Sweet Living Magazine: E-mag with a cup of tea

I love online e-mags. They provide lots of inspiration that you can’t find easily on the net. Sweet Living Magazine happens to be a very inspiring virtual publication that promises to give you lots of cool ideas. It’s new & it’s free!

Issue 3 of Sweet Living is out. And it’s full of inspiration & ideas.  Click here to read the issuu version. I particularly loved the homemade ice-cream recipes  provided by the readers at the beginning of the mag. And I love the heart sachet (In the pic above – L).

And to view issue 2 of Sweet Living, click here.

On  their blog, SL offer nice crafty ideas. Here’s one I really loved: A doll garland. Sweet, right?

I just can’t get over this Little chick tutorial! For full tutorial,  go to Petite Purls. SO CUTE!

I leave you with these lovely color palettes & inspirations, wishing you all a very lovely Friday.

With Color,

Karboojeh

 

 

Craft show: Table Display & Handpainted Pencils

I’m not in the mood for words. So, today, I leave you with a few pictures from yesterday’s craft show.

Just a little note about these hand-painted pencils… I adore them. They almost sold out yesterday at the Shigh Ead Craft show. I made the pencil holder (display unit) in the pic above by upcycling a Pringles can.

And finally a general view of the table. You can see some of the new items I have been working on: Fridge magnets/towel holders, notepads, “My Inspiration” notebooks & journals, in addition to jewelry (rings, bracelets, and earrings) and jewelry trees..

That’s it for now, Take care,

Karboojeh

Inspiration Board: Chalkboard trends & DIY

Source: moltazdesignshop.se via Karboojeh on Pinterest

Today, I’m going to share with you some of my most favorite chalkboard DIY projects. I am a huge fan of chalkboard, and I love seeing it on mugs, tags, and vases.

Here are my latest loves…

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Chalkboard Mug DIY

Want to enjoy your morning coffee with some play time? The website in the photo-caption below, takes you to the easy-to-follow tutorial for adding a chalkboard touch to your porcelain mug.

I must add that I am a real fan of Pebeo, and I was really pleased to see that now they have chalkboard paint, too, used in the tute.

Source: witandwhistle.com via Karboojeh on Pinterest

Blackboard Coasters DIY

Turn tiles into chalkboard coasters in a heartbeat…

This is a fun project for outdoor coasters.

Source: westermanfam.blogspot.com via Karboojeh on Pinterest

Tutorial: Rope-framed chalkboard

I really enjoyed reading this tutorial by Messy Mimi.

Love the cute way the rope is hugging the chalkboard she made.

Source: messymimi.blogspot.com via Karboojeh on Pinterest

Vintage frame into cool chalkboard tray

A vintage tray, a vintage frame…

and a welcoming chalkboard breakfast tray. Lovely!

Source: theredchairblog.blogspot.com via Karboojeh on Pinterest

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Related Articles:

•  A glimpse into my atelier
• DIY | Mini Canvas & Chalkboard Stand {From Popsicle Sticks}

Handmade Packaging 101: Let’s talk ‘paper’

Garland & Packaging – By Karboojeh Handmade Jewelry

When I first started crafting, I noticed a lot of blogs were into either scrap-booking or paper crafts. At first I thought to myself, “what a waste of time.” I was, of course, looking for “durable” crafts, which led me later on to jewelry-making, here at Karboojeh Handmade Jewelry. What I didn’t realize back then was that paper was an essential part of an artisan’s journey. Packaging without paper, paper bling, and inspiration, simply could not be done!

In general, I’m the recycled paper, rustic-looking packaging, kinda gal. I love re-using cardboard, and all kinds of paper packaging that comes from gifts, things we buy, and unwanted wrapping.

In my recent packaging & display attempts, I attached the earrings below to some recycled paper that I hot-glued onto a mini-wire clothes hanger that I made using regular pliers. This way I went a long way in cutting expenses, while displaying my goods in an attractive and innovative way. I am grateful everyone who has seen these little mini-hanger tags thought they were cute, or “carina,” in Italian.

Packaging my handmade holiday ornaments (and magnets) took a brighter twist. The only reason for this is that I had brighter paper available at hand. I learned to create something from things I already had, or from everyday trash, or things that people usually put in the trash. The handmade garland in the picture below is wrapped around a white piece of cardboard that came from… a Kiri cheese box . That’s right.

In the picture below, I am using pastel-colored paper and bright matching ribbons. I am mostly with the brown recycled paper and the twine wrapping option… much more than the brighter blingy ribbon-centric packaging ideas. But I don’t mind giving the latter a go every now and then!

Paper Inspiration

Who doesn’t love Pinterest?! I have a pin-board over there, where I store & share some handmade packaging ideas. Here are a few paper ideas that I love.

This one is about recycling an old book, or plain newspaper pages, into really attractive wrapping. The buttons look cool too.

Source: flickr.com via Karboojeh on Pinterest

Here is another one. Using plain recycled paper and cotton thread; the artist added a dab of color by hand-painting some cute shapes using acrylic or water color. This way these tags look personalized, simple, and utterly eco-chic.

Source: etsy.com via Karboojeh on Pinterest

IMPORTANT UPDATE: I have posted the photo of the reindeer tags, above, from Pinterest, where it had the wrong source {This wrong source}.

The right source for these lovely tags is via this link, and they are called {Gift Tags – Reinbirds}, and many people have pinned them on Pinterest under the title, Reindeer Tags (while I have pinned them with this comment: “Handpainted tags: using recycled paper and a bit of acrylic or water color, and a pen”).

The tags are handmade and are by Etsy maker, LilaRubyKingShop. The creator’s website is called Lila Ruby King on www.lilarubyking.eu. I am happy to have finally found the source,  and I do urge people on Pinterest to Pin this from its original source and not from my blog or any other source, with the right credit. It’s a big shame that these tags are very popular on Pinterest, and no one seems to know who made them. Now we do, I hope!

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And in this one here, a little bit of turquoise stencil adds a touch of elegance to these Eco-beautiful packaging envelopes.

Source: flickr.com via Karboojeh on Pinterest

DIY: Paper Garland

If after reading this post you are feeling excited to try your hand at some paper crafts, here is a DIY idea that you might really like. Enjoy!

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Related Articles:

• Packaging & Paper DIY: Make your own handmade envelope
• Packaging Ideas: A simple touch to transform Kraft paper

Crafty DIY: Stylish handmade fabric doll from scraps

August 12 was a special day for me. That morning I made a doll from fabric scraps I had lying around. I named her Karboojeh The Doll. She is stylish, cute, and above all a realization of an old dream – i.e to be able to make my own fabric doll one day.

I didn’t use a template to make Karboojeh The Doll. I free-handed her figure using a small tailor’s soap, drawing lines on the wrong side of the fabric. As I started stitching her front-side to her back, I made necessary adjustments to the not-so-accurate arm and leg lengths. So… whatever didn’t go right in the freehand phase was corrected in the stitching phase. Of course, I stitched wrong sides together then flipped the fabric over to attach the head, but let’s not go there, I totally improvised on that front!

I used acrylic paint for her face, threads of silk for her hair, and a traditional Syrian fabric called “Sayeh” for her body. Her facial ‘skin’  is made of faux linen ~ or so the salesman at the fabric shop said. Stuffing is re-used from the insides of an old duvet ~ so a bit of recycling went in there.

the

Wondering about her stylish outfit? Here is what Karboojeh The Doll is wearing:

Dress: Old Moroccan sleeve. Bought mother shirt from a local Casablanca traditional clothes boutique many years ago. Sleeveless shirt is now used as vest by me. Linen.

Belt: Formerly known as my brown Egyptian bag’s strap. Bag is now somewhere in the world; I gave it away. Leather.

Bag: Crochet basket made by me. Twine.

 

Dress: Old Kookai sheer shirt.

Belt: Fabric scrap I found lying around. Tied from the back.