposition to each other so they can stand being twisted without breaking or falling apart,”

she said.

While braided cords were useful to early humans, braids were also used as a decoration. “Traditional

groups are still using decorative braids on clothing trim today,” she said, “braiding is world-wide.”

What Makigami Is

In 2009 I had just completed my first book Origami Bonsai (Tuttle, 2010). The book describes how to

attach origami flowers and leaves to real tree branches to make botanical sculptures. As most authorsdo, I fantasized about the book becoming popular. My fantasy didn’t end with fast cars and big

houses. Instead I imagined urban parks stripped of tree branches - an inner-city

environmental disaster, and an author being criticized for his work. I immediately

set out to develop a way to make branches.

I wanted to make the branches from paper so I’d

have an elegant paper solution for making

sculptures. This was no small task

because tree branches taper. How

could I make a paper branch

with taper? It seemed

impossible. I began

experimenting with ink jet

paper but it didn’t behave

the way I needed it to.

Eventually I discovered that

newspaper was the perfect

solution, and developed

makigami, a material made by




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saturating newspaper with a

liquid, rolling it tightly, shaping

it and then curing it in a car in

the hot sun.

Makigami was the perfect

solution to my paper branch

problem. Not only was I

recycling the morning’s

newspaper, but I was also

creating a biodegradable work

of art. I knew almost

immediately that makigami had

tremendous potential for other

applications.

Makigami and Braiding

I first braided Makigami during

the summer of 2010. My niece Helen, then 12 years old, laughed at me when I told her I needed to

learn how to braid. She couldn’t believe I didn’t know how. I rolled three strips of makigami and then

she braided them. My jaw dropped when I saw what she produced.

The braided makigami was intricate. It had a fractal pattern, or more accurately a tessellated pattern,

almost like that of a pine cone. Highly visually stimulating, the piece was still flexible enough to be

molded. This was truly a “eureka” moment. I soon began experimenting with how taper affected the

braid and discovered new

intricate shapes I had never

seen before.

The combination of makigami,

taper, braiding, color, and

molding creates new, uniquely

shaped patterns that have yet

to be explored. Through this

combination we make highly

complex intricate jewelry that

looks as if it took many hours

to create. With practice, you

will develop skills that allow

you to create this type of

jewelry in a matter of minutes.




C o p y r i g h t © 2 0 1 1 B e n j a m i n J o h n C o l e m a n vi | P a g e

Keeping it Green

While this art form is earth friendly, there are a few

things you can do to make it even more so. At first

glance one would think that all of our byproducts,

like bits of rolled makigami, failed projects and scrapsof paper are recyclable. For a better understanding

of what is and isn’t recyclable, I spoke to Marcel

Lussier who sells processed recycled materials to the

recycling industry for the Rhode Island Resource

Recovery Corporation.

According to Lussier, “The buyers of recycled paper

will at some point have to convert it into pulp to

make new paper.” Lussier further explained that the

paper is sorted and sold as different grades. Scraps of newspaper will go through this sorting process

and be recycled, but hardened pieces of makigami will be sorted out and thrown away as contaminants.

He also said “any paper that is treated in some way, especially treatments that strengthen like posters,

blueprints and laminations, will not break down in the pulping process.” In other words, if you put

mak igami in your recycling bin you’ll actually be reducing the efficiency of the recycling process.

Do not recycle any newspaper that has been exposed to makigami rolling solution.




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How to Clean and Reuse Latex Gloves

You don’t need to use gloves to make makigami, but it saves an awful lot of time, and avoids much of

the mess. Here is a method for cleaning and reusing gloves. Most gloves last at least eight sessions, but

some last as many as 20.

1. When you f inish a project don’t take off your

gloves. Wash them while they’re still on, using a soft

sponge to remove any dried paint or rolling solution.

2. Allow the gloves to dry overnight. They will be

inside-out. It’s okay to leave them that way.

3. When you’re ready to use them again, blow

them up like a balloon. Sometimes the fingers tend

to get stuck, so pull or twist them until they fill with

air.




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4. Turn the glove right-side-out.

