Dollar Bill Origami (Dover Origami Papercraft) [Paperback]

John Montroll (Author)

Book Description

Series: Dover Origami Papercraft | Publication Date: September 12, 2003

Step-by-step instructions and clear diagrams show paper folders at all levels of expertise how to fashion 37 origami models from dollar bills. Beginners will enjoy making a boat and a butterfly. Windmills and peacocks will suit intermediate-level hobbyists. An alligator and bison should prove no problem for advanced paper folders.

Product Details

• Paperback: 128 pages
• Publisher: Dover Publications (September 12, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0486429822
• ISBN-13: 978-0486429823
• Product Dimensions: 11 x 8.5 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #309,594 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

53 of 53 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars More Dollar Bill Folding, October 15, 2003

By 

Joshua Koppel (Chicago, IL United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Dollar Bill Origami (Dover Origami Papercraft) (Paperback)

This is the second book of dollar bill folding from John Montroll. Like all of his other books, the directions are in clear black and white (with some grey shading) and are easy to follow.

The models in this book range from simple to complex. One unusual aspect of this book is that many of the models were designed by other folders such as Sy Chen, Gay Merrill Gross, Stephen Hecht, Robert J. Lang, Won Park, Mike Thomas, Peter Farina and others.

Models include Boat, Three Diamonds, George Washington Slept Here, George Washington Framed, Star of David, Windmill, House With Chimney, Sword, "One Way" Arrow, Tetrahedron, Cube, Diamond, Tulip, Evergreen, Tree, Flower, African Mask, Shirt With Tie, Swan, Crane, Vulture, Goose, Flamingo, Peacock, Pelican, Eagle, Asian Dragon, Alligator, Tyrannosaurus, Rabbit, Armadillo, Squirrel, Aardvark, Llama, Bison, Butterfly, and Dragonfly.

The book even includes methods for creating paper in the dimensions of a dollar bill in case you want to do different sizes or just reduce the cost of your "paper".

A fine addition to any origami library with a little something for everyone.

34 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great shape collection, July 20, 2005

By 

Lisa Shea "medieval swordfighting enthusiast" - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (TOP 50 REVIEWER)   

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This review is from: Dollar Bill Origami (Dover Origami Papercraft) (Paperback)

John Montroll is a well known name in origami, and he does an excellent job of creating both simple shapes for beginners as well as extraordinarily complex shapes for experts. This book is no exception. This is a great book to get if you're interested in presents, tips or other uses for money origami. Even if you're a raw beginner, you can start with the very simple items, and work your way up to the complex.

First, the collection of shapes. Things are rated by star difficulty. With the basic one star you get a boat, three diamonds, George Washington slept here bed, and a swan. For two stars you get a George Washington framed picture, star of David, windmill, house with chimney, sword, one-way arrow, tetrahedron cube, diamond, tulip, evergreen, tree with spiked branches, African mask, shirt with tie, crane, vulture, goose, flamingo, peacock, pelican, Asian dragon, alligator, tyrannosaurus, rabbit, armadillo, and squirrel.

Move up to three stars and you get a petalled flower, eagle, aardvark, llama, bison, butterfly and dragonfly.

That's the beauty of this book. You can make the classic shirt and swan designs for general tip-giving. If you've got a friend that is year of the dragon or year of the rabbit in Chinese astrology, those make perfect gift giving shapes. A house becomes a great housewarming present. The bed is a "thanks for letting me stay over" present. Insted of your gifts coming across as crass "take the cash please" sorts of things, you give it a touch of class by matching the shape to the occasion.

I have a minor problem with the illustrations, as they are simply done with one side of the paper shown white and the other side shown grey. That makes it really hard to understand what's going on in some situations. If the illustrations actually showed a dollar bill design, you could match up where the parts fell to know you were folding properly. John also has this tendency to do tricky folds that involve squashes and folds that will tie your brain in knots. It can easily take you several tries to figure out his more tricky moves on advanced designs. Again, better illustrations would help with this.

That all being said, you get an amazing collection of designs in this book, and your skills will definitely advance as you move your way through the designs. Well recommended!

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great designs! Good Diagrams! Lacks some instruction., December 15, 2005

By 

Frenchfry (Irvine, California USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Dollar Bill Origami (Dover Origami Papercraft) (Paperback)

This is not a origami book for the faint of heart - or novice folder - by any stretch of the imagination. I have been folding for some years and found some of these designs to be a bit of a struggle. I'd get it... but a little more written instruction would have saved me some time.

PROS
1. Great Designs (he uses a variety of great designers - see the review before this one for details) - some of the best I've seen!

2. Good Diagrams - not great .. but accurate - found myself on a few occasions looking at one pic then the next and thinking "then a miracle occured" - but managed to work my way through them all.

3. Amazing attention to detail. John Montroll has an incredible eye for small detail folds that really differentiate his book from the others I've seen (I have a collection of 8 - not comprehensive by a long shot). Its this little attention to detail that will move your folding from intermediate to advanced. This is the first book I've had in a long time that has really advanced my folding skills. Not just because I've learned some new designs - but I've learned how to detail my designs.

4. Lots of designs - really an incredible value for the sheer number of designs you get - this is true with his Dollar Bill Animals book as well.

CONS
1. could use more written instruction with some of the diagrams
(if not for this I'd give this book 10 stars)

This along with his Dollar Bill Animals book are great! Personally, I preferred the Dollar Bill Animals book because I just liked the designs. This book however includes designs from a variety of authors as discussed in previous posts - which is a great addition.

Overall - the designs and diagrams outweigh the negatives. But after seeing Jodi Fukamoto's books this book is lacking in niceties.

This is not a book for beginners - but a MUST HAVE for intermediate to advanced folders. There are some easier folds in this book - but I fear a novice would struggle to figure them out.