TAPE IT

Because I am thinking ahead to wrapping all those holiday gifts and because I am absolutely in love with japanese masking tape, I thought I would do a little round up of some of the best options out there online. There are some really great sites offering a variety of colors and patterns at a range of prices. Read on for some of my favorite picks.

Wasabi Masking Paper Tape, MoMA Store, 10 rolls, $25

Monochrome Set of Masking Tape, lovepetitzakkajapan, 6 rolls, $25

Japanese Masking Tape, Design Within Reach, 3 rolls, $12

So Many Pretty Solids Pack, happy tape, 20 rolls, $36.50

Colored Paper Tape with Polka Dots, ArtFire, 1 roll, $17.99

Japanese Masking Tape Set in Blue, Ginko Papers, 3 rolls, $7.50

Enjoy! Feel free to drop me an email if you purchase any of these products and/or if you use them in a fun project. Until then, happy wrapping!

TIPS FOR THE BEST VALENTINE'S CARE PACKAGE

I have a secret super power. No, it's not laser vision or the ability to fly—though that would be awesome—it's the power to put together a kick-butt care package. What's that you say? That's not worthy enough to merit super hero status? I believe my friends and family would beg to differ. In this era of instant, impersonal digital communication, nothing beats getting a good ol' care package (summer camp style) from a loved one full of goodies.

If you are interested in joining me in super hero status with your dearly beloved, click through to learn my tips and tricks . . . . 

NSS: RECAP, PART TWO

This weekend I will be finishing my recap of the National Stationery Show . . . a bit late I realize, but better late than never! Hope you like it!

At the Russell + Hazel booth I met Alexandra who kindly pointed out all the new goodies they have put out. I am particularly enamored with the leather portfolios--big zip pouches that shimmer in gold, silver, black and mint green--that came out earlier this year. They have also just introduced an awesome set of notepads; sold in a three pack, each pad marks out the time in each day in hours, minutes and seconds. Lovely! But, truly, everything made by Russell + Hazel is beautifully clean, bright and useful. Do yourself a favor and check out their website here.

I also stumbled upon an unexpected treat: the Sweet Bella USA booth. Sweet Bella sells all sorts of wonderful things--desk lamps, vintage telephones, leather wallets, etc--but I absolutely fell in love with their overwhelming selection of Japanese masking tape. As you know I am obsessed with patterned masking tape (see here) and so I almost died when I saw their display. I love the idea of displaying all the options on hang tags that have been struck together. I want to buy all of them! Check out their website here and all the masking tape here.

Moments later, I also discovered a new favorite stationer: Mr. Boddington's Press. There I had a long talk with the owner, designer and all-around genius, Rebecca. Besides being incredibly talented, Rebecca is also extremely nice. I had the great pleasure of talking with her for a while as I gazed longingly at her work. Her booth was quite creative: she used lined envelopes to create a shingled overhang above a display, had an adorable mailbox to hold business cards, and entire shelf covered with her wax-sealed business cards. Her cards themselves are a delicious combination of dark whimsy and hand-drawn sweetness: a combination that is so winning and unique that I guarantee you can't find it anywhere else. Check it out here.

HAPPYTAPE! (GASP)

How amazing is this?  I posted about japanese masking paper tape several weeks when it was offered through Design Within Reach.  Now it is being offered in full force (no more "out of stock" notices!) through the awesome website HappyTape!  Hooray!!  Go forth and tape!

(To all my friends and family reading this post . . . I would be very happy to see a box of this tape hidden in a neat little package with my name on it . . . )

TAPE NECKLACE

As you all know, I am pretty much obsessed with colorful tape and its many applications (see here). It is not surprising then that I would be positively in love with the tape and paper clip jewelry on offer at Creatures of Comfort and designed by Manu. I love the bright and sassy color combinations and the lovely draping. Gorgeous! I can just picture these paired with a crisp white shirt and dark suit . . .

Check these (and many more beautiful things) here.

WASHI WALLS

You have probably already read about this by now, but how amazing is SimcolxMT's new washi masking tape strips for your walls?! As a New York City renter with paint commitment issues, I can just imagine these large rolls of (I believe) removable tape would be the perfect way to spice up a big empty white room.

It is nearly impossible to figure out the details required to purchase these since the entire website is in Japanese, but you can check out the whole selection for yourself here.

REBECCA WARD

In keeping with Monday's post, I wanted to share with you the wonderful things Rebecca Ward does with tape. I love the way she weaves the stretches of tape in space, making them seem like buttressing or scaffolding rebar. Simply awesome.

If you are in need of some inspiration, I highly suggest you take a gander at her colorful portfolio here.

(Thanks Oh Joy! for the tip!)

JAPANESE MASKING TAPE: YUMMY!

I really really really like this Japanese Masking Tape made by the Kamoi Company.  

Too bad it is sold out at Design Within Reach.  I guess I will have to keep checking back . . . 

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

After finishing my exams this year, I hit the Christmas spirit hard (sorry to all of you who do not celebrate Christmas and have had to endure the bevy of holiday posts recently; we will get back to normal next week). I had an especially great time wrapping all the presents I had bought for family and friends. I literally spent hours on this, but am pretty proud of the results!

These are but a taste of the photos I took of my creations; you can see the whole slew of them here. I thought I would share some tips for unusual wrapping supplies that I found particularly fun and, I am pleased to say, economical! Wrap away!

Despite my growing collection of pretty holiday wrapping papers, I decided to wrap everything in either brown or white butcher paper (bought from my local Staples for about $6 each for a big roll) so that I could really play with the tags, bows, etc. Overall I went pretty crazy using my decorative tape collection (especially those pretty washi masking tapes; many of which I bought here and here), but I also enjoyed testing out some other fun options.

In this case I used some free printable labels (see here, here and here), baker's twine and little office supply stickers in red, green, blue and yellow. I think the end result is rather Kate Spade, no?

I also made a bunch of snowflakes out of origami paper and added them to the tops of packages or, in this case, under a layer or two of bright turquoise crepe paper.

I had the crepe paper on hand because I finally broke down and decided to make a surprise ball for my boyfriend instead of a stocking. It came out more like a surprise egg because I had to fit so much stuff in it, but I still thought it would be fun. I topped it with some washi masking tape and a tiny paper tree I had leftover from making my snowflakes. Not bad, right?

And, when all else fails, you can't go wrong with a pretty gift bag. I picked this baby up at my local T.J.Maxx for about a $1.50. They always have an amazing selection of gift wrap available at reasonable prices.

Hope these help to get you in the wrapping mood and hope you have a wonderful holiday! Feel free to write me a little note about your decorating or wrapping tips in the comments to keep me busy until I return next Wednesday or so (headed on vacation today, hooray!). Until then, happy holidays!

WRAP IT UP FOR THE HOLIDAYS

Hi there beloved reader! Remember me? Ha, sorry I haven't been around here too much in the last week! Believe it or not, I have been super busy prepping for the holiday. In the last week I have cooked/baked the following recipes to give out as gifts or bring to holiday parties:

Pomegranate Orange Syrup (perfect for adding to seltzer)

Bourbon Sea Salt Caramels (tasty and impressive looking!)

The Ultimate Chocolate Chip Cookie (voted best chocolate chip cookie recipe by the NYTimes; I concur! These things are deadly delicious . . . )

Pfeffernussen (so festive!)

Chocolate Peppermint Thumbprint Cookies (a holiday favorite in our house)


Besides that I spent hours and hours wrapping presents. Everyone in my family thinks I am crazy for creating such elaborate packaging but I think it's fun and the perfect way to get in the holiday spirit.

Here are some my creations, in case you are curious (forgive the inconsistent pictures, the light in my apartment is no bueno):

But doesn't our tree look lovely?

Anywho, if you are crazy like me and looking for a creative outlet re: christmas wrapping this year, here are some tips, scroll all the way to the top of the page and check out my round up of wrapping tips!

one | Go monochrome! I love wrapping my presents in red paper because it really pops under the Christmas tree and there are lots of great red patterned papers out there.

two | Get your doodle on! Use plain butcher paper or kraft paper and doodle a design or two (snowflakes, pine trees, bows, etc.) in silver, red, white ink or whatever your heart desires! You can even do it on plain printer paper, as long as you have a tiny gift or two to wrap!

three | Mini Eco has this brilliant idea to make "confetti" paper. You simply wrap the gift in white paper and then loosely wrap it in clear sheets of cellophane (you can buy this at the container store or craft stores). I did my own version with holly confetti that I bought on Amazon (see second photo of my gifts above) but the possibilities are endless!

four | Make a duct tape bow. This is super easy and makes a great sculptural impact on top of your present. I used gold and red duct tape, but standard silver would look cool too!

five | Use materials you have around the house. This is a picture of the gifts I wrapped a couple years ago relying heavily on rolls of crepe paper streamers I happened to have on hand. They work great as a cheap and graphic alternative to ribbon. I also made paper snowflakes to top the gifts with a couple of random sheets of colorful origami paper I had on hand.

six | Use office supplies! This is one of my favorite presents I have ever wrapped because it is so colorful and fun. I had a label I printed out from Martha Stewart and added a spray of colorful marking dots from Staples to emphasize the festive label design. White paper with a bunch of these dots (sans label) or reinforcements or stickers would also look great!

seven | Remember what I said about number one? You can also run in the opposite direction and go color crazy! If you stick with basic patterns and bold colors any package will really look fabulous under the tree? Who says every gift has to have Santa on it?

I hope you have a wonderful holiday and happy new year! I will be back here in 2014 and until then sending lots of love . . .