Let's be friends

Last Friday I finally got my new iPhone and in less then 24 hours you can bet I had already installed Instagram. I've already started snapping shots, the first one of course had to be my little Uli. If you use Instagram let me know I would love to follow you, there are so many great images to filter through its a bit overwhelming but oh so fun. It sure did make the delay on Muni a whole lot easier yesterday. So far I've already captured my baby belly, Uli watching tv and the husband playing with his new phone; the cutest knobs around for our little girls wardrobe and my creative holiday wrapping. So please, stop on by and give me a follow, I'm bound to post some interesting stuff in the next few months with this baby making her big appearance real soon!

images by our designed life

Create: tiny packages

Sometimes I buy craft related items without a clue as to how I am going to use them, like these teeny tiny stamps I got for a whopping 99 cents. Figured they would come in handy one day and turns out they were perfect to personalize a bit of wrapping paper. I reused a jewelry box and tissue to create a one of a kind wrapping job. Throw in a bit of colored or patterned tape and you have yourself a fun gift giving experience without having to spend even more money on paper that will just be tossed anyway. What can I say, I was a child of the 'recycle, reduce and reuse' era. 

photo by our designed life

Creative challenge: No 1- making art, No 2 - hand painted flowers, No. 3- making space, No. 4- beaded necklace, No. 5- jazzing up ceramics, No. 6- creating fun, No. 7- lots of lines.

Beautiful blooms: Stephmodo

I'm a sucker for beautiful packages and these fresh florals are the perfect accessory for any gift giving opportunity. Sometimes the simplest is best and Steph of Stephmodo has certainly gotten creative with a few buds, some washi tape and a few craft boxes. Filing this one under beautiful and simple packaging!

images via stephmodo

Wrapping paper crafting

I've been doing a lot of wrapping lately,  my younger cousin's birthday falls on the oh so dreaded tax day, so I thought I would do a little something special. I've been finding plain ol' wrapping paper is just too boring for me and have a ton of random colored paper so figured I would get a little creative with a clothespin and pencil. While the photo is a little difficult to see {I'm fighting natural light here in SF, turns out we don't get much} I was successful in creating a letter per present. Hope she likes it, its amazing what you can do with a few creative touches.
Over the weekend I gave her her gifts and the first thing she said "oh cool, that means there's 6 presents!" Kids.

photos by our designed life

Krafty details

I just love putting together fun packaging and these sewn beauties are a simple and creative way to add a little something to plain ol kraft paper. Luckily a straight line is about all I can do on a sewing machine so I might just give this a try next time its present giving time. Besides, the outside of a gift should be just as fun as the inside.

photos via sally j shim and the craft dept

Sweet smells

There is nothing more relaxing than getting sudsy with scented soaps, I've got a fig soap bar on deck in my house.  These handmade vegan soaps from Prunella Soap make me want to whip out the credit card and start ordering right away how could you resist smells like sweet orange cornmeal and peppermint poppyseed?  And can we talk about the packaging!?  Beautifully wrapped, these soaps come in a variety of sizes, from their 'adventure' travel size to full on bars.  Be sure to check out the Portland run store for the 16 bar variety, and the wedding favors, genius!  Perfect for casual weddings and parties.

photos via prunella