Holiday Recap: Paper Gifts Given and Received

Happy New Year and welcome to the All Things Paper annual tradition of looking back at the many ways handmade paper items brought joy to me and people on my gift list during the 2022 holidays.

 

Longtime readers know that I love to keep a lookout for well-made paper jewelry that I would wear in a heartbeat... well, I often give it as presents too. Paper earrings are a favorite because they're so lightweight, as well as surprisingly durable. I ordered these beauties from Natalie Monday of Monday Morning Press for two ladies on my gift list. Look for a new, seasonal collection monthly.

 

 

Origami paper and wood earrings from Etsy shop CleOrigami were happily received by a relative with whom I spent Christmas. I noticed she was wearing them the very next day when we met for brunch which pleased me no end. I think the modern ear wires go so well with the sharp lines of the geometric beads. [Note: Etsy and Amazon links are affiliate links.]

I had given her this pair of Mosaic Earrings by Mayumi Fukuda of Etsy shop MayumiOrigami for her birthday earlier in the year and she loves them too. Mayumi's jewelry arrives beautifully packaged, plus she often sends a little something extra, like this instruction card for folding an origami heart along with origami paper to make them. 

I made this quilled necklace with gold metallic edge quilling paper to send to Charlotte Marshall in Australia as a thank you for featuring me in an interview on her YouTube channel, The Quilling Quarter. You'll find many of my quilled jewelry tutorials on this blog and in my book, The Art of Quilling Paper Jewelry.

 

I met Jessica Mattingly, @jazzi_paper on Instagram and was captivated by the origami and pearl bead earrings she creates... I just had to order a pair for myself. My photo doesn't begin to do justice to the pastel blue and lavender hand painted shades. Jessica packaged the earrings in a sturdy metal tin and put it inside an origami box that she also made. 

 

I love to wrap presents and this year was no exception. I tried something a bit different... instead of wrapping paper, I used decorative tissue... white with silver dots and geometric red and white. (The Christmas stockings are the ones I made for my sons when they were little...while cleaning closets I realized it's high time they go to live in their homes instead of collecting dust on a shelf in mine.)

 

 

I wanted to let these red and green hand-calligraphed gift tags I ordered from Karla DeStefano of Etsy shop Franky and J. Designs take center stage in this blog post, but then realized I'd forgotten to photograph the batch of presents onto which I'd tied them, oops! It's okay though, as I do have this pic to show you how perfectly lettered they are. 

 

 

 

Right after Christmas last year I made these three large quilled snowflake ornaments and then made more this year to take to the hostess of a party we went to on Christmas Eve. Although the shine is barely evident here, I used both silver and gold metallic edge quilling strips. If you would like to make some too, click over to my instructions and extra tips. 

Because I love Paige Canfield's Carve Designs that feature Japanese chiyogami paper collage, I placed an order for a mixed box of Bird with Bulbs and North Star cards. It was hard to choose my favorites as she offers so many choices. Note: these are printed designs - reproductions of Paige's original art.

 

 

In addition to Christmas and Hanukkah cards, you'll find year-round note cards, a perpetual calendar, bookmark, and prints in Etsy shop Carve Designs.

 

In last year's holiday recap post I wasn't able to show you this gift for a close friend because, thanks to the pandemic, we couldn't get together until several weeks after Christmas. Fran is crazy about monkeys so I knew this one-of-a-kind treasure box spotted in paper artist Debra Glanz's Etsy shop, The Paper Assembly, had her name on it. I just wish the photo showed the box's cute, bright red ball feet. Debra repurposed the monkeys on top from cocktail stirrers!

 

Another paper-y gift I gave this year is a painting of whimsical tiny houses with gilded accents by watercolor artist Heather Hajek Eddy. I noticed she was posting a daily house painting on Facebook and knew one in autumn tones would appeal to my oldest son and his wife. You might recognize Heather's name as her folded book patterns and paper jewelry have been featured on this blog.

My internet pal Licia Politis in Australia made this on-edge quilled banksia wildflower ornament, a note card with little washi tape trees (what a cute idea), and then she thoughtfully watercolored a pavlova dessert recipe for gluten-free me. 

Lastly, I want to show you the UK Quilling Guild's 40th Anniversary Calendar that Licia kindly arranged to have sent to me. She is a longtime Guild member and you might recall her award-winning quilled succulents wreath that is included on the January page. Each month features a collage of projects made by worldwide members.

 

If you aren’t familiar with the organization, it is non-profit and run by volunteers. Visit the Guild website to learn how to join so you can access its online or print magazines, view how-to videos taught by quilling experts, participate in its accreditation program and competitions, and more.

 

Here's to a great year ahead that's filled with paper-y goodness!