A postal-friendly decorated box (upcycled)

 

So I've been having fun decorating postal-friendly gift boxes like this....:)

It was actually a cardboard box for canned abalone. I love the aqua colour and the matching ribbon handle.

I went with a sweet patterned paper in the same colour family and just added fun elements from my stash.

Since I needed the elements to be flat, I went with fussy-cut elements and stickers...

And wash tape for more patterned goodness..:)

It is important that you fill up your box with enough recycled filler paper so that the contents of your box don't shift during shipping. I usually try to pick the smallest box I can that would fit my main present, then add little other "filler" bits to fill the rest of the box. Of course, I try to make the experience great for the recipient with proper wrapping tissue at the top and the filler paper at the bottom to protect the contents of the box. 

The whole box then gets wrapped in brown parcel paper with the recipient's mauling information and space for stamps when I get to the post office. Because the main box is flat, I do not need a layer of bubble wrap (and tons of packing tape) to protect the dimensional elements. This makes for a less bulky and much lighter parcel. Which means savings on postage fees! *high fives all around*

It is also much much easier to store these decorated boxes because they can be stacked and take up less space. I'll be saving my elaborate dimensional decorated boxes for hand-delivered pressies.

What do you think?

This week's quick project - a redesigned envelope

 

This week's quick project is a redesigned envelope from recent happy mail.

Here was what the original design (by Lizzy Hill) looked like. Really pretty to begin with...

But you know me, I love more colour and texture. *winks*

So I added some bits and bobs from my own stash...washi tape, s sequin, a pop of red patterned paper (to coordinate with the outfit the girl is wearing), a circle sticker and "hello gorgeous" text....

Which I cut out from perfume sample packaging. :)

I had fun redesigning someone else's initial design to make it more reflective of my style. :)

What do you think? Is it more "me"? *LOL*

Make Stuff Monday - a minimalist decorated masculine paper bag

 

Hello friends! Today's Make Stuff Monday is another attempt at a minimalist design. *winks*

I started off with this Nespresso paper bag which is quite minimalist in design to begin with. I love the cream stripe across the bottom part of the bag and kept it as part of my design.

I went with a neutral patterned paper. Then added part of the old leather belt which I had used in a previous project. I love that the belt looks slightly worn and has some scratches and the belt holes..which add texture to an otherwise simplistic design.

At first I wasn't sure about the washi tape border except I ripped it off too quickly when I was test-driving it and tore the edge of the patterned paper so I just went with it. *LOL* But in my defence, the washiest tape has some black in it so it really matched the bag. ;)

I toyed with the idea of tying a tag from the handle but decided to keep it really minimal and just tied a little bow with a black cord from another paper bag.

So, what do you think? Am I nailing the minimalist aesthetic?

All caught up on #the100dayproject

 

Great news friends, after pushing myself to work on multiple eye drawings per day, I'm finally all caught up on #the100dayproject.  Yay, go me! *high fives all around*

The next few eye drawings are using acrylic paints and inks. They have a similar colour story because you know I hate to waste paint. ...*LOL*

Here is 46/100.

And 47/100.

48/100.

49/100. This was the last eye that I did to finally get all caught up.

Went monochromatic for 50/100.

For 52/100, I played with watercolours on smooth paper.

53/100 - watercolours on textured paper.

54/100 - heavy-handed with watercolours.

And 55/100...I had a long day but forced myself to just get a decent eye drawing done....so here's tired eye. *winks*

What do you think?

Decorated glassine bags to fit into a decorated file folder - another postal-friendly gift idea

 

So last year I made a whole bunch of decorated file folders and this year, I'm planning to fill them up and send them out. Here are some decorated glassine bags filled with goodies. Can you guess the contents of the bags? *winks*

Clue #1: Day.

Clue #2: Night.

Here they are in the previously decorated file folder. The slot on the right will be a note to the recipient on how to use the contents inside the glassine bag...which are sachets of skincare for day and night! Did you guess correctly?

Here is the decorated file folder filled with some skincare supplies so that the recipient can have am at-home spa day. Yep, I included products for all the steps in my typical skincare routine (you know I'm very thorough so like 6 or 7 steps each for day and night...*LOL*)

This file folder actually goes into a "beauty box" along with other makeup supplies for a dear friend who loves makeup. I will share that decorated box (you know it has to be embellished a little, right?Hahaha!) later...you know, in case she reads this blog post. 

What do you think of my postal-friendly gift idea?

Workspace Wednesday - do I need a bigger desk?

 

So the other day my sister came to my room and said immediately," You need a bigger desk." (See photo)

Do I really need a bigger desk? 

Because I'll probably just fill it up with more stuff. *LOL* 

Have I actually accidentally drank paint water? Nope. 

Tip: only drink from cups with handles and don't use a cup with handles as your paint water cup. *winks*

Have I lost stuff on my small desk? Yep.

Is it easy to clean up my desk? Yep.

Is it fast to clear my desk? Yep.

And that's when the "lost" item will turn up. Miraculously when I have "cleverly" substituted the use of that item for something else in my stash. *every scrapbooker can relate...hahaha*

The truth is, I LOVE my small desk. It has nicks and scratches. I've sanded it down and varnished it again. I've eaten my lunch on it. I've painted my nails on it. I've made some of my fave projects utilizing it. And I love my "me" time at my desk. 

So I think I'll stick to my desk. For now. :)

What about you? Do you work on a huge desk? Or a small one like mine?

A decorated tea box for the Spring /Summer Coffee Lovers Hop 2021

 

It's that time of the year again - the Spring /Summer Coffee Lovers Hop and my project is a decorated tea box. :)

I started with this lovely sturdy box that I got from Fresh (I am obsessed with skincare!).

I thought it would be nice to send someone a gift of a cup and some tea bags since we are mostly staying at home these days. I kept the decorations as flat and postal-friendly as possible. 

I love that the original box is very minimalist in design - just Fresh on the cover of the box. So I really needed to decorate just that part of the box. :)

I drink both coffee and tea. Coffee in the a.m (double shot espresso) and tea the whole day. :)

What about you? What kind of caffeine do you gravitate towards? *winks*

Make Stuff Monday - a quick decorated envelope

Hello friends! Today's Make Stuff Monday is a super quick decorated envelope.:) These are great for slipping a quick note along with a goody bag when you meet a friend. :)

I always try to use the bits from happy mail once I've photographed them to post on social media and thanked the sender. Because I've pretty much stopped buying any scrapbooking supplies, every time I get happy mail is when I get "new" stash to play with! :)

I get especially excited when I can mix in my own stash too. Like on this quick decorated envelope.

What about you? Are you working on your existing stash or still buying the latest scrapbooking supplies?