Origami: Not Just For ADHD Kids

My younger brother has always had an incredible artistic talent. Also having ADHD, my parents were wise to have him keep busy with intricate puzzles and virtually anything to keep his hands busy as a kid. At some point he came across origami and now i can't imagine him NOT doing it. In Japanese, the word "oru" means "to fold", and "kami" means "paper". Hence "origami" means “to fold paper”. "The goal of this art is to create a representation of an object using geometric folds and crease patterns. Origami is made preferably without gluing or cutting the paper, and is best using only one piece of paper. Origami only uses a small number of different folds, but they can be combined in a variety of ways to make intricate designs. So intricate, that this art form is qualified to have its own field of mathematical study."(Source)

So, years ago my mom got him a book and he instantly mastered the art of origami. Well, maybe not all in a day, but at the time I was busy living the chaotic life a high school student and to me, my brother mastered it much like the equivalent of reading "War and Peace" in a few hours. He started out with the typical cranes. Then, he started to use dozens of baby cranes in lieu of wrapping paper with every present that he gave. I still have a bunch of them in a bag from a few Christmases ago, they were way too cool to throw away. He started working on different shapes at school and was even asked to do a special project for a teacher. The teacher gave him 100 $1 bills and asked him to fold each one into a different shape (star, crane, etc) for her to hang on a mini Christmas tree as a present for her husband. My brother welcomed the challenge and continued to try more intense origami. It was something cool he did for himself but never really used otherwise. Since I did not have the foresight to take pictures of any my brother's creations, here a few samples of simple to crazy awesome origami art I found online:

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Ok, so that was the background information on origami and how I thought it was used- by my brother in lieu of wrapping paper and to show off something different & unique that he created. So imagine my surprise when I saw origami flowers being used for a wedding!! (I made an immediate mental note that will be my brother's gift to me for when I get married.) Having done weddings for 4 years now, I have seen the crazy prices for flowers- some brides will spend an entire reception budget on flowers. And that is their choice. But, as a wedding planner, it is my job and moreover my personal curiosity to find alternative decor and how to make the most out of a bride's budget. So, this paper flowers concept was blowing my mind. I am posting a link to the whole wedding post, but to give some basic info, the couple are self proclaimed "comic nerds and geeks". They got married on National Pi Day and even created wedding comic programs. The groom is an amazing origami artist and created his wife's bouquet. I know. Amazing. Not only is that perfectly personalized to his skills, is such a loving gesture for his bride, and gave the groom a tangible way to feel connected to his wedding day, but it is wayyy cost effective. Here are some pictures and of course the full article on the Pi day wedding. All of the following photos are from the Offbeat Bride blog. It is an incredible blog following real weddings and trends that encompass more than just traditional wedding ideas. The blog has a section called "wedding porn", which is pretty much exactly what the whole website is- amazing pictures of things you never imagined.

*How realistic do all the bouquets look?!

I had to put the last two in for giggles. The portrait has no flowers, but is a lovely hometown shout out shot- I'm from Bmore and love love love the city skyline in photos so this picture HAD to be included. The periodic table for the seating chart was hilarious and the only periodic table I've ever seen that I understood, haha.

So, I know this is not for every couple. It totally works for couples who do not have floral as a priority, plus you get to keep your bouquets! And for the brides who are not digging this, maybe you can get some inspiration from these pictures as to how to personalize your wedding in a different way. The idea is to be creative and use your skills to make the day truly yours.

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*LOVE this last bouquet. Definitely my favorite next to the original purple bouquet