Simple origami is great for all ages. While many may think it’s just for kids, it’s not! Here are eight fun facts about paper folding that you might not know … yet!
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There are dozens of entries for origami in the Guinness Book of World Records, including most folds, the smallest, largest and fastest time to fold 100 cranes, and many more.
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If you thought origami was just for kids, think again. There is an origami airplane championship that is held every two years in Japan. According to an article in the Bangkok Post, the record for the longest indoor flight of an origami plane is 22.48 seconds, held by Takuo Toda, who is credited with inventing the paper plane.
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Naito Akira made the smallest origami crane in the world out of 0.1 by 0.1 mm collapsible plastic film. The 82-year-old uses special tools and a microscope.
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The three largest origami cranes on record include one with a wingspan of 206.7 feet made by residents of Akita Japan in August 1998. It took approximately 200 people 7.5 hours to fold the square paper measuring 212 feet per side. Wings for Peace bent an origami crane in Seattle in November 1999 with a resulting wing span of 215 feet. The latter allegedly weighed 1,750 pounds. In January 2001, an origami crane with a wingspan of 256 ft 6 was folded in Odate Japan.
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A charity in Mexico (Grupedsac) supports small farmers and indigenous people to make and sell shoulder bags, handbags, purses and belts with folded candy wrappers and other garbage.
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Origami is the subject of a New York play called “Paperless Animals” in which the three main characters are involved in the art of folding paper.
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There are at least a dozen national origami associations around the world, including: USA, Japan, France, Netherlands, UK, Spain, Germany, Australia, Italy, Poland, Russia, and China. The British Origami Society was the first association and was founded in London in 1967.
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Origami USA sponsors an annual convention in New York that is said to be the largest in the world.
It’s easy and affordable to start with simple origami. You only need paper and folding directions.
