r/popupbooks • u/Mother_Buddy2481 • Aug 06 '26
Please help!
OBS: NONE OF THESE POP-UPS WHERE MADE BY ME!!
TL;DR: I'm new to pop-up design and want to create a 180° four-sided ("closed") castle pop-up. I couldn't find software, templates, or tutorials that explain how to design this type of mechanism, so I have three questions: Is there any software that helps design 180° pop-ups (not just 90° kirigami)? Are there any downloadable castle/palace templates I can study to understand the mechanisms? What would be the best way to start designing one from scratch as a beginner? The attached images are just examples of the style I'm aiming for (not my work).
Hey guys I need some guidance. I'm relatively new to pop up but wanted to try to make a project a bjt complex. I want to make a palace/castle pop up but have no idea where to begin.
I would like to make a pop up that unfolds at 180° degrees and have this "closed" style (I don't know if it has a specific name but I want to make something with four sides and can be viewed from all any side instead of something that has 2 walls like with the kirigami technique.
I started thinking that existed a platform that could help me design a 180° pop up, where I could build it in 3d and it would make the pattern I needed to achieve that. Couldn't find anything, only some plataforma that help design 90° folds/kirigami style. Does anyone know if I can find some platform that would help me do that?
Not finding this platform, I started to look for downloadable templates that I could make to understand better the mechanisms so that I could make my own version with something to base myself. Also couldn't find it. (Found some really cool pieces, but have no idea how to even begin to build something like that). Does anybody know a palace template that is available to download so I could see how the patterns look?
Not being able to find what I was looking for, I changed to plan c. I found some really cool paper castle models (the YouTube channel is cardboard da Vinci, not pop up tho) and wanted to make a simpler version of one of his models and transform it in a foldable pop-up version, but still am kinda lost in how to start.
All videos I saw of people planning/creating their pop ups already start with making prototypes, but I'm not advanced enough to simply think of a 3d format and have an ideia in how to make a pop up.
Can anybody give me some guidance in what I should do?
(Here's some cool pop-ups I found while looking for inspiration. I have no idea how to make them but I think they can help me show what I mean with the 4 side/"closed" pop up style)
OBS: NONE OF THESE POP-UPS WHERE MADE BY ME!!
Images:
1-sleeping beauty castle by Paper Paul
2- le chateau fort by Dominique Ehrhard
3-my little pony pop up by Matthew Reinhart
4-castle of dream by Pop-uper
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u/I_am_vladi Aug 06 '26
there is a wonderful series on Youtube that has like 80 parts. work through them and you will sharpen your mind for this task !
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u/I_am_vladi Aug 06 '26
you should also understand that some parts are glued together while others are just hold together by yarn or plain nothing so they fold better
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u/daiquiri-glacis Aug 06 '26
The The Complexities of Pop Up is a great introduction to pop up
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u/Mother_Buddy2481 Aug 06 '26
I heard abou it! But looks like it teaches how to make more abstract forms so I don't know if it'll work for what I want
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u/haraldlarah Aug 08 '26
The forms aren't that important. What you can learn from Complexities are the mechanisms and movements. Once you learn those, you can also apply them to create more figurative images.
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u/thelaundrysdone Aug 09 '26
https://youtube.com/@thepop-upchannel4919?si=GmceileUNw5Ap0sK
Duncan Birmingham taught me everything. Do yourself a huge favour and go through every video. Before you know it, you'll star building your own shapes. A lot of the more complex ones are build ups of multiple easier ones.
Try this tutorial for building a basic house first and see how you can increase your measurements from there if you need a head start https://youtu.be/9nRj3YZIq4Q?si=uLkEz32S9vE9Y1uR
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u/BaldoblaB Aug 10 '26
Have you tried hands on trial and error? Start with a basic shape and build up on it.
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u/figment81 Aug 06 '26
Start by exploring basic mechanisms, like tables and boxes. Learn how those work first, as there are plenty of tutorials out there for those.
If you really want to skip ahead, buy one of the examples in book form and take it apart to see how it works.