Doll of the Month: Airi

I finally found time to do some new photographs, and so we have a new Doll of the Month!  Her name is Airi and she is part of a new line of dolls that I have been working on.  Airi's name (愛梨) has the characters for "love" and "pear."  A while ago I received a message from a customer browsing the site who said that all of the dolls had these cute and bright colors, and she said she would be interested in some dolls that had a slightly more mute palette.  Well, Airi is my attempt at toning down a little bit of the brightness while using unique color combinations for an original look.  She is the first new doll in a while and I really love her look!  She is part of a whole new family of chiyogami dolls that I will be uploading in the next few days so stay tuned!

There are only four of Airi, and once they sell I do not have the paper to make more.  I had originally bought the paper for her haori and kimono to frame and put above my entertainment center.  So Airi's unique look is really from the remnants of that paper.  

I think one thing I really love about her is the variety of textures.  Between the gold decoration on her haori and kimono to the horizontal striping in her mauve obi, I just really appreciate the overall feel of this doll.  I used a new type of paper that I am experimenting with for the orange in her kimono and sakura flower.  It is a korean unryu paper called Woon Yong Gie washi paper.  The paper is "threaded" because of all of the rice paper strands within it which gives it this cloudy, marbled look.  So far, I am digging it!  I will close on this last photo of Airi's mate, Arata who is a perfect match!

Tutorial: DIY Easy Debit Card or Business Card Holder

So I was browsing the book store and I came across the perfect project.  I despise carrying around a full wallet with me and I learned to use these little cases when I lived in Japan.  They were perfect for holding my teikiken (train pass) and bus pass, as well as my student ID on my morning commute.  I was in my local Japanese bookstore and I came across these simple, cheap, clear cases that I decided to dress up!  These make a great and easy project for just about anybody!

Materials:

• Ruler
• Scissors
• (1) Empty PVC or Vinyl Card Case.  You will want the kind that folds open and closed.  The size I prefer is 65x98mm.
• (1) Sheet of chiyogami paper (15cm x 15cm).  I am using Shinwazome paper here that can be bought at any craft store such as Michaels.
• (1) Sheet of complimentary paper.  I like using Japanese washi paper like ginburimomigami (a thick textured paper with silver and gold foil flecs), but any paper will do.

The reason that chiyogami and washi are perfect for a project like this is their fabric-like texture.  When the card case "folds," it does not crease the paper which keeps it looking nice.  Plus, it is very durable and suitable for long-term use!

1.  If you are not sure of the measurements of your clear card case, you will want to measure the usable portion.  This means you will want to start measuring at the inside of the seam so you know what size to cut your paper.  If you are using this size, the length of normal chiyogami paper (15cm) is perfect, and you will have a width of 4 inches.

2. I took the chiyogami paper over to my paper cutter and cut at 4 inches.  Easy!  The paper is now the perfect size for the card case.

3. Repeat with the complimentary colored paper.

4. Take you scissors and "round" off the edges.  You will not want to cut a lot, just enough so that your paper does not get stuck in the corners when you insert it.  Maybe a milimeter or so. (Repeat this step for the complimentary color).

5. Great, now you need to insert you chiyogami paper.  I insert one side completely and then I work the other side in.  Just be careful not to crease the paper when you are doing this!  This is the most difficult step since chiyogami is so malleable.  You might need to fidget with this for a while before it slides in!  Folding the card case in half in the opposite direction is also helpful during this step.

6. This is what the finished step will look like.  The paper should lay perfectly flat inside the case.

7. Take your complimentary color with the "pretty" side facing up.  You will want to insert this the same exact way that you did the chiyogami.

8. All finished!  Your previously drab and clear card case is now a stunning accessory!  These make PERFECT gifts and great party favors!  Chiyogami is naturally beautiful and you can see the shimmer of the silver and gold accents through the plastic!  Feel free to dress it up even further if you like, but I prefer mine simple. 

These will hold up to 10 business cards on each side and is perfect for carrying your debit card, ID card, drivers liscence, or credit card.  You can even use a small hole punch to attach a jump ring and keychain if you like!  I will be putting a few on Zibbet and Etsy in case you cannot find the supplies or do not feel like making your own!

Wordless Wednesday #12 (Chiyogami Paper Stash)

I am a paper hoarder.  Yes, you heard me right.  I like to collect gorgeous prints, but then I hate using them for projects since it means that they will no longer exist in their original form.  I always have this unsupported fear of screwing up a project and wasting this pretty (and expensive) paper.  Sometimes, I wish I could forgo creating at all in order to plaster the walls of my apartment in chiyogami prints!  (Even though J. might have a few objections about that...)

I decided to show off some of my stash since I had some questions about prints that I own, but are unavailable in the shop at the moment.  These are all being used in an upcoming series of dolls and bookmarks that I hope to finish next week.  The colors remind me of a tropical island.

Aruba, Jamaica, ooo I wanna take you to Bermuda, Bahama, Come on pretty mama!  Okay, enough of that...  Happy Wordless Wednesday everyone!

Decorating pages one at a time

I have done some thinking and with a spurt of creative genius (if you can call it that), I redesigned and renovated my miniature chiyogami doll bookmarks.  The first thing you may notice that that she is bigger.  A LOT bigger.  The dimensions ballooned from 2 x 5.5 cm to 3 x 8.5 cm.  While the little ones are absolutely awesome, there are some benefits to this new substantial size and some design changes.  A bigger size means that she will not get lost as easy.  Her hair is made from black bond paper which will lay flatter inside your book.  And last but not least, she now has 4x the magnet power to keep your place inside your book.  

It also allows me to be a little more creative with hairstyle and it is a great way to use up some thin strips of discontinued paper.  Meet my first one, Umi, who is now for sale on Zibbet and Etsy.  I have been diligently chugging away on these and I have 4 different styles so far which will all be uploaded soon enough!  

But please, tell me what you think!  I value your feedback more than anything and these changes were due to some wonderful feedback I received from friends and family members.

Back to work!  I have many more bookmarks to assemble before tomorrow...

New Product: Paper Doll Magnetic Bookmarks

I absolutely adore those little paperclip bookmarks that I have seen all over Etsy.  However, the reason why I don't actually use paperclip bookmarks is that they usually leave indents on my pages.  As an academic, I really treasure my books and I needed something that would not harm them.  

So I have taken the best part of the paperclip bookmark (the little bulbous part that sticks out of your book) and replicated it with paper and magnets.  The result?  These little magnetic bookmark dolls.  

Their bodies fold around the page with a magnet on each side to make sure your doll won't go anywhere when marking your page.  You know it is on secure when you feel the little magnetic "click"!  I am having a blast making these.  The are only 1/2 inch thick at the body and I have been using strips of chiyogami and washi paper to decorate them in the same way that I would an actual doll--obi, butterfly and all!  The hair is made from crepe paper.  I have not treated the paper with any varnish because it would warp the paper and take away from the appearance of the paper.  However, as long as they don't go swimming in the rain, these bookmarks should hold up nicely.  I have been using one in my book for the past week and she looks great.

I know not everyone is a fan of dolls, but love the appearance of chiyogami paper, so I have also made some "faceless" bookmarks to list.  Both types are coming in a variety of colors and be sure to keep your eye open for them in our Zibbet and Etsy shops!