Everything Papercraft - Iris Folding

Iris folding is a paper craft technique that is believed to have its origins in Holland sometime in the 1900s. It involves the arrangement of folded paper strips into spiral designs that resemble the iris diaphragm of a camera, which is where the name originated. The designs are decorative and generally used on card fronts or as embellishments for scrapbook and journal pages.

Traditionally, Dutch crafters sourced their papers from envelopes with pretty, patterned interiors, but these days, crafters use all sorts of light decorative paper, from origami sheets to upcycled coffee filters.

Iris folding patterns can be purchased on-line, in some specialty art stores or as published books. Many paper craft artists create their own unique designs.

There is often confusion between iris folding, which primarily focuses on the creation of an iris, and tea bag folding, which is more about pattern and symmetry. Both however, use similar types of folded paper with a similar technique for placement.

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