Pretty boxes, ribbons and twine - new packaging!

As my Etsy shop grows, I find that I'm spending a bit too much time crafting boxes and bubble mailers out of recycled materials just so I can ship out each order.  Jeff and I have a strong personal commitment to repurpose/reuse/recycle, and we make every effort to apply this philosophy to every area of our lives.  This includes packaging.  So, thats where my dilemma of timing came in.  I was definitely having fun making boxes and envelopes to accommodate all the different size items I was sending out... but I was spending a LOT of time working on these creations (see photos below). 

I mean, don't get me wrong, I enjoy making origami paper boxes out of pretty bits of paper and making boxes out of (inside-out) cereal boxes...  I love decorating these little boxes and envelopes, each a little work of art in itself.  However, I'm getting busy enough now that I need to spend my time making the actual goods, rather than the packaging.  I needed to invest in ready-made boxes.



What I needed was a time saving, earth-friendly packaging approach.  So I did some online hunting around and I found just the right stuff!  Now I can pack up all my orders easily and quickly at my little "shipping station".

beautiful boxes - 100% Recycled Jewelry Boxes

I think the embossed, matte finish paper is nice, and I like the chocolate brown color.  Box board consists of 100% recycled materials - on average 80% is post consumer.  Non-tarnishing ultra white synthetic cotton filler is 100% recycled.  Paper wrap material is 100% recycled, Process Chlorine Free (PCF), and manufactured with renewable hydroelectric energy.  Made in the USA.

Abaca twine ribbon is made from manila hemp fibers from a species of banana native to the Philippines.  I chose this pretty apple green color.  You can unwind the ribbon if you wish, its about 1-1.5" wide, with a papery feel.  These Eco-Friendly products are made by artisans in remote villages around the world - creating jobs and fair wages for hard working communities.  Distant Village Packaging is providing more that just great eco-friendly and sustainable products.  It is a sustainable model that supports real people in many ways.  This ribbon is made from 100% natural plant fibers.

Sinamay Natural Organza Mesh Ribbons are hand made from natural fibers.  This stuff is so gorgeous and its lovely to work with.  I couldn't choose just one color, so I got both the aqua and the amber/light brown color.  Both the ribbon and the twine are made from natural and sustainable materials.

MiniMoo Cards - How CUTE are these?!?!
With a photo on one side and my info on the other, these make the perfect tag/business card.  the weight of the paper is nice and heavy, the finish is velvety...  I love them!  The really cool part is that you can order one pack with many different photos in the same pack.  You don't have to get 100 of the same photo on every card. 

I don't know about you, but I would be pretty pleased to get THIS festive little package in the mail!  The wrapping is almost as pretty as the contents.  Packaging made of recycled materials and its recyclable.  You might even consider reusing the packaging before you recycle it!  (Thats what I would do!)

Its a wrap!

When I ship something, I love to make the packaging (you know, boxes, bubble mailers, etc...). I always try to challenge myself to see what I can come up with using recycled/repurposed materials.   I made these bubble mailers out of brown paper grocery bags, an old lighting catalog and some bits of a beautiful sheet of art paper.  I also added some ink and rubber stamping, as well as using contrasting thread to sew them up.  The bubble wrap I used for the inside was 'trash' my Mom and I saved from the landfill.  She works in industrial food services and great big pieces of it were used for lining boxes... used just once and then chucked in the trash!  Well, we fixed that!

This stack of twelve mailers was a custom order for a girl who wanted to send out her graduation announcements with a CD of pictures.  She was looking for a cool, unique way to package/present the CD and the envelope.  I chose the paper from the lighting catalog because she had a background in theater.  I provided the manila shipping tags for addressing the envelopes.

Wouldn't you just be so excited to find one of these in your mailbox?  It could happen, skip on over to the shop and pick out something pretty for yourself.  I guarantee it will arrive wrapped in eco-conscious style!  In fact, I have as much fun packaging items and I do making them!