It's beginning to look a lot like Chri......... shhhh ;)

I am loving these origami stars!

I started making them for a customer's wedding decorations, but I have gotten the bug and am planning bunting, tree garlands and hanging decorations, but they will be limited so keep an eye on my Etsy shop - hoping to have some ready this week xx

Introducing my new Autumn and Halloween Decorations.....

Looking for an alternative to sugary Halloween Treats? My new Halloween paper fortune cookies are now available to order, perfect for goodie bags and parties they come with a choice of either kid's jokes or spooky quotes that adults will enjoy, and to help you decorate I also have my new Autumn and Halloween decorations packs, complete with paper pumpkins, and origami bats and owls! 

https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/PaperButterfliesM?section_id=17821221&ref=shopsection_leftnav_9

Freebie Friday 07.08.2015

There's a new Freebie Friday giveaway up on my Facebook page today!

Just head over and leave a comment on the giveaway post to enter

https://www.facebook.com/paperbutterflies/photos/a.625686504139366.1073741833.149930111715010/940232386018108/?type=1&theater

You could win a £10 voucher for my new Folksy Shop

Playing with Japanese Paper Dolls

My daughter and I have been having fun making Japanese paper dolls this week. I picked up a great craft kit full of beautiful origami paper and instructions, and we made some beautiful dolls, starting with the instructions and then adding our own embellishments - in fact I got a little carried away!

Once I had helped my daughter make her first one she asked me if she could have one of the frames I use for my shadowboxes, found some bright pink Chinese silk style fabric from the stash I keep and said she wanted to make an origami tea set to go with her doll. When she had finished her box looked so amazing that I asked her if I could use her design to make my own and this is what I came up with

My doll is set against a piece of beautiful vintage kimono fabric and has her tea pot, Japanese style cup and flowers on her table, and I am offering it for sale in my Etsy store, at a reduced price as it is a prototype, but I am planning to introduce this Tea Ceremony Design as a range, and am open to taking commissions too

https://www.etsy.com/uk/listing/240107547/japanese-doll-tea-ceremony-framed-wall?ref=shop_home_active_1

I also made this miniature, in a frame just 10cm x 15cm, a pretty little doll with flowers in her hair, set against a red cherry blossom pattern Chinese silk style fabric, another range I will introduce this summer - this one is also now available over on Etsy and please feel free to message me if you would like to commission one on other colours.

https://www.etsy.com/uk/listing/240106475/japanese-paper-doll-and-fabric-miniature?ref=shop_home_active_2

If you have the summer holidays coming up I definitely recommend keeping your eyes out for kits like the one we started with, and there are lots of great tutorial on you tube too - my daughter is 7 and needed help with the folding, but it was a wonderful activity to do together, she is so proud pf her shadowbox, which now has pride of place in her room.

Summer Solstice and Father's Day

Well I am not sure that the weather has got the message that is officially summer today wink emoticon but I have put together a little collage of some of my summer designs available to buy or commission, to brighten my day! It is also Father's Day here in the UK and my hubby has been treated to an array of handmade cards and a bowtie my daughter made in her sewing class at school :D so sun or no sun we are looking forward to a day of fun!

 Don't forgot, if you fancy treating yourself to a slice of summer there is free UK p&p available this weekend when using code FREEPOSTJUNE in my Etsy Store.

Price List

For Commissions please contact me through my 

Facebook page 

https://www.facebook.com/paperbutterflies 

or 

Etsy Store

https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/PaperButterfliesM

Paper Butterflies Miniatures!

I am very excited this week as it sees the launch of my new range of miniatures, teensy tiny versions of my original Nature Boxes, just a few centimetres in size but still containing each of the elements I love to create, a piece of my translucent, handmade silk paper, polymer clay leaf created by taking pressings from real leaves, and tiny origami flowers and butterflies!

(Frame - approx 10cm x 11cm x 3.5cm; Picture approx 5cm x 4cm)

These make a really perfect gift, and at only £16 each plus p&p are affordable enough to start a little collection.

The first 3 of these will be available exclusively in the Handmade BAC market on Facebook this weekend, all at a special price, with more available in my Etsy shop soon.

The market album is available to view and browse here

Handmade - A British Artisan Collective

Well it's the first weekend of the month and that can mean only one thing, it's time for the Handmade market over on Facebook!

For those of you that don't know Handmade is a collective of artists and crafters working out of the UK, who work together giving advice and