The Pocket Paper Engineer: How to Make Pop-Ups Step-by Step

Carol Barton
Popular Kinetics Press (2005)
ISBN 0962775207
Reviewed by Kelli Glesige for Reader Views (8/06)

Author Carol Barton has taken her twenty years of experience in the art of paper engineering, design, and bookbinding to compile an excellent instruction book on how to construct pop-ups.  Concepts are presented in simple form with do-it-yourself models to make and refer back to.  Handy pockets are included for storage of the finished projects.

 I, for one, have always been fascinated with pop-ups, usually found in children’s books.  Opening a flat page of a book to reveal a three-dimensional form is the premise behind this workbook and is a part of what a paper engineer creates.  I was thrilled to see just how easily the included cards can be assembled.  I intend to take what I have learned and put it to use in my scrapbooking projects as well as on some greeting card ideas.

A pop-up is defined by its automatic movement, pulling out and away from the pages of a book or card as it is opened.  Pop-ups come alive when a page is opened, and different pop-ups work better with pages opened at a right angle or slightly more.  Pop-ups might be confused with the Eastern art of folding paper forms called origami, but the difference lies in the factor of movement created by pop-ups.

“The Pop-Up Paper Engineer” is a spiral bound workbook with sixteen do-it-yourself cards, allowing one to get experience in the particular pop-up form presented.  The two most basic forms are the box and the triangle, and clear step-by-step instructions are included and thoroughly explained.  Combinations of the basic box and triangle forms can be combined to create more complex designs while layered pop-ups will give even more versatility.  This is a great resource if you want to learn what’s behind the fascination of creating pop-ups.  The spiral binding makes for easy opening and page turning, plus the projects can be easily removed.  Basic supplies needed to construct pop-ups are covered along with the history of paper engineering and how it’s been used.

I highly recommend this workbook if you are into paper crafting or scrapbooking.  You will see just how easy it is to spark up your projects by including pop-ups on your pages!  Your imagination will get a workout!

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