Origami Paper~ Bring back a piece of Japan as a souvenir

Origami paper is decorative paper that you can fold into various shapes such as animals and plants; the paper comes in many designs and textures, and is a beautiful work of art in and of itself. Folding origami is a traditional Japanese pastime and many children in Japan continue to enjoy passing time folding origami when they have breaks at school or whenever they are free.

Today, I would like to introduce a few different brands of beautiful origami paper which you can enjoy folding or buy as souvenirs.

Chiyogami

The Chiyogami origami paper is made with traditional Japanese paper (Washi) and has vibrant and beautiful Japanese patterns; Washi is made by compacting fibers using traditional Japanese techniques, resulting in a strong yet soft and supple paper. Each piece has an entirely different design and if you look closely at the paper, it sparkles and has a smooth texture, making it feel fancy. I find the origami paper to be so beautiful that, sometimes, I feel it is almost a waste to use them to fold origami for fun. Then again, finished works of origami may also do well as decorations around the house♪

Aurora Origami

This brand of origami paper, as its name suggests, is sparkly and eye catching, just like an aurora. Also, the surface is a little fluffy and soft.

In addition, when looking at the paper under a light, from different directions, the color changes which makes it really fun. When I was still in elementary school, the Aurora Origami paper was hard to find but really popular; people like it for making origami flowers have a special beautiful shine when the paper is used.

Senbazuru Origami Paper

This brand is used specifically for Senbazuru and has 250 sheets included. The Senbazuru which is used to wish for longevity and recovery from illness, is made from 1000 origami cranes, which are symbols for longevity; the finished work is really pretty as seen in the picture.

Origami paper comes in many different sizes and the Senbazuru Origami Paper is one of the smaller ones. It may be difficult to fold origami considering the paper’s size, however, it will help to make the Senbazuru compact which will be a good thing; after all you will be making 1000 origami cranes.

Bento Origami Paper

The Bento Origami paper has pre-printed pictures on the surface of each paper, which when folded according to the guidelines shown in the accompanying instruction book, will result in cute origami food items that can be found in a bento.

This type of origami product has been popular for quite some time; as a young child I really liked origami products that could be turned into cute characters or vehicles.

The Bento Origami Paper is quite easy to fold and rather fun, so I recommend trying your hand at making your own origami bento with it♪

Washi Origami Paper

This brand of origami paper is made entirely of no frills Washi paper and each sheet is quite thick and strong. Also, if you look closely, you can see the fiber lines and there is also some gold leaf added to the paper giving it a traditional yet gorgeous feel.

I tend to use this kind of Washi paper to write letters; rather than using normal paper, the Washi paper looks classier and is great to use especially when writing to family and friends.

This concludes my introduction of Japan’s beautiful origami paper. Next time everyone is in Japan, please hand down to the nearby stationery store to look for some origami paper to buy and appreciate. I am sure it will make an awesome souvenir to bring back home!

Written by LINA