Props Shoji-Inspired Screens from Recycled Mat'ls (9/13/2021 DONE)

TLDR; below is the finished project:


Origami Screens by Yela Gatchalian-David, on Flickr​

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Whether it be their "canon" or L5R RPG selves, my doll crew has a ton of oriental-based photoshoots. Below is but one of many.

Shadow and Light 2 by Yela Gatchalian-David, on Flickr
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I have long wanted some shoji screens for my dolls, but I have limited knowledge of woodworking, and have even fewer tools for the purpose. Also, most of my dolls are of the 65cm++ scale, and it's pretty difficult (not to mention expensive) to find pre-made props for their size. But one thing we do have aplenty at home is cardboard. Lots of cardboard from shipping boxes. Oh, and some old printing paper that somehow came into my possession when my dad was still an employee at a local canning company. Sounds like they could be repurposed into something the crew could use, instead of just gathering dust in storage!

But before I get into the actual project progress, here are some notes to bear in mind. I emphasize the shoji-inspired aspect, because there are some fundamental differences to what I'm trying to make and an actual shoji screen.

• Instead of unadorned translucent paper, the screens will utilize hand-folded origami tessellations that show their full beauty when backlit.
• To maximize reusability (I want to be able to use them as dividers and actual doors/walls), the screens should both be dismantle-able and easily reattached to each other. Hence permanent hinges like those in these are a no-no. Instead, I am thinking of putting attachments to the backs of the screens that will enable them to be tied/clasped together as needed.

It's going to be a VERY time- and patience-consuming project, not only because cardboard needs some TLC to actually look good, but also because the paper for the screens has to be pre-creased to a 32x32 grid prior to the folding. Thank heavens hubby is on board with doing the cardboard cutting!

Materials:

• Cardboard (long enough to encompass the largest doll to use the screens)
• Glue (good ol' Elmer's should be fine)
• Craft paper
• Translucent paper (I am using old computer paper)
• Paint of the desired wood color
• Wood varnish (if you want it shiny!)
• Cutter

Progress:
[x] Assemble the frames (DONE)
[x] Fold all the tessellations needed for the screens (DONE)
[x] Wrap the frames in craft paper (DONE)
[x] Paint the frames in the desired wood color (DONE)
[x] Varnish the frames (DONE)
[x] Attach the tessellations to the screens (DONE)

Didn't need to:
[ ] Attach fixtures to the back of the frames (panels could stand as long as there's a grid mesh to lean on)

PROGRESS REPORT 01
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Cut long strips of your desired lengths and widths -- sounds straightforward, right? Well, not really. Some tutorials I've seen even go to say something in the line of "just cut square holes on the cardboard, tack some paper on the wrong side, and DONE!" Unfortunately, that method results in one flat featureless frame, rather like this:

00 - Cut the Cardboard by Yela Gatchalian-David, on Flickr
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To give the frames some depth (or "lift," more accurately), additional strips of cardboard were glued over the basic shape -- you'll see in the photo below where the shadows emphasize those parts. It also gives an idea how tall the final screens will be. The doll on the left is a 75cm LoongSoul ZhuZhao, and the one on the right is his sister, a 43cm Iplehouse JID Violet. Oh, if you're wondering why there's a "Wrap the frames in craft paper" step, the photo will also explain it. The frame on the right has yet to be wrapped, hence you can see all the unsightly bumps and text on the cardboard. While craft paper will not eliminate all the bumps entirely (it's the nature of the beast), it helps give a nice clean surface for painting. It even looks nice at this stage.

(Oh, and the thing she's standing on is actually a low table for the 70cm scale, also made out of cardboard. Call it the test run of this project.)

01 - Comparisons by Yela Gatchalian-David, on Flickr
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Now, let's talk about the origami tessellations! If you haven't heard of them before, they're a very technical type of origami involving propagating geometric shapes, and require a lot of pre-creasing to make life easier. Definitely a different method altogether from, say, the traditional origami crane or flowers. The pattern I am using was learned from this book.

02 - Origami Grid by Yela Gatchalian-David, on Flickr
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One can already see the shapes of the pattern thanks to the dark background of the cutting board, but add some lighting to the back, and its true magic comes alive:

03 - Backlighting test by Yela Gatchalian-David, on Flickr
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Each panel will require five of those folded squares. And since I'm aiming for five panels, that brings the total number of needed tessellations to 25 -- quite a test of perseverance! But Adhara and Guórén have waited for their shoji screens for far too long, and it's high time that they finally get that prop in their setup.

 

Just a little post to answer questions! Thank you for all your comments so far.

@MonochromeNocturne That sounds like an interesting project! Looks like you'll have an easier time with it than me, since you have the advantage of smaller sizing.

@redsixwing The current plan is to just stick with either solid black or solid dark mahogany/maroon. I was briefly considering the woodgrain lines before, but I was afraid I'd muck up the painting job. ^_^;

 

PROGRESS REPORT 02​

Finally, an update! This won't be a long post, but I managed to snap a photo of my MSD-sized Iplehouse Violet chilling with the panels in various stages of completion. The two leftmost ones have been wrapped in craft paper and are ready for painting. The middle one is painted black but unvarnished, while the rightmost has varnish and origami attached.

I currently don't have a good light source to properly backlight the screens, so what you see here is just the effort of a small Baymax lamp to illuminate the setup. Even though the pattern only appears as a gradient at this point, it's starting to look like how I imagined it to be.

Shoji Update by Yela Gatchalian-David, on Flickr​

 

PROGRESS REPORT 02​

An update *gasp*, and it's actually finished! Having to cover long panels of cardboard got really tedious in the end (even more tedious than folding so many pieces of paper), and we ran out of black paint in the middle of the pandemic. However, seeing how the pattern appears so nicely when backlit by sunlight, it makes all the effort worth it.

In the photo below, the panels were actually leaning against some grid meshes I've assembled into a rudimentary roombox mechanism (that's also how I managed to hang those curtain-like cloths on the right side). They don't interfere too badly with how the light goes through the paper, thankfully.

Origami Screens by Yela Gatchalian-David, on Flickr​