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The Tin WhistleNotes on the craft of entertaining children.

A compartment of the valise

The Fold

balloon modelling, paper tricks and things made in front of the child

3 notes · latest note 11 September 2026

  • A balloon pump, a black marker and a coil of long modelling balloons laid out on a hall table.

    The pump, the marker and the twist

    The balloon folder's kit: the hand pump that saves the lungs, the marker for the eyes, and the two twists that make every animal.

    6 min

  • A sheet of newspaper mid-tear on a magician's table, a restored sheet folded beside it.

    Paper tricks that tear and restore

    The torn-and-restored newspaper and its cousins: what paper teaches about misdirection in front of children.

    6 min

  • A hand half-way through twisting a coral balloon into a dog, a queue of children waiting just out of frame.

    The balloon dog under watching eyes

    Why the balloon dog is folded first: the 260Q, the four bubbles every animal shares, and what children actually watch.

    6 min