All wrapped up...

I love a good cohesively themed pile of wrapped gifts. I love it so much that not even doing xmas out of a box (or three!) was going to stop me from having one. Luckily I'd decided on this year's theme early on - black wrapping with white, silver and gold highlights. 

Aside from the odd rogue gift tag, all my supplies were from The Wrapping Paper Company. A Twitter friend put me on to them and I'm so glad they did - gorgeous products, timeless designs and made in Melbourne too! I especially love their 'belli-bands', and the calico and linen ribbon (and look at these lovely striped herringbone ribbons!). But be warned, they are mainly aimed at retailers so everything is sold in semi-bulk packs and you need a minimum order of AU $100 (very easy to do, believe me…). 

Anyway, I'm pretty pleased with how it all turned out - the black wrap adds a degree of classiness, yes? 

ps. I've already got ideas for next year - I'm thinking super bright pink and aqua with pops of gold, white and black. And polkadots, lots of polkadots!

Handmade Holidays : Embroidery Hoop Ornaments

Oh my goodness - twitter and instagram is simply AWASH with gorgeous lovely festive photos of people putting up their xmas tree (see here and here for example). I have to wait till the step sons arrive to put up ours because xmas isn't really xmas without the kids, right? 

However, the nice thing this year is that I've bascially had a two month lead up to xmas where I've been at home! No planes, no suitcases, no trips - just hanging out in Seoul with the husband and the hounds! This is pretty unusual and also pretty awesome. It means I've actually sent my xmas cards before xmas this year, I'm almost ready to put all the presents in the post and I've had time for a spot of festive crafting.

The embroidery hoop ornaments above are going to my parents-in-law. I'm rather pleased with how they've turned out. I especially like the cardboard backing with stamp and message. These ones are in little 5" hoops. I've also made one in a 6" hoop, which you can get a sneak peak of if you scroll all the way down (I can't show you the whole thing because it's for someone who reads this blog!). Next I want to make one in a blue/turquoise theme for us (we're having a white, silver and blue xmas), and after that I think I might make some non-festive ones for the shop (I'm thinking rainbow and monochrome). 

Here's a little bit about how I put them together.

I used a stamp as my pattern, and just stamped directly on the fabric. If you've got a decent stamp collection like me, you'll be getting excited about all the stamping/embroidering possibilities. I've found a soft grey ink strikes the right balance between providing enough of an outline and not showing through in the finish (or you can match your ink to the thread like I've done for the blue one). The key is not to have too much ink on your stamp, otherwise the lines will bleed a little and you won't get a nice neat end product. Next - stitch away! I used a simple back stitch. Just make sure you keep your stitches nice and even and your lines fairly straight. I used a small length stitch for these.

Get some sturdy card stock and trace around the inside of your hoop. Cut it out so you have a circle that will fit neatly in the back. Next, centre your embroidery in the hoop and make sure the fabric is stretched nice and tight. This takes much longer than you think it will. Trust me. I used a ruler to double check the star was actually centred.

Cut off the excess fabric, leaving a 1" to 2" overhang. Then start stitching around the edge to gather up the excess and pull it tightly together. You are kind of 'pleating' the fabric. It's at this stage that you should put your circle of card stock in the back of the hoop. It's tricky to slot it in after you've stitched up the back. I know because I've tried. I tried because I'm an idiot.

Once you've stitched around the whole circle, gently pull the thread so that the fabric gathers together in a nice tight circle. Tie a knot. I also like to dribble a tiny little drop of glue on the edge of the cardboard so that it sticks to the wooden hoop at a point of two, to hold the card stock in place. Lastly, add your message to the back and voila! You're done!

All wrapped up...

What's the festive season without a bit of sparkle? I love a healthy dose of shiny metallics come xmas time, do you? Oh, and do click through on link number four for a whole bunch more gift wrap eye candy! 

1. Seakettle   2. Odessa May Society 

3. Mini-eco   4. Erinzam 

Well folks, this is the last inspiration post for all wrapped up this year. You can see all the posts here - hope you've enjoyed the ride!

All wrapped up...

Ahhh, kraft paper - my favourite! When I'm wrapping I can't go past the simplicity of kraft with some embellishment.  With a carefully chosen topper you can make it fun, pretty, manly, modern or girly. Here's a few ideas that caught my eye online - how great are those sewn star packages? (Very great, very great indeed!).  

