megmer's digital origami gallery

sonobe unit models

sonobe units are little interlocking units that take about a minute or two each to make. i have an entire shelf dedicated to them and they have won 2 first place awards. (both from the same fair). i got most of these from a page of a spanish book that i cant locate right now, but i will put it here if i ever find it.


making all of these has made me realize how cool geometry is. i am not a math guy but this stuff has sent me down some wikipedia geometry rabbit holes, which i recommend you should go down too. anyway here is a blog post about it that i thought was cool

one unit model
one unit folded into itself. took me a week
2 unit model
2 units folded into eachother. if made with large construction paper, it works well as a coaster
3 unit model
3 units. this one is called toshies jewel
6 unit model
6 units. this cube is geometrically a tetrahedron. might explain why sometime
12 unit model
12 units. geometrically an octahedron. might also explain why for this one too but like. get off my back dude
24 unit model
24 units. made this one up myself
30 unit model
30 units. you can make your own by printing this pdf
36 unit model
36 units. this one is a cube lol (if you look closely you can kinda see it)
48 unit model
48 units. this one is rather cool looking, like a cube with 6 tumors
60 unit model
60 units. this one is very flimsy because it requires you to fold the individual units in an unconventional way, but it makes a very unique outcome
72 unit model
72 units. this one is very very cool. its secretly a bunch of cubes if you look close. (also its a variation on the 24 unit one, just a little bigger)
84 unit model
84 units. this is a snub cube, which i think is a very good shape look it up
90 unit model
90 units. this one is very spherical and satisfying to hold because i "popped in" the pentagonal sides. the 120 unit one is the "snub cube" version of this and the pentagonal faces are popped out.
90 unit model (again)
90 units (again). this is a variation on the 72 unit model, just with more sides. also a variation on the 12 unit one in the same way that the 84 unit one is a variation on the "cube" (not the actual cube the one that looks like a cube but is actually a tetrahedron). you dont have to understand that
90 unit model (again) (again)
90 units (again) (technically). why technically? because this is unfinished. geometrically, this is a triangular tiling, which is infinite (and also a regular polyhedron).
120 unit model
120 units. this one was an undertaking at the time and i talked alot about how hard it was but nowadays i can do it in my sleep. i probably have 120 spare units just lying around rn
120 unit model (again)
120 units (again). this one is a level one menger sponge. also unfinished because fractals are infinite (fun fact!). its made from interlocking regular "cubes" and "cubes" made with reversed sonobe units
900 unit model
900 units. this is the truncated version of the 120 unit model. that makes it alot more complex, thereby requiring more units to make. it was so many units, i had to tape them together and use foam to fill it so it wouldnt collapse. its been in 2 display cases, and gets worse and worse over time. i have to re fix it whenever it gets droopy and every time it gets more frustrating to do so but im proud of it. took me a whole entire dang month