Etsy Monday Welcome Spring with Paper Sprouts

After a blissful hour in the Home Depot garden section going up and down the annual and perennial aisles, I have flowers and plants on the mind. (Does anyone else unstress that way?)  Paper Sprouts makes the cutest seed bomb flowers/plants.  They could be used as gifts themselves, or you can use these great little seed embedded flowers to embellish your gift wrap.

Each paper flower is between 2 1/4 and 2 1/2 inches in diameter, and embedded with seeds.

You can plant the flower and end up with flowers or herbs! The shredded packaging can be used when planting.

planting instructions can be found via the etsy site

There is a very cute version that looks like succulents, but the seeds embedded are still flower seeds.

This would be so pretty instead of a bow on a package

One gift set offers a mix. The red or pink flowers are made with paper that contains a mix of the following seeds: English Daisy, Snapdragon, Clarkia, Catchfly, Bird's Eye, Black-eyed Susan, and Sweet Alyssum

The white or cream flowers are made from paper that has a mix of the following herb seeds: basil, parsley and oregano. 

Perfect to add to a gift for a cook or gardener.

Finally, she offers a less expensive option where you can buy cute little 1 inch butterflies,  again with wildflower seeds embedded. These would look amazing across a gift or card.

About the size of a quarter.

Etsy Monday BlankInsideDesign

Here's some pretty spring wrapping! I just ordered these designs from this great shop in London, BlankInsideDesign. Vivid, graphic design and bright colors, how perfect for spring and summer gift wrapping:

Super cute goldfish!

Great illustration

I love this pattern called "Seed"

And I cannot resist a good flamingo --

Great colors

Here's what the shop owner says about her shop and business:

All the illustrations you see are created, painted, drawn & scribbled by me, Liz Temperley, hello!

I design with the aim to make people smile taking inspiration from the natural world, "being British", food and the random musings of everyday life. Creating unique, colourful & whimsical illustrations that often feature a witty caption!

If I use a supplier to help manufacture the greetings cards, mugs & textiles they'll be UK based, hopefully this means we're all doing our bit to support British industry! 

I live in London.

Colour makes me happy x

Made me happy too, Thanks Liz.

Summer gift wrapping ideas

Summer is ice cream, ripe fruit, long days. Kids out of school, beaches, and blue, blue skies.

Wrapping ideas that say summer to me:

I love the idea of wrapping with a jump rope!

berries.com

Berries.com

Father's Day is coming

I found this wrapping very entertaining. Particularly since my husband is mustachioed.

A Few Home Truths Scratch off gift wrap/tag set

This one is likely to go fast! For real, vintage Dad's day gift wrap.  Too mid century cool.

Vintage Dennison FATHER'S DAY Gift Wrap at MidCentury Addiction

I am intrigued with this barber shop PDF downloadable.

downloadable PDF for gifts

happy wrapping!

Etsy Monday Wrapping from RubiaCraft, Székesfehérvár, Hungary

I love how international Etsy is. Hungary, the United Kingdom, such lovely things from all over the place.  I was taken with the blues and greens of the wrapping paper from RubiaCraft, a paper design shop in Hungary:

3 sheets size A3

Another choice

and another.

Here is what the shop owner says:

"draw. cut. touch. repeat

 

My name is Kondor Valéria, freelance visual artist.
I m behind the shop RubiaCraft.

I am fascinated with
block prints
organic compositions
freedom within structure
the fact that lino cutting and paper craft creates the art&image by removing pieces
the repeat patterns where the elements seem the same but they are not
the mis-registered prints where the color layers float under-above the outline.

I love making boxes. I design all of them myself, so you will not find the same elsewhere.

I have been in art for over twenty years, mostly in painting. Meanwhile I spent ten years in the animation industry as production manager, then returned to full time art."

Etsy Monday some Mother's Day Love at Flaherty Naturals

I found this shop looking for pretty Mother's Day wrapping and stayed for the great natural skin care products. She is offering a code for May, which I am happy to pass on to you!

Here is what FlahertyNaturals says about her shop:

"Flaherty Naturals is based in North Carolina and specializes in organic skin care products and makes Body Lotions & Oils, Bath Salts & Body Scrubs, Lip Balms, Soaps and many other organically based beauty products for natural skin care.

"Flaherty Naturals was started in 2007 because so many of my mature nail clients were allergic or sensitive to commonly used salon products. My desire to offer them a relaxing and safe spa service became the “necessity is the mother of invention” concept I adopted, and so began my researching and learning about the blending of herbs, oils, and essential oils. With over 20 years of organic gardening, and canning, and jam making, and all the other "makings" a woman does for her family, I was ready to start making healthy, healing things for the skin as well.

"Having adopted the use of a Client Service Sheet that listed my clients allergies, medications, and other information that would help me provide a pampering and safe service for them, we used that information to design the “products” needed for their services from my stock of certified organic oils, butters and essential oils. Soon I was able to offer the individualized mixing of "a blend" for my clients at the time of their services and they loved being involved in the choosing of ingredients based on their individual sensitivities.

"Many of them chose to do their own research (which I always encourage), and we would use that information to build their own customized blends. They would look through the numerous books, and other printed material on herbs and oils I had accumulated, picking out this oil for their skin condition, or that scent because it pleased their senses, and we were both delighted when the customized blend did not cause a reaction when they used it."

The wrapping for these intriguing products that caught my eye:

Mother's Day Gift Wrapping Service for FlahertyNaturals products

 

Mother's Day Gift Wrapping Service for FlahertyNaturals products

And use this code to get some of the great products at this wonderful etsy shop:

**Save 10% on orders over $25 with Coupon Code MAY10OFF25 (does not include NC Tax or Shipping costs) and have a wonderful Spring.

birthday present

You know all that cut out stuff letting photos show through I was posting about?  It's harder than it looks.

Etsy Monday AnastasiaMarie

Obsessed with this shop and blog! From her Etsy shop description:

"Anastasia Marie is a stationery + design studio based in the Portland, Oregon metro area. Founded by Anastasia Mikailenko in 2009, Anastasia Marie originally began only as a full on custom design service, but has then progressed to include ready-made goods and packaging supplies. Anastasia Marie continues to specialize in the handmade, which includes 3D layered cards + wall art and layered paper garlands + toppers — as well as wedding + social stationery, working with brides and small businesses to bring their life’s stories and dreams into their paper goods." 

She has so many good things in her Etsy shop that you can use to recreate the amazing ideas in her blog.  For example, can you get any cuter than this baby shower gift wrapping using cut outs of little baby things?  No you cannot.

Directions for this look can be found here.

 Or this elegant dahlia gift wrapping?  Sigh.

So pretty.

And if you go to her shop, you will find the best tags, washi tape and glitter things ever. For example, this corrugated tag with glitter:

Buy these tags here. 

Which can be used to wrap gifts like this:

or like this:

Go here for directions on how to do this.

I could go on for days. But just go check it out to find your favorites.

Okay, just one more.

Can you stand it? So, so cute!

Using photographs of friends and family for gift wrapping.

Using old pictures/new pictures is definitely a personal way to wrap gifts.  There are some good ideas out there about using pictures not yet digitized without ruining the photos:

Sweet Paul did a collage on 11 x17 paper and copied it.

Flourish Anyway used a similar approach.  She gives detailed instructions.

You can also use photos as gift tags. Follow this link to Sweet Paul for how tos. 

Or follow this example from Photojojo:

Photojojo gives very good detailed instructions on how to do this linked here. 

And finally, from Evermine. You can order these, just upload your photos and they do the rest. 

Etsy Monday KateZarembaCompany

Kate Zaremba has some really excellent stuff in her pretty Etsy shop.  Here is how she describes herself:

"My collection of prints, drawings, paper goods, and textiles is inspired by textures and patterns I imagine or come across in everyday life. My curiosity is insatiable and I am prolific with my pen. I am a believer that your dreams can be made true with a pen and a bit of glue.

Born in Oklahoma, I've lived in New York, Los Angeles, Kansas City, and now currently reside in my adopted home of Washington, D.C.

I attended Kansas City Art Institute studying fiber, sculpture, and ceramics. I went on to be the assistant to Jonathan Adler in NYC before heading to Corcoran College of Art in Washington, D.C. for graduate school.

I love to make things and I love to collaborate on projects even more! Offering CUSTOM everything in my Etsy shop has been a true joy."

totally crushing on the trapeze

She has wallpaper, gift wrap, tissue paper and bows.

Tissue Paper in that cute trapeze print!

Look at these super cute prints! Sequins and Falling Arrows.

Comes in 3 foot rolls.

If you don't want to go all out on the gift paper, consider these cute bows.

greenery

I liked ToneandState's use of greenery (yesterday's Etsy shop post), so went looking for more examples. Pretty simple, right? Kraft paper, jute and stuff from your yard.

From Factory Direct Craft.

From We Heart It.

From Rustic-Crafts.

HTWF. Love the Washi Tape!

White wrap.

Can you believe the gift wrap below was actually a do it yourself with an embossing plate?  I am intimidated.

(Sourced from Gave That.)

Then she put vellum butterflies on it.

(Images by Mam for Gave That.)

When I started this post, I was thinking about super simple white wrapping paper with some ribbon or lace, like below. But then I found Gave That's wrap. I am still reeling.  Embossing. Vellum butterflies made with stamps and blue ink.  I feel so inadequate.

Confetti Style

map wrap.

I love wrapping with maps. You can use maps of a particular place that has meaning to someone, a place that someone wants to go, old maps, new maps, purchased or upcycled.

Old World Map Wrap from Container Store

Chevron Map Wrap from Bookishly UK Etsy Shop

Special places Map Wrap from the Chic Site

I should do this for my husband.

Spoonflower Halloween

I have not mentioned Spoonflower yet, which is quite the omission for anyone seriously covering gift wrapping.  Though I have to admit I felt silly typing "seriously covering gift wrapping", but you know what I  am trying to say -- if you are going to talk about DIY gift wrapping, you have to get to Spoonflower at some point.

daisy_boulevard design

Why, you may ask?  Here is how the Spoonflower folks describe what they do:

1

Start with a design

Create your own design—just upload an image to get started.

— OR —

Choose a design from the Spoonflower Marketplace, where indie artists earn commissions from every sale.

2

Choose a product

Apply your design to the fabric, wallpaper, or gift wrap of your choice.

3

We print it to order

We make each item just for you. After we print it, the Spoonflower team hand cuts, processes, and packs your order.

Get started

 You saw the gift wrap in there, right?  That is relatively new, Spoonflower started as fabric and expanded from there.  So here is where you can create your dream design, or do cutesie things with your initials or your name, or make a pillow out of your kid's face, or make or buy Halloween themed gift wrap.

Like this:

Argyle bugs, anyone? Here's where you go!

It gives you a wide variety of previews, so you can see scale.  For example, I love this creepy portrait  print.

Andrea Lauren design

But if I am worried about what it might look like on a box, there is this button you can click on "gift box" so you can sort of see how it would work.

 Lots more to come about Spoonflower from me, but do check it out for Halloween ideas!