Swaying Cubby

Learn to transform a square sheet of card stock into a hanging two-sided paper basket with two cubby-holes. Thanks to some origami magic, this 3 dimensional piece can be made in minutes. Make it bright and bold or light and airy. Add some treats and hang it on a neighbor’s door knob, or make several and hang from a tree.

Step 1: Gather Your Supplies

• Paper (square). For best results use a quality card stock. For this sample, I used a pad of colorful 6 inch double-sided patterned paper. I made several different sizes from 3 inches to 6 inches.
• String. Any string will do. I used waxed linen for the samples. Other ideas include embroidery floss,hemp, twine, or nylon cord.
• Hole Punch. Use a good-quality punch that can go through 4 layers of card stock. Hole size must be big enough for 2 layers of string to pass through.
• Bone Folder. This is used to crease and smooth the paper for the origami folds. If you don’t have a bone folder, you can just use your fingers. Note: I have found that using an old credit card works well as a bone folder substitute for lighter-weight cardstock. However, it tends to tear heavy weight cardstock.
• Alligator Clip or Binder Clip. Used to secure the folds in place while punching the hole.
• Scissors. Used to cut the paper and string.

Step 2: Fold

1. Lay your paper on your work surface wrong side up.
2. Fold Diagonally.
3. Unfold.
4. Fold diagonally the other direction to form an X.
5. With right side up, fold in half.
6. Unfold.

Step 3: Pinch in Sides

With right side up, pinch in sides. Note that the outer folds peak like a mountain and the inner folds recess like a valley.

Step 4: Pinch and Punch a Hole

1. Continue to pinch the valley folds so they overlap with each other.
2. Hold in place with your alligator or binder clip.
3. Use your hole punch to punch a hole in the middle through all 4 layers.

Step 5: Add String

1. Cut your string to a 12 inch length. Fold in half and tie the ends together in a knot.
2. Tie a larks head knot to secure the layers together. First, pass the loop through the holes.
3. Take the knotted end of the string and pass it through the loop.
4. Carefully tighten by pulling up on the string.

Step 6: Make It Your Own

Now that you have learned the basic folding technique for this project, experiment with different papers and embellishments. Here are a few ideas.

Add beads to the string before knotting.

Decorate artist paper with inks or acrylics before folding.

Use vellum for a transparent feeling. Add battery tea lights in the cubbyholes, and hang on a tree for some cool hanging luminaries. I did this for Halloween and it looked pretty cool.

Step 7: Additional Shapes

Since I have an electronic cutting machine, I have used the same technique using other shapes. Using a circle gives it a smoother look. Using a curvy heart, makes a great valentines hanger. See my bio to access my website where I have more examples and a Scanncut cut file.