Iris Folding

I was fortunate to teach at SCRAP again this past Saturday. Such a fun place to teach, and shop! (see previous SCRAP post here)

This time I taught the Iris Fold Technique, or Iris Folding.

One of my class samples using security envelopes

This craft originated in Holland and traditionally the insides of security envelopes were used to create the iris (so named because it resembles the iris of the eye or a camera).

I love using the security envelopes since they are an art supply that arrives free to my front door almost everyday - what's not to like about that? But, a number of papers of similar weight can be used.

student work - iris folding workshop

The student above used a mix of wrapping paper, sheet music and paint chip cards. Below the student also used sheet music along with book pages and maps.

student work - iris folding workshop

I love how the use of a solid color (below) amongst the busy patterns really accentuates the curve of the iris pattern:

student work - iris folding workshop

Although security envelopes are my favorite material for this project I love to experiment and see what else I can find at SCRAP that might work:

I played along, too! Another class sample finished.

I found a box of coin wrappers that already had folded edges - they worked great (above)!

The finished product can be a card, an ornament or a piece ready for framing to hang on the wall.

If you missed the workshop you can still play along with me on Creativebug where I teach the Iris Fold Card.