1. Inspiration Ave   

2. Jeanne, the moon and a little star...   

3. The Sweetest Occasion 

I've got one more gift wrap inspiration post planned but I'm pretty sure I've already settled on my theme for this year (all will be revealed soon!), have you figured out yours?

Photo gift tags + Polkadot notebooks : New in the shop!

I've been beavering away in the paper workshop (aka my dining room table) and as a result have two new products in the Etsy shop which I'm rather pleased with. Above is the new photo gift tags - my photos, blown up and turned into fun / abstract / pretty present toppers. Below is the new hand stamped polkadot notebooks. What do you think?

All wrapped up...

Told you I wouldn't forget the traditionalists! Here's a little red and green wrapping inspiration for you (well, a little green and a lotta red really). Number two is made from cupcake liners - so clever! 

1. Eat Sleep Cuddle    2. Simply Sublime 

3. How About Orange    4. Fishly News

All wrapped up...

How do you feel about an injection of brights into your festive cheer? And how seriously great is that fringe gift wrap? (If you're more of a traditionalist never fear, I'll have some wrapping inspiration for you very soon!)

1. Willowday    2. Project Wedding 

3. The Sweetest Occasion    4. A Daily Something

All wrapped up...

Here's another simple gift wrap for you - again, plain kraft paper plus lots of paper punches! I used several thin ribbons in different colours for the finishing touch, I kind of like that effect.

All wrapped up...

A little pom pommy inspiration for your xmas gift wrap! Which one's your favourite? 

1. The Gold Jelly Bean    2. You Are My Fave 

3. Smile and Wave 

4. Hello Sandwich    5. Domestic Fluff

All wrapped up...

Did you realise it's less than 70 days until that most festive of festive days? Yikes! Are you ready? Or maybe thinking about maybe getting ready at some point in the future? I think I would most definitely fall into that last category...

One of the things I am thinking about is what theme I'll go with for the gift wrap this year (you can see my wrapping from last year here, and from the year before here). So over the next month or so I thought I'd gather together some inspiration  - showing you some of the wrapping I've done for various birthdays throughout the year, and also sharing some of my favourite gift wrapping ideas from around the internets. 

Here's a fun but simple wrap I did for the youngest step-sons birthday - plain kraft paper, spot stickers and a paper punch or four - easy! 

The World's Biggest Paper Chain*

So I was taking the xmas decorations down the other day, and I got completely distracted by the super giant, enormously long, paper chain that the step-sons have been working on for two whole years (okay, so actually it was a few days in 2010 and a few days in 2011, but why let facts get in the way of a good exaggeration).  As I pulled it down I ended up spending nearly an hour taking photos of it from every angle, while the rest of the decorations resolutely continued to deck the halls.

The paper chain is about 15 meters long at the moment, and next year it will get added to again.  I hope it doesn't fall apart for a few more years - I'm hoping that one day it'll get so long that we can string it through the entire house and then back on itself again!

*this claim is not officially verified by any kind of paper chain measuring association

A Creative Odyssey : Looking back, moving forward

In December last year I had the pleasure of taking part in a blog hop organised by Jess from Epheriell Designs, in which bloggers posted about their creative dreams and goals for 2011.  You can read my original post here.  Seeing as 2012 is well and truly knocking on the door it seems appropriate to have a look back and see if I actually achieved what I set out to, and to think about what 2012 might bring in the creative arena.

My first goal was to make the time - all too often I have a head full of creative ideas but don't allow myself the time to make these a reality.  At the end of 2011 I still have an idea book bursting with things I haven't quite made happen, yet I do feel that over the past 12 months I have made the time to craft.   And it's been fulfilling and calming and fun.

Next I wanted to take advantage of the fact that I don't need to turn my craft into a 'quit your day job' kind of business, and I think I have done just that.  I've taken the time to explore new techniques and mediums (although any advance in my sewing skills has been completely stalled due to my obsession with all things paper this year!).  Importantly, I've been doing more 'just for fun' crafting - making my own Xmas cards, getting involved in mail art swaps, and crafting for friends and family.  There will be much more of this next year, I hope!

I also aimed to stay involved in the crafting community, in whatever way I could.  Time is always the enemy, so it's been a bit hit and miss.  But I'm proud of the way my blog has grown; I've had fun (and learnt a lot) from being actively involved in the Etsy Greetings team; and I've thoroughly enjoyed opportunities to guest blog and to participate in group projects like 52 Weeks of Mail and the Creative Collective monthly themes.  What I haven't done is completed any of my own 'big' projects.  They are still just a jumble of ideas and scribbled notes.

I also wanted to take better photos, and I'm pretty sure I can give myself a tick on this one.  I've been reading books and blogs and magazines, and went to a six week 'get to know your DSLR' course taught by the talented Carolyn Maryan.  I've got a long way to go yet, but I'm pretty excited about what I've learnt so far and I'm hungry for more!

Lastly, there were three new skills I aimed to learn.  To make my own note books (fail), to try needle felting (fail) and to learn maedup (Korean knotting - pass!).  So, I only got around to trying one of the three, but at least it was the one I really, really wanted to learn!

So, to 2012...I have a feeling the next 12 months are going to be rather interesting.  I have a feeling 2012 will be a year of thinking and planning and big, life-changing decision making.  A year of treading water and putting things on hold, and of up-in-the-air-ness.  A year of possibilities, fear and excitement; of not much happening but a heck of a lot potentially happening.  Plus a whole lot of really, really awesome travel thrown in for good measure.  

As a result, my blog may suffer (but hopefully not too much!), and my Etsy shop will definitely suffer (but I'm okay with that).  But, whatever life throws at us, in the next 12 months I still plan to: continue to share good things here; guest blog whenever I have the opportunity; make things for others that they'll love; develop my photography, paper art and maedup skills; support you and your creative dreams in whatever way I can; and maybe, just maybe, bring at least one of my scribbled note 'big' projects to fruition!

Does this time of year put you in a reflective mood?  What are your plans for 2012?

Paper cuts for Creative Collective

Oh look!  My guest post for Creative Collective is up!  It's my first sort of how to type of post, and it's about simple paper cuts you can use to jazz up your festive season.  If you'd like to have a look, click here.  And if you think I should use the word 'jazz' more often, let me know.  I think I should.

All wrapped up...

The past few days I have been locked in my office surrounded by piles of presents, paper and ribbon, with the occasional trip out to stand in long queues at the post office.  Ah yes, the life of an expat at Christmas time!  

Mail art to Kimi Kobashi

Quite some time ago I sent my second ever mail art package out to the gorgeous Kimi and now I am finally blogging about it!  I had emailed Kimi beforehand to get some ideas as to what she might like, and the result was a package that combined three themes - femininity, fashion and Seoul life.

I included a fair few magazine clippings (including some from the rather whacky Cracker Your Wardrobe), some postcards and gift tags made from a gorgeous page I found in Paper magazine, and three little envelopes with various bits of Korean-ness in them (including scraps of beautiful handmade Korean paper).  But my favourite thing to make and send was the accordian book which you can see in the top photo.

ps. If you want to see Kimi's ridiculously cute rabbit checking out the package I sent, have a look here.

Put a pom pom on it!

Is it just me or can one not click a link these days without tripping over a pom pom?  They seem to be everywhere, yes?  Or perhaps it's just another example of the frequency illusion as I'm a bit pom pom crazy of late...

Anyhoo, pom poms - I've been making them.  I started off using some fancy contraption, but then I realised it was much easier just to wrap the wool around my hands like this.  

I was thinking I'd just use them as they are, as ornaments for our tree, but after seeing this wreath from Big Box Detox (which incorporates fairy lights) I'm tempted to make a bunch more and do a wreath.  I guess I'll wait and see at what point the hand cramping sets in.

Dark blue, yellow and grey - this is the colour scheme I am currently obsessed with.  So our xmas is going to be blue, yellow and grey. (Well, at least my contribution to our xmas will be, I'm pretty sure the step-sons don't follow a colour scheme.  Actually, I'm pretty sure they'd think me slightly mad for following a colour scheme.) 

Pom poms are great - they are such fun to say and oh so easy to make, especially if you make them while there's something fun on the radio in the background.  You also don't really need to have any particular skill to make a pom pom (my favourite kind of craft!).  Also, late at night, when you tweet about pom poms you may for a second see your tweet and think you've tweeted about making 'porn porns' and have a mild heart attack and then realise you didn't tweet that at all and have a little chuckle to yourself about how similar 'pom' and 'porn' look when your eyes are old and blurry.

Oh, and if you're interested in another festive craft project that doesn't involve too much actual sewing or knitting or crocheting, I quite like this twisted felt garland from the Purl Bee.

Hope your all having a happy weekend.  I'm in Hong Kong - hooray!

It's beginning to look a lot like xmas...

For some reason that I can't quite remember, last year I didn't have the time or energy to do anything xmas card-ish.  Or maybe I did send some out.  I'm really not sure.  I'm a bit tired today.  Anyway...

The year before that, pre-xmas was the time when we were waiting to find out if we'd be moving to Seoul or not (after just signing a two year lease in Hong Kong!), and sending xmas cards was so far from my mind.  Then the year before that, I actually went to the trouble of designing and ordering a bunch of cards featuring Ferdi and Elfi looking ridiculous in santa hats and 'posing' around a poinsettia.  Trouble was, I didn't actually get around to sending them to anyone.

But this year is going to be different.  (I think, I hope).

It helps that I can't decorate the apartment until the step-sons get here in a few weeks, so craft is a good outlet for me to feel the holiday vibe and assuage my envy at all the gorgeous trees I'm seeing going up around the world via Twitter and Instagram and Facebook.  

I don't normally go for traditional colours at xmas time, but I actually like the red and green in these simple paper designs - it gives the whole thing a bit of a retro feel, don't you think?

Good Things...

I don't mean to alarm anyone but in 76-ish short days xmas will be here!  I adore xmas and this year I am feeling mildly organised (despite the fact that October has so far been one crazy mess of a month) - I have already planned out my gifts and started organising the decorations.  And as generally happens about this time I've also started channelling Martha Stewart (the crafty bit, not the tax avoiding bit) and have been planning my gift wrapping 'theme' for this year.  This paper weave idea from one of the cutest paper blogs around - minieco - is my current favourite.  Wonderfully colourful, yes?

Also making me smile right now is the work of Swedish illustrator/designer Olle Eksell, as showcased in the awesome book from Japan.  I love the humour and liveliness that is so evident in his work (just look at those birds!  and the two awkward bathing suited kids, surrounded by fish!), and his packaging design is crazy good.

I may have mentioned this before but I'm a bit of a magazine junkie.  Being in Korea is a bit like going cold turkey - English magazines here are so expensive, even a basic month-old 'Who' can cost you US $17.00.  So I subscribe to my favourites, and there's a few local publications I love (including this great home decor one, this arty one, and this slightly insane fashion one).  And whenever I'm in Australia or Hong Kong or anywhere else with a decent stock of English magazines I'm always looking out for something intriguing - which is how I stumbled across the first bi-lingual edition of the French magazine Raise.  

I have no idea what the purpose or concept behind Raise is (it's tricky to find any information on their site, and the translation in the magazine leaves a little to be desired) but I'm a sucker for super cool images, and this features a ton of them.  Just check out these two photographers featured in issue 8 - Marc Da Conha Lopes and Liu Di.  Plus, cute kittens.

Aren't these illustrations fabulous?  They're all from The Painted Peep Show (aka Blake Roberts), one of the talented members of the ace Etsy Greetings Team.  I recently bought a set of the running dachshund note cards - Blake captures the energy and enthusiasm of the doxie so perfectly, I think. And yes, that is a portrait of The Golden Girls!

[Paris sunset by Elgarbo Art]

And lastly...I'm going to Paris!  Hazzah, hooray, and other happy sentiments!  I've been to Paris twice before - once traveling solo on my first trip overseas (fun, but a bit nerve wracking), and once with the step-sons and their Mum in tow (lot's of fun but definately not romantic!).  

I'm super excited about this trip as it'll be the first time the husband and I have traveled to the city of light on our own.  Plus, we are doing a quick road trip on the weekend to a little town near Reims (that's where champagne is made, my favourite beverage in all the world!).  And then the husband is heading off to Dubai and I get to stay in Paris for two whole days on my own - taking in the Musee D'Orsay at my leisure, visiting the flea markets, eating my body weight in macarons, checking out the fait main stores in Pia Jane Bijkerks 'Paris: Made by Hand' (with thanks to @TheCraftRevival for the recommendation).  Heaven!