presents.

I love Christmas. Giving presents, wrapping presents (not so much on the buying presents, but that's ok, it comes with the territory) Every year it seems I come up with a "new" way of wrapping presents. This year has built off of last years, in a sense, but has gone even farther.

I don't quite have everything wrapped, but these are presents that had to be done before this weekend. I think they are very pretty and wanted to share. The basic idea is from Cosmo Cricket, but hers are treat bags. But I loved the idea and like so many other things, ran with it!

Here is the tutorial from Cosmo Cricket, there is no way I could let you know how to make them any better. 

To make my bags at different sizes I had to add another step. For each present to fit snuggly, I measured the object and did lots of simple addition and subtraction.  The bottom had to be the correct size for the width and length then the height on the sides had to be just a bit above the top of the present. The real trick was getting the other two opposite sides to be tall enough that they would cover the top and have the ability to close in some way.

For example, 

if the present was 4in length by 5in wide by 5in tall. 

• First double the height
  5in + 5in = 10in
• Add the width to the doubled height
  10in + 5in = 15in

So that will give you how wide you have to cut the paper.

Next you need to figure out the length. With this you will need to add extra paper for the closer.

• To find the width you already doubled the height. So take that measurement again and add the length of the present.
  10in + 4in = 14in
• This is where you add the extra length, I really have no formula. A lot of it is how you want it to look But make sure you add at least 3in for both sides. More if it's a solid object with little to no give. 

For this present you would need to cut the paper 15in by 20in. 

For our pretend box you would want to fold 5in in on both sides for the width and 8in for the length. After folding along the lengths and width you will follow the folding instructions from the video. 

Once you have followed the folding instructions the flat paper should look something like the illustration. 

To finish the creation of your home made bag you will need to fold it all up once more. For most of the bags I used glue stick to hold the bag together, but that is not necessary. These bags can be decorated however you'd like. I would sugest decorating before glueing the bag together. 

Instead of labeling the packages I assigned a stamp to each person and their presents are all marked with it. Adds to the mystery a bit. And it was fun for me! A few of the stamps I created myself.

To close the bags I punched holes and tied each package shut, with ribbon, twine or lace. They could be stapled or taped. 

Each of my bags were individually engineered for the each present. As you can imagine, it got old a little fast. I've just got a few more to wrap... but I'll do that a little later. I need a break!

hand made stamps

I love the dollar store. 

I'm not sure too much more needs to be said on that subject. The things you can find to re-porpoise are endless. 

Recently, I've been making stamps out of erasers. Some are the giant ones you can find. The ones that say "for big mistakes".  They have been very fun to design and create. I'm not going to say they are perfect, but I think they are pretty cool. 

Some I've made for a purpose, but  most are just for fun. I mean, seriously, doesn't everyone need a mustache stamp?

shell ornaments and their packaging.

I made these ornaments as a thank you. They are from shells I picked up at Cape Cod this summer. 

It was really fun to come up with simple, elegant designs.  I made four the "same", as the same as shells can make something. Then I made each a special ornament. Included in the final package is 2 of my beechnut ornaments as well. As you can see, I have a really great time with wire. I love the shapes and forms you can make. The simple, elegant lines that can be created with both practice and a little bit of luck.

 Now, on to the packaging!

I had a lot of fun with the packaging. I guess I figure If you are going to do it, do it well (and don't be afraid to go overboard!).

When I put together the packages, I wrapped up each ornament in newspaper. I used pages and parts that were highly text intensive, I thought it would have a more interesting look to it. I used a fun stamp of some camels and a blue ink pad on the news paper then folded the ornament in and tied it closed with some jute (something I can never have enough of!) On the ornament that was all the same in each, I put the place and date, since that was the point to begin with!

On Pintrist, I found a way to make boxes out of the plastic gallon milk jugs. I traced it back to Comparte Tus Ecoideas. Yes, it is a spanish blog, but luckily pictures don't need to be translated. So I was able to figure it out just fine. It took me a few times to really get it down, but now I'm a pro.  

Instead of milk jugs, I actually used Lipton Tea plastic gallon jugs. At first, I was skeptical. I wasn't sure it would work the same way the milk jugs worked. They are shaped a little different and the plastic isn't quite the same. But I gave it a try. And they worked! I used a hole punch and put two holes in each layer of the closure so I could tie the box shut.

If you want to try to make these cool boxes for yourself check out the tutorial. I can think of so many cool things to use them for! I think I'm just going to start making them and saving them, after all, Christmas is coming up soon.

shell necklace

On top of the ornaments, I also made a shell necklace for a special girl I know. 

With a little creative wire twisting, a few beads and some feathers I think I came up with a interesting design. Simple, but fun. 

Daisy helped model the necklace for me. She's such a super star. She'll be impossible to live with after this one.

I made a little box, just like the ones I made for the ornaments. This time I used a half gallon plastic milk jug. From the remnants of the jug after making the box I made some packaging for the necklace. wrapped it up in some newspaper, put a stamp on it and put it in it's little box.

I was very happy with the way it turned out. Here's the tutorial on how to make these cool little boxes. The picture shows it being made with a gallon jug, but the theory is the same with a half gallon.