Boxes 'n' things

As noted in my last post, here are some images of some items I took over to Black Door Studio last week:

Coral entanglement keepsake box (6” w x 6” l x 2.875” t)

Copper red floral keepsake box (5" w x 8" l x 3" t)

Gold and green floral keepsake box (4" w x 5" l x 3" t)

Flower dragonfly keepsake box (5.75" w x 5.75" l x 2" t)

Cherry blossoms blank card and matching custom envelope

I've stopped calling my boxes gift boxes, and now refer to them as keepsake boxes. It's amazing to me what a difference a description can make. Gift boxes imply one-time use, while the boxes I make are sturdy, made from acid-free matboard and will last. They're great for display on a shelf and to keep miscellaneous items - photos, keepsakes, collections of plastic miniatures... many things.

Find Corbae at Black Door Studio

For those of you local to the Seattle/Everett area, I'm excited to announce that you can now find some of my boxes and cards at Black Door Studio in Everett! If you haven't checked out their retail store and studio space, it's well worth it!

Black Door Studio
237 Elm Street
Everett, WA

Facebook page

Web site


I'll post some of the new items I've made for the store in the next couple of days.

And if you're on Facebook, did you know that Corbae has a fan page? Yup... Check it out.

Custom boxes as gifts

I love making custom boxes for gifts. The packaging becomes part of the gift itself. I've had people tell me that they display their boxes long after the gift itself is gone. They use the box for regifts (which is my favorite use for them), with the boxes often reappearing year after year within a family. Not only can I customize the size of the box to fit the contents, but I can customize the paper and design to fit the recipient(s).

But, of course, making these boxes is time consuming. I wish I could take the time to make them for all gifts, especially at Christmas, but there just aren't enough hours in the day. So, I often pick one or two gifts that get a custom box, rotating through family and friends.

Here's one I made for a gift of wine this year:

When it was done, I used a lovely red ribbon to tie it closed. Green and red – hard to get more Christmasy than that.

Interested in a custom box for your gifts? Email me or convo me via my Etsy store.

Black and red all over - small boxes

I've just posted a third in my series of small boxes over in my Etsy store. This one was a lot of fun because I took a craft that to me feels very earthy and of the pioneer spirit - weaving and made a pretty gothic-feeling box. Again, it comes back to that idea of combining elements in unexpected ways.

I do love going back and forth between the darker, gothic, snarky side of my personality and the natural, earthy, save-the-environment side. Sometimes it feels like a boxing match, waiting to see who will win today.

Yart Sale at Corbae

June 10th - 14th

All purchases made in Corbae’s Etsy store from June 10th through the 14th will receive free U.S. shipping.

And be sure to check out sales Etsy-wide. Many shops will be participating in the annual Yart Sale with specials and discounts.

Repeating patterns - small boxes

I've posted a new, small keepsake box over in my Etsy store.

I've been having a lot of fun creating smaller boxes, and using up the piles of my small pieces of matboard. The smaller boxes definitely take more concentration to get the smaller corners and bits to fit together correctly. But when they're done, I love coming up with lists of items that would fit in them.

This particular box uses a repeating pattern in different materials, which ties the many shades o' blue together.

Watch for more small boxes to show up over the next couple of weeks.

Packaging as part of the whole

I've been really enjoying Jackie Hernandez' posts on handmade and creative packaging over at Crafting a Green World. I'm definitely a strong believer in packaging and think it can make or break a product, and the items she's posted are absolutely beautiful. They have my head spinning with new ideas.

I am surprised at something she said though. In her post on Thursday, she said, "You do not need extravagant overdone packaging that will probably be thrown away by the recipient. Instead keep it simple, keep it easy to open, and keep it handmade." When reading that, I kept coming back to the question: why make something that will be thrown away by the recipient? If at all possible, shouldn't the packaging be something that can be reused in some way? I know it's not always possible, but when it is, it sure seems like the more ecologically-friendly option.

Two examples of this in practice come to mind. I visited Japan for the first time a few years ago. That's a country that knows how to create beautiful packaging. I still have some of the "ordinary" papers a few books I purchased were wrapped in, and have used other papers in projects since then. They were too beautiful to just recycle. Even simple wrapping was a work of art. Although I was leaning in that direction anyway, that trip really did firm up my belief that the packaging can be as important as the inside.

Secondly, I was thinking of shopping bags. Although the majority of my purchases go in cloth bags these days, I do still occasionally get store bags. Cheap plastic bags go directly into the recycling, but sturdy, well-made paper (and sometimes plastic) bags with cloth or string handles go in the drawer to be used later. And we do use them until they fall apart. What better branding for a company than to have their logo seen again and again because they've made a bag that can be reused?

Ultimately, for me, it comes down to lifecycle being as important as origin.

I began creating keepsake boxes as part of my card sets as a long-term packaging solution. The box can be reused long after the cards are gone.

Paper options limited

As much as I love paper and communication via a tangible item, people are often surprised to find that I'm also a strong believer in using technology to communicate – e-newsletters, email, web sites, electronic brochures, social networking, etc. To me, using electronic forms to communicate daily makes the occasional paper communication that much more important and meaningful. I love when I receive a well-designed, thoughtful piece in the mail or from a company – from a postcard to something more involved. More often, though, items I receive are poorly designed, cheap, and with a muddled message, if one exists at all; reminding me why I find most direct mail a waste of trees. And yes, I'm a designer and owe a portion of my income from designing direct mail.

Where does my diatribe lead? Not where you think. Although I do think electronic communications are a better use of resources in many ways, recently I've seen an unfortunate fallout from the lack of creative design and printing. More and more papers have been discontinued, leaving fewer options to choose from when we can design that creative piece. White or off-white in a dozen textures? You're set. Rich colors? Difficult. Texture in a printable stock? Probably not.

It seems like a classic catch-22. Fewer people are using printed materials for communication, so paper companies are providing fewer papers, giving fewer options for printed pieces. Of course, it does mean that when I do receive a well-designed piece, I'm that much more appreciative. And, it does force us designers to be that much more creative.

The cinnamon-colored paper used in this set is just an example of an amazing paper no longer available.

Using patterns in different ways

I just posted a new box over in my store. I've found that I love to take a pattern or item and use it in a different way than expected. In this instance, I used the same "net" pattern one would use to make a dreamcatcher and turned it into a more lacy pattern on the top of this box.

I'd love to hear about and/or see examples from others who have repurposed well-known patterns/items and used them in different ways.