Kusudama - Black and White

While cruising the internet for paper crafts, I often came across kusudamas and although they did look pretty, I never really felt inclined to try and make one. That changed while I was flipping through Pinterest one day and came across this black and white design. Using two papers of different sizes for each petal takes a little longer to assemble but the effect is well worth it. I adore the little crystal stickers in the centre of each flower – they add a touch of sparkle to the project.

I initially had trouble designing the tassel. I was not sure what type of thread to use. I thought about embroidery thread, wool, or Chinese knotting cord but in the end, I settled on using plain cotton thread. I took twelve threads and braided them together (Which took about an hour. I am not doing that again.). I finished off the end with four plastic black beads and six strings of twenty clear seed beads each. Black and white elegance.

I was trying to get creative with the background but it didn't quite work out. My sister was laughing when she saw this one - said that it looked like the orchids were photo-bombing the picture. 

A Touch of Nostalgia

As part of the “Week of Warmth” at my work place which I mentioned in my Airforce R post, the Wellness Committee bought a bunch of craft supplies and put them in the common room for us to use to make the cards and encouraging notes we were supposed to share. (I work at a children’s hospital – glitter glue and crayons are our business.)  Looking at the bag of pipe cleaners that was there brought back memories. I could not resist twisting a few colourful pipe cleaner letters.   

This is is a cursive letter 'T' despite everyone saying that it is a 'J'.

A nice summer watermelon combination.

Pink and purple - so girly.

Allison thought this was a little corny for a craft to be posted but it certainly counts as a diversion - I was diverted while eating my lunch. :)

I also made a paper ninja star which I haven’t done since elementary school. 

Stealthy ninjas always carry bright yellow shuriken - it makes the job less gloomy.

 Nothing like a few kiddy crafts to brighten your day.

Heart Punch

While cleaning the other day, I found my old heart punch which I had forgotten that I owned. The punch is small but very versatile – perfect for cardmaking and scrapbooking. Aren’t these sweet?

These cards are perfect for gift tags or short notes. I used one for the pot of flowers my siblings and I gave to our mom for Mother's Day.

Black and White Elegance

The colour palette for wedding cards is pretty standard – black and white. Some people may think it looks stark but I love the simple elegance of it. I cannot take full credit for this design, nice as it is, because a quick look on Pinterest will show dozens of very similar looking cards. My original contribution to the design is the veil. All the other cards I saw had the bride’s heart embossed with some sort of design to suggest a textured dress. I, however, do not have embossing tools so I chose two bits of lace instead to jazz up the bride’s heart.

I am getting faster at this – it only took me about 1 hour to make.  This card was for a church friend who had just gotten married this past Saturday. Congratulations to him and his bride!