13 February 2013

DIY. how to make a Miyabi paper doll

I think I won it somewhere, probably last year in a Japanese language speech contest... it is a very simple thing but very nice when you finish - a Miyabi paper doll. probably the key is to find an origami paper that you like
I wanted to show it to my pupil but the most difficult part is the hair. my kit had one doll already done (in the middle) and two pieces of hair and two cardboard bodies already done. since I do not want to unfold my dolls I tried to search in the web but there seems to be no ready stencil like the one I had. therefore, I have nothing else left but to make everything myself from the start
the dolls look like this
 the scheme attached to the kit is this
after I examined the originals
I can say that the approximate measurements are
the sizes not mentioned in the scheme are
inside collar - approx 2,5x6 cm
back obi - 2,5x11 cm
however, when I scanned the dolls, made the drawing above, printed it and tried to make new dolls, I faced some troubles. the actual sizes of the dolls that I scanned are
main kimono - 7x12 cm instead of 7.5
front obi - 2.8x6 cm instead of 3x7
shoulder length - 2.1 cm instead of 2.5
two papers glued to each other would make it difficult to fold because of the thickness. I would rather recommend using a paper which has a colour on both sides from the very beginning. if impossible, at least choose the thinnest paper available
the main piece is made as follows

this may seem a bit strange in comparison with the original scheme, but when I tried to do as written there the 'lapel' of the kimono ended up being wrong. the point is that the first 2 cm should be folded towards yourself, while the next 0.5 cm should be folded forward. these 0.5, as you can guess, have 2 layers
I do not know whether I succeeded but this is the hair and the body ↓

this is only a rough drawing. I am especially unsure about the 'shoulders'. however, better than nothing

2 comments:

  1. I would like to start making these dolls and would like to know where to get the materials and tools. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

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    Replies
    1. Hi. I don't think you need any special tools apart from scissors or any material apart from origami paper.

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