A little treat for a Monday afternoon, take a peek at these amazing rolled paper pots and vessels by Siba Sahabi. They are so enchanting! Check out her website for more information about her process and more delicious pictures of her work.
Archive for August, 2010
Paperporcelain by Siba Sahabi
Monday, August 30th, 2010Sale Starting this Weekend…
Thursday, August 26th, 2010Check this out! Starting this weekend, all Shinzi Katoh Japanese Water Bottles and Pinetti Photo Albums are 40% off! Don’t miss this great in-store deal!
Click image to enlarge
How-To: Exquisite Tea Favors in Yummy Paper Packages!!
Thursday, August 26th, 2010Just up the street from us is one of my favourite shops – Tealish. While I was there the other day ordering some tea, I thought what a wonderful wedding favor it would be and starting thinking about ways you could package it. I had something translucent in mind and remembered our remarkable Waterproof Watermark Tissues that can be fused together to create custom bags or packages. I added a few finishing touches and was very pleased with the results.
What you will need:
Waterproof Watermark tissue
Decorative Papers (I used Chiyogami 805)
Printer compatible paper for labels
Cutting mat and knife
Sewing machine or needle & thread
Tea (to match the Chiyogami I used Sakura Cherry Rose)
1. Cut your tissue to the desired size; remember it has to fold over on itself to create the bag. I cut mine to 3.5 x 8.5”
2. Heat your iron up – I used a medium setting but you may have to experiment to find the right one for your iron. Fold your paper in half. I wanted the side seams to be uniform so I created a guide for ironing by drawing a line on regular printer paper. Cover your tissue with the printer paper and iron your seam keeping within your guideline.
Repeat on the other side – now you have a perfect little bag for your tea!
3. Fill the bag with tea. I used 2 teaspoons per bag, enough for 2 cups of tea.
4. Create your label and cut them out. I selected Kozuke White paper because of its lovely translucent quality.
5. Cut your decorative paper strips. I cut mine to 1.5×3.5” to fold over the top.
6. Line up your label and decorative paper and run through the sewing machine, or hand sew if you do not have access to a machine.
7. Voila! Perfect little favors for a wedding, shower or give as a lovely hostess gift. The possibilities are endless…..
A spin on this idea! Perfect for a summer wedding, I picked three different fruit teas (Lemon Meringue Rooibos, Wild Blueberry Rooibos and Tulsi Orange Herbal Tea) and paired them with our vibrant Katazome papers. Inside of folding the paper over the top, I just used a strip, modified the label layout a bit and left the strings hanging loose!
Sewing Paper by Lindsay Zier-Vogel
Friday, August 20th, 2010I love sewing paper, perhaps even more than fabric. I love the way the thread stands out on the paper, I love how the paper can still hold its shape and I love the endless possibilities of thread and paper.
For hand sewing:
I have learned that punching the holes first is key. I, of course, learned this the hard way, after creasing too many sheets of lovely paper, and ending up with misplaced holes that can’t be undone as they can be with fabric.
I take an image, usually a line drawing and lay it over top of the paper I’d like to sew. Then, with a needle, or a needle jammed into the end of a cork to save my fingers, I poke out the holes on top of a soft surface – often the couch.
I will use 2-3 strands of embroidery floss; from there, the sewing is easy!
I usually use a glue stick on the back to cover up the messy underside with another piece of glued on paper.
Thicker kozo paper, like the Hagaki, works wonderfully and doesn’t crinkle or bend too much when you’re punching in the holes, and I’ve found the Nepalese paper that The Paper Place carries is wonderful for embroidery. It creases easily, but is easy to smooth out when glued. It is one of my very favourite papers to sew with.
For machine sewing:
I use a medium-sized needle so the holes in the paper aren’t too big. I’d be lying if I said I had a paper needle and a fabric needle, though I probably should. Paper dulls needles quickly though, so I’d definitely recommend switching them out quite often.
Even the most basic machine can handle paper – even a bunch of them if you go slowly enough. I often bind books using my trusty sewing machine (set on the longest stitch) and love the accented look of machine stitching on paper. And the zig zag stitch is perfect for affixing decorative bits to pages.
visit Lindsay’s website for more of her inspiring work!
Washi Tape
Friday, August 20th, 2010Lovely Washi tape embellishes gifts, cards, scrapbook pages, collages and more. They are made from thin semi-transparent tape and are about a half an inch in width. They are a delight to use! We now carry a selection of them in store! And many, many more to come!!!
The projects that are possible with this lovely Japanese tape are endless. Here are just a few ideas from our favourite blogs…
Custom twist ties make a simple gift or party favour so unique. Washi Tape and some thin guage wire is all you need. For a full tutorial visit Zakka Life.
Whimsical bunting flags at The Red Thread.
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