5. Blow the glove up again. It is ready to wear.

Additional Tips for Reusing Gloves

I keep an inventory of both new and used gloves.

Never try to put on a wet pair of gloves. It’s almost impossible.

Applying talcum powder to your hands makes putting gloves on easier.

Discard any glove that has a hole in it.



M A K I G A M I: Recycle Newspaper into beautiful Jewelry Chapter 1: Learning to Braid

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1 Learning to Braid

Braiding is amazingly easy to do if you already know how to do it. If you don’t, it seems amazingly

complex. These statements seem to contradict each other. The simple truth is, there is a secret to

braiding that makes it amazingly simple. Once you know the secret you’ll be able to braid anything

anytime anywhere.

You can practice braiding with string, shoelaces, yarn, or just about anything narrow and flexible. You’ll

figure out how to braid quickly, so you don’t need to find three different color strands. Look at the

pictures on the following pages and then begin to practice. Before you begin your first project you

should be able to braid without referring to this book.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qxJY4lna5q0




C o p y r i g h t © 2 0 1 1 B e n j a m i n J o h n C o l e m a n 2 | P a g e

We begin with the simplest of braids, the three-strand braid.

1. Separate the strands, one to the upper left

and two to the upper right.

2. Move the top right strand (red) to the

lower left.

3. Move the top left strand (blue) to the

lower right.

4. Move the top right strand (yellow) to the

lower left.

5. Move the top left strand (red) to the lower

right.

6. Move the top right strand (blue) to the

lower left.





7. Move the top left strand (yellow) to the

lower right.

8. Return to step 2 and repeat the steps.

As you completed the steps you should have noticed a pattern. The top strand of the side with the most

strands always moves to the lowest position on the opposite side. This is the secret to braiding, and it

works for any odd number of strands.

You should also notice that the pattern repeats. Look at the pictures in step 2 and step 8. The

configuration of the loose ends of the strands is exactly the same. Red is the furthest up (in the picture),

followed by blue on the opposite side and then yellow on the same side. When we braid, all we do is

repeat this pattern over and over again.





Let’s see if we can braid five strands using the same technique:

1. Separate the strands, two to the upper left

and three to the upper right.

2. Move the top right strand (red) to the

lower left.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gN6gzFFIHRM





3. Move the top left strand (blue) to the

lower right.

4. Move the top right strand (green) to the

lower left.

5. Move the top left strand (white) to the

lower right.

6. Move the top right strand (yellow) to the

lower left.

7. Move the top left strand (red) to the lower

right.

8. Move the top right strand (blue) to the

lower left.





9. Move the top left strand (green) to the

lower right.

10. Move the top right strand (white) to the

lower left.

11. Move the top left strand (yellow) to the

lower right.

12. Return to step 2 and repeat the steps.





First, notice that the same technique we used with a three strand braid also worked with a five strand

braid. All we did is move the highest strand to the lowest position on the opposite side. Also notice that

the configuration of the loose ends of the strands in step 12 is exactly the same as in step 2, just like

steps 8 and 2 in the 3-strand braid.

Take a look at the pictures below. The left image shows the 3-strand braid we made at the beginning of

this chapter; the right shows the 5-strand we just completed. Notice the differences in the patterns.

The 5-strand braid has longer angled segments, whereas the 3-strand braid has shorter segments. In the

3-strand each strand is constantly changing direction, in the 5 strand each strand becomes a straight line

as it crosses the top of the braid. These differences may be useful to you in your designs.

The 3-strand braid we made at the beginning of

this chapter.

The 5-strand braid we just completed.

Take a look at the following pages to see what happens as we braid with pairs and triplets of strands

rather than single strands. This is where braiding starts to gets really interesting.





Practice before you begin a project:

We want to simulate braiding makigami strips as

closely as possible, so it’s time to build a braidingclamp. I use parts of a nifty “helping hand” tool I

bought some years ago, along with a wide clip. I use

this configuration because I don’t have a lot of space.

Another option is to clamp a wide clip to the bottom of

your work surface.

It’s easy to practice braiding. All you’ll need is three

shoelaces, or something similar like strands of yarn,

string, or ribbon. Clamp the strands in your wide

clip as shown. Set up the laces so that only a small

amount protrudes from the wide clip.





While makigami strips are not particularly delicate, their surfaces are. Even the slightest abrasion can

cause unsightly tears in the surface. To avoid this, practice braiding by touching only as necessary to

complete the braid.

When you braid, make sure you are only touching where you need to. Do not run your fingers down the

laces to avoid knots. If you get knots on the unbraided side of the laces it means you’ve got too much

protruding from the clamp.





3-Strand Braid made with Pairs

Notice that our finished pattern is

of alternating colors. This braid

looks amazing when three shades

of the same color are used.





5 Strand Braid made with Pairs

Notice that blue dominates the

left; yellow the middle and red

the right. This is a wonderful

braid either with shades of thesame color or using five different

colors.





3-Strand Braid made with Alternating Pairs

At first glance you might not notice a

pattern, but in fact this is a powerful

braid. Yellow, which is the leftmost

strand above, dominates the left side

of the finished braid. Red, the

rightmost stand above, dominates the

right side. This is a highly useful

braid. Two shades of the same color

create a sort of highlight, or direction.

Using two vastly different colors

creates a finished work that looks

completely different depending on

the angle from which it is viewed.





5 Strand Braid made with Alternating Pairs

Notice that this braid is very similar

to the 3 strand with alternating pairs.

Long straight lengths of each strand

are visible across the top of the braid.

Yellow dominates the left side, and

red the right.

This is a wide braid and should only

be attempted once you’ve mastered

the five strand braid.





3-Strand Braid made with Triplets

This braid creates a very wide,dramatic piece. I recommend using

three shades of the same color.





5 Strand Braid made with Triplets

Notice that blue dominates the left; yellow the middle

and red the right. This is a wonderful braid either with

shades of the same color or using three different colors.

This is an extremely wide braid

and should only be attempted

once you have mastered the five

strand braid with pairs





3-Strand Braid made with Alternating Triplets

Notice that blue dominates the

left; yellow the middle and red

the right. This is a wonderfulbraid either with shades of the

same color or using three

different colors.





5 Strand Braid made with Alternating Triplets

In this, the most complicated of the

braids I present in this book, blue

dominates the left side, red the

right, and yellow is the

predominant color in the middle.

This braid is extremely difficult to

make and should only be

attempted after mastering the five

strand braid with pairs.



M A K I G A M I: Recycle Newspaper into beautiful Jewelry Chapter 2: Learning to Make Makigami


10. Set up your workspace.

The workspace pictured above is set up for a right-handed person. If you’re left-handed, you’ll want

your makigami rolling solution on the left side. Be vigilant! Keep your container of rolling solution a

good distance away from you so you don’t tip it over when you roll a strip.

11. Put on a pair of latex gloves. Use your

paintbrush to apply a liberal amount of rolling

solution to the pan. Cover an area that is roughly

the same size as the pieces of newspaper you cut in

step 6.

Reuse your GlovesIf you take care of a pair of latex gloves they will last between five and ten uses. I like using gloves

because they reduce clean up time and keep fingerprints off my work. After completing a project, I

wash my hands with the gloves on. When I take them off they turn inside out. I leave them to dry

overnight. The next day I’ll reuse the same pair, first blowing them up, like a balloon, and then

turning them right side out and putting them on.



M A K I G A M I: Recycle Newspaper into beautiful Jewelry Chapter 3: Braided Jewelry


Finishing an Earrings and Pendant Set with Medium Taper

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xj-SJoiLuGA



M A K I G A M I: Recycle Newspaper into beautiful Jewelry Chapter 3: Braided Jewelry


7. The underside of your bangle bracelet should

look similar to this.



M A K I G A M I: Recycle Newspaper into beautiful Jewelry Chapter 4: Working with Color


4 Working with Color

In this chapter you will learn how to make makigami rolling solutions of different colors. Varying the

color of your rolling solution allows you to create works that look far more complex than single colors

afford. These techniques will also allow you to express your artistic vision more dramatically. Color

gradients, that is, adjusting the shade of one color by adding small amounts of another, create

amazingly complex looking assemblies.

We begin by mixing makigami rolling solution in the three primary colors, red, yellow and blue. We also

mix white and black makigami rolling solutions so we can adjust the brightness of a color. This allows us

to create virtually any color in any shade we might desire.





I use empty jelly jars for my colored makigami

rolling solution.

You’ll also need some wide, shallow cups to hold

makigami rolling solution. When we do gradients,

we don’t want to work directly from our solution

reserve. Instead we pour smaller amounts into

these cups and work with them, discarding unused

solution when we’re done. The cups shown here

contained granola that came with some yogurt I

bought.





Adding a Brightly Colored Finish

By now you’ve probably realized that you can mix makigami rolling solution in any color. You may also

have noticed that colors in our finished assemblies tend to be subdued. To obtain more vibrant color,

you can paint your assemblies after they have cured. It is best to use white makigami rolling solution if

you plan to paint your work. Other colors can be painted, but may require more coats of paint toachieve the desired color.

If you do plan to paint your work, consider painting a more dilute, but different color as your second

coat. You can obtain some beautiful finishes by combining colors in this way. You can even simulate

wood tones.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7tuo5ah-NjI





1. Cure your assemblies and finish them just as you

did on Page 45. To obtain a bright solid color, mix

equal parts wood glue and acrylic paint in a small

cup along with a small amount of water. I mixed

equal parts white and red to create pink.

2. I wear a glove on the hand I use to hold the

earring. This keeps my fingerprints from getting

impressed into the finish. Carefully paint the

earrings making sure your paint gets in all the cracks

and crevices. Don’t forget to paint the inside and

underside of the earring.

3. Allow the first coat of paint to dry and then add a

second, much more dilute coat of the same color, or

a different color. In this example I mixed ½ part

acrylic white and ½ part acrylic blue paint, with 1

part wood glue and 10 parts water. The resultant

mixture should be about as thick as whole milk.





4. Apply liberal amounts of the mixture to the

earring.

5. Work the mixture into the cracks and crevices

of the earring. This type of finish benefits from

buildups that occur in the cracks.

6. Here are our finished earrings. If you look closely

you’ll see that the finish varies and looks quite

interesting.





I obtained this color by painting a mixture of equal

parts acrylic yellow paint and wood glue along with a

small amount of water. Then I painted a second coat

of equal parts dark brown acrylic paint and wood

glue along with about 10 parts water. The overall

color varies from yellow to dark brown and reminds

me of oak finishes I have seen.

This pendant has a reflective green finish. I

painted it with one coat of ½ part acrylic green

paint and ½ part acrylic shiny gold paint mixed

with one part wood glue and a small amount of

water.





Gradient Colored Makigami

Braided makigami is visually complex. Part of this complexity comes from color. We can’t control all the

colors we work with because some of them come from the original newspaper we used. For example,

consider an advertisement that includes a picture of red marbles. If we use blue makigami rolling

solution, those red marbles will appear as areas of purple color in our finished assembly.

This variation is desirable. Even better is the ability to control the variation by changing the color of our

makigami solution. The techniques described on the following pages will allow you to add controlled

color variation to your projects.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=blLrsx2I9EU





Three Step Gradient from White to Blue

1. Before beginning any project, you need to dosome planning. First, decide what type of project

you’d like to make from chapter 7. In this example,

I’m going to make a three strand earrings and

pendant set from page 112. That means I’m going

to need six short makigami strands and three long

ones. Next, consider how much taper you’d like.

2. Because I’m doing a gradient, two short and

one long strand will be white, two short and one

long strand will be light blue, and two short and

one long strand will be blue. I separate my pieces

of newspaper into three groups.

Notice that I have opted to make a highlytapered set.

3. When performing a gradient color shift, always

start with the lightest color first. Pour small amountsof each color you’ll be using into shallow cups. For

this gradient, I begin with equal amounts of white

and blue.





4. Roll two short and one long strip in the white

makigami rolling solution.

5. Clean any excess rolling solution left behind in

your rolling pan. If you don’t clean the excess it

will lighten the color of your finished strands.

6. Dip your brush in the blue makigami solution

and add it to the white solution. Do this several

times until you’re happy with the change in color.





7. Roll two short and one long strand in the light blue

makigami rolling solution.

8. As in step 5, wipe up excess solution so it

doesn’t dilute the next color.

9. Roll your remaining strips in the dark blue

makigami rolling solution. Carefully wash your

hands with the gloves on. This is to ensure that

dried chips of paint don’t end up on your finished

assembly.





10. Braid and finish your project as described on

pages 32 through 34.

11. After being braided and cured our gradient looks

like this.

Here’s the same gradient color,

but in a more complex braid

similar to the one presented on

page 117.





Clear Coat Color Shitfs

Clear coats allow us to shift the overall color of a project while at the same time maintaining the

variation in color we achieved when we rolled our strands in gradient color. Clear coats are easy to do,

but should be carefully considered. A clear coat will either bring out the complexity of your braid and

leave you awestruck, or it will yield results you didn’t expect, and might not like. It’s important toremember fundamental rules of color mixing. A beautiful lavender braid will turn into a beautiful brown

braid if a clear coat of yellow is added.

Because they are highly diluted with water, “clear” coats could also be called “dilute” coats. Your ratio

of paint to glue is always equal. Your ratio of paint to water is variable and depends on the difference in

color of the strands you’re painting. If the strands are similar in color (in the same color family like

peach and tangerine are both oranges), one part paint, one part glue and ten parts water are the ratios I

recommend. If your colors are in different color families, like black and white, you can use as many as

five parts paint, five parts glue and 10 parts water.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PkFGqP4WGsI





This is the original pendant and earrings set that

we will modify by adding a clear coat of color.

Notice that the colors are similar, blue, light blue

and white.

1. Mix 10 parts water with 1 part paint and 1 part

wood glue. In this example I used ½ part yellow and ½

part blue to 10 parts water and

2. Apply a liberal amount of the mixture to your

assembly. Work the paint into all cracks and

crevices. Do not allow the mixture to pool; removeexcess paint with a dry brush.





3. The finished set is pictured right. Notice the

color shift between this and the original picture on

the opposite page.





More Examples of Clear Coat Color Shifts

Application of a green clear coat.

Because there isn’t a much color variation between the light blue and white makigami strips in this set,

our clear coat must be mixed thinly. A ratio of 10 parts water to 1 part paint and 1 part wood glue is

appropriate. Notice how the green color shifted the original colors. After application of a green clear

coat, light gray has become light green, light blue becomes blue green, and dark blue becomes

turquoise.

Application of a yellow clear coat.

In this example, notice that the original colors are fairly close in shade. If the clear coat were too thick

we would have lost this difference in color. After application of a clear coat of yellow, we obtain two

shades of yellowish green. The appropriate ratio is 10 parts water to 1 part paint and 1 part wood glue.





Application of a blue clear coat.

Before the blue clear coat, the assembly looks a little bit hap-hazard. After the clear coat it looks more

deliberate, more like the colors belong together. I’m not sure which I prefer. A 10 parts water to 2

parts paint and 2 parts wood glue was used for the clear coat.

Application of a thicker purple clear coat.

In this example, the pendant pictured above-left is made from two colors of makigami. The pendant’s

color variation is large, between light gray and black, therefore we can mix a thicker clear coat and

obtain a more richly colored finished piece. A mixture of 10 parts water to 4 parts paint and 4 parts

wood glue was used. There is more information on this technique in chapter 7.





This pendant has a finish that looks a lot like fish scales. The original colors were similar to those

obtained in the 5 Step Gradient video on page 63 (peach/tangerine). After it cured I painted it with one

coat of a mixture of ½ part yellow acrylic and ½ part shiny gold acrylic paint, one part wood glue and 10

parts water.



M A K I G A M I: Recycle Newspaper into beautiful Jewelry Chapter 5: Clip On Designs






The same technique used to braid a doll can also be used to braid animals.

I began this lizard-like creature the same

way I began the doll, by braiding two

legs. I then added a seventh strand of

makigami to represent the tail. The body

is made up of seven braided strands,

three become the head, and four the

arms.

Pictured at left is the underside of the creature

depicted above. Notice how the tail becomes

incorporated in the seven-strand braid which

represents the body.





How to make a Butterfly

Here’s a fun project that looks nice. The butterfly is an assembly of two pendants, two earrings and a

five strand slip-on clip. The clip, which forms the body, also incorporates antennae. In this example, my

butterfly’s wings are all three-strand braids. That means I need six pieces of newspaper for the two

larger wings, and six for the two smaller wings. The body, including the antennae, is made from a fivestrand braid.

Strands for the smaller wings began as pieces of newspaper that measured 4 ½ inches long by 2 ½ inches

at their widest (11.4 x 6.4 cm). Pieces of newspaper that make up the larger wings measured 9 ½ inches

long by 3 ¾ inches at their widest (24 x 9.5 cm). The body was made from pieces of newspaper that

measured 11 ½ inches long by 3 ¼ inches at their widest.

1. Cut 6 long pieces for the bigger wings, 6 shorter

pieces for the smaller wings, and 5 extra long

pieces for the body. Notice that the pieces

representing wings are more highly tapered than

those representing the body of the insect.

2. Roll the strips for the body of your insect first. I

rolled the five longest strips in black makigami rolling

solution. This gives the butterfly a very dark colored

body.





3. Insert the strips into a clamp and then braid

approximately one half of the total length.

4. Now braid only the middle three strands for their

entire length.

5. Your assembly should look like this. The two

outer stands will form antennae.





6. Remove the assembly from the clip. Fold it to

create a slide-on clip, just forward of the point where

you switched from five strand braiding to three

strand braiding. Insert an isolator (from page 75),

and use a clothes pin to secure the assembly while it

dries.

7. Curl each antenna as shown, and then release it.

This creates a friendly-looking butterfly with

graceful, curling antennae.

8. Allow the body to cure.





9. Roll the strips which represent the wings of your

butterfly. I rolled mine in a three-step gradient,

from yellow to red.

10. Braid each of the wings with three strands.

Use one of each color strand for each wing.

11. Overlap the narrow ends.





12. Use a clothespin to hold the ends in place.

13. Shape each wing.

14. Carefully compare the wing shapes. They

should exactly mirror each other.





15. Allow the wings to cure before proceeding to

the next step.

16. Trim the tail of the butterfly’s body.

17. Trim the unbraided makigami from each wing,

leaving a flat tab.





18. Assemble your butterfly without glue. Look at

how the wings align to the body. Experiment with

the angles until you’re happy with the overall look.

19. Attach a clothes pin to the body to hold the clip

open.

20. Paint a generous amount of glue onto the body

of the butterfly. Do not add any glue to the clip

side.




101 | P a g e C o p y r i g h t © 2 0 1 1 B e n j a m i n J o h n

C o l e m a n

21. Apply a generous amount of glue to each wing’s

tab.

22. Assemble the butterfly beginning with the

larger wings. Notice that my left hand is pinching

the clip. This helps keep the wings in place.

23. Add the smaller wings. Notice that my left

hand is still pinching the clip.





24. Flip the butterfly and slide a plastic insulator

between the wings and the clip.

25. Use a clothes pin to secure the wings while

the glue sets. Allow the butterfly to dry for at

least four hours.





C o l e m a n

Here are some butterflies and a dragonfly I’ve made.



M A K I G A M I: Recycle Newspaper into beautiful Jewelry Chapter 6: Working with Grayscales


6 Working wi

th Grayscales

The coloring techniques we learned in chapter 5

created more softly colored, natural looking

jewelry. In this chapter we steer a different

course. Now you will learn how to makemakigami jewelry with richer, brighter

colors while at the same time

maintaining variable color. This

allows us to create highly

complex-looking work in

relatively little time.

A simple rule helps us

achieve these dramatic

results. Humans

perceive the color of an

object based on how

light reflects off it. The

way light bounces off

black is very different

than the way it bounces off

of white. Basically, we screw

up the way light bounces off

our braided makigami by

using black, or more

accurately, shades of black

otherwise known as “grayscales.”

We use a combination of techniques to create

brightly colored makigami. First, we roll our strips in

“calibrated” shades of gray makigami rolling solution. That means you’re going to mix makigami rolling

solution so it matches a specific shade of gray in this book. For a three grayscale project you’ll mix

white, 50/50 gray and black makigami solutions. The white and black solutions are easy to mix, but

you’ll need to confirm that your gray solution matches the color swatch on page 106. You can also

download a sheet of printable swatches from www.tobedetermined .com.





C o l e m a n

We’re also going to use color families, or

colors that are related

in our projects. A family of colors is related through

mixing. For example, yellow, green and blue are a

family of colors because green is made by combining

yellow and blue. We’ll paint a thick, first coat of

yellow followed by a thin coat of blue thereby

obtaining shades of green in our finished work.

An example is pictured at right. We can make

any project by relating colors in this manner.

The first, thicker layer of color is called the

“base” color. In the example just given, our

finished project will be shades of light

green.

If we began by painting a thick first coat of blue,and then painted a thinner yellow coat, we’d

end up with shades of blue-green. Our base

color would be blue and our overall color

would be shades of turquoise.

This all sounds complicated, but in

practice it’s fairly simple.

Lighter base coats yield greater color

variation, but won’t look as rich.

Darker base coats yield less

variation, but tend to look richer.

You can counteract the likelihood that

a base coat will override your color

variation by mixing it with more water;

however this will result in a less-rich looking

final color. An example of a more dilute base

coat of blue followed by yellow is pictured at left.





Gray Scale Swatches

For best results, mix your makigami rolling solution and then compare the gray color with these

swatches. A printable document with these swatches can be downloaded at www.bookwebsite.com.

3 Gray Scale

Mix white and then black makigami rolling

solutions. Pour some of the white solution into a

third container. Add small amounts of the black

rolling solution until the gray color matches the

center color of the swatch pictured at right.

5 Gray Scale

Mix white and black makigami rolling solutions.

Pour white solution into three additional containers.

Add black to each container of white until they

match the swatches pictured at left.

Important note: Using five gray scales is labor

intensive. It is strongly recommended that you work

with three gray scales until you have mastered the

painting process.





C o l e m a n

Mixing 3 Scale Makigami Rolling Solution

NOTE: You should do all mixing in your sink so spills are easy to clean up.

Combine 1 part white with 1 part black makigami

rolling solution. Confirm that the color is correct

by comparing it to the 3 color swatch. Add small

amounts of white or black to adjust the color.





Mixing 5 Scale Makigami Rolling Solution

1. Begin by pouring gray 3-scale makigami rolling

solution into two cups.

2. Work on the lighter shade first. Dip a clean

brush into the white reservoir and then mix it

into the gray solution. Compare the color to the

2nd row of grayscale on page 106. If it matches,

you’re done. If not, clean your brush, and then

dip it in the white reservoir again. Repeat until

the color matches.

3. Do the same procedure with the fourth

grayscale, except that you’ll be adding black

makigami rolling solution instead of white.





C o l e m a n

A Tale of Two Pendants

Here’s a 9 strand pendant and earrings I

made in 3-gray scale makigami.

Here’s another 9 strand pendant I made

in 3-gray scale makigami.

I painted this set with a base coat of 10parts water, 4 parts blue acrylic paint and

4 parts wood glue.

I painted this pendant with a base coat of 10 parts water, 2 parts blue acrylic paint

and 2 parts wood glue.

I then painted this set with a final coat of

10 parts water, 1 part yellow acrylic paint

and 1 part wood glue.

I then painted this pendant with a final

coat of 10 parts water, 1 part yellow

acrylic paint and 1 part wood glue.





Notice the differences between these two pendants. The pendant on the left (with earrings) has a much

deeper, richer color. There is some color variation, but it’s limited. The pendant is mostly dark blue

with some hues of dark blue/turquoise. I think it is beautiful.

The pendant on the right has more color variation. It is lighter in color, and if you look closely it has a

brushed, sort of rough-looking finish. I think it is also beautiful.

Basically, the point I’m trying to get across is that you’ve got to be dynamic in terms of your approach to

color. There are tradeoffs. Either you’re going to get rich, deep color and not much variation, or you’re

going to get lots of variation and a less-rich color. Both styles are beautiful.



M A K I G A M I: Recycle Newspaper into beautiful Jewelry Chapter 7: Project Reference Guide


7 Project Reference Guide

On the pages that follow you’ll see a picture of a project along with tables of measurements. Thesemeasurements correspond to lengths C and D pictured above. Each measurement given is a range of

values, so you can opt to make your project either larger or smaller than the example shown. The actual

measurements for the project are also given in the column on the far right of the table.

A, B and E are not given. Here are some general rules for their lengths:

A has no minimum or maximum value. If A is zero, then your strip has no taper. If A is large, your strip

will have a lot of taper.

B should always be a minimum of ½ inch (1.3 cm). The longer your B the thicker your makigami strand

will be.

E should be a minimum of ½ inch (1.3 cm).

Note: As I wrote this book I did measure my pieces of newspaper, but only after I had already cut them.

When I’m working I don’t measure, I estimate. Measurements of finished pieces are not given. This is

because the size of the finished piece is dependent upon the type and tightness of braid. As a general

rule, expect to lose at least a third of the length (D) of your original piece of newspaper.





3 Single Strands - Earrings and Pendant Set

This project takes approximately 20 minutes to complete.

Earrings6 strips make two earrings

US (inches) Metric (cm) As Shown (inches/cm)

C 0 to 5 0 to 13 2/5

D 2 to 8 5 to 20 4/10

Pendant3 strips make one pendant


C 0 to 12 0 to 30 3.5/9

D 2 to 24 5 to 60 11/28





5 Single Strands - Earrings and Pendant Set


Earrings

10 strips make two earrings


C 0 to 5 0 to 13 3.5/9

D 3 to 9 7.5 to 23 4.5/11.5



C 0 to 12 0 to 30 3.5/9

D 2 to 24 5 to 60 11/28





3 Pairs of Strands - Earrings and Pendant Set


Earrings12 strips make two earrings


C 0 to 5 0 to 13 3/7.6

D 2 to 8 5 to 20 6/15



C 0 to 12 0 to 30 3.5/9

D 2 to 24 5 to 60 11/28





5 Pairs of Strands Pendant




C 0 to 12 0 to 30 6/15

D 2 to 24 5 to 60 11/28





3 Triplets of Strands Pendant




C 0 to 12 0 to 30 3.5/9

D 2 to 24 5 to 60 11.75/30





3 Braided Sets of 3 Strands Pendant

This pendant is made from three sets of three braided strands. I braid each set of three strands, and

then braid the braided assemblies. As you can see, it creates a highly complex pendant. This project

takes approximately 40 minutes to complete.



C 0 to 8 0 to 20 2/5

D 5 to 24 13 to 60 9.5/24





3 Braided Sets of Five Strands Pendant

This pendant is made from three sets of five braided strands. I braid each set of five strands, and then

braid the braided assemblies. The finished pendant is quite different from the one on the previous

page, but also quite beautiful. This project takes approximately 50 minutes to complete.



C 0 to 8 0 to 20 2/5

D 5 to 24 13 to 60 9.5/24





5 Pairs of Strands – Bangle Bracelet


Bangle Bracelet10 strips make one bangle bracelet


C 0 to 8 0 to 20 3/7.5

D 8 to 24 20 to 60 11.75/30





3 Triplets of Strands Hair Pin

The hair pin also requires that you make a thick, tapered shaft of paper. See page 55 for details. This

project takes approximately 40 minutes to complete.

Hair Pin9 strips make one hair pin


C 0 to 8 0 to 20 3/7.6

D 5 to 24 13 to 60 11.5/29





Rings

These projects take approximately 10 minutes to complete.

3 Strand Ring3 strips make one ring. A longer D creates overlap. Little Taper vs. Lots of Taper


C 0 to 5 0 to 13 1.5/4 vs. 3/7.6

D 2 to 8 5 to 20 4.5/11.4

5 Strand Ring5 strips make one ring


C 0 to 5 0 to 13 2.25/6

D 2 to 8 5 to 20 7/18

makigami: recycle newspaper into beautiful jewelry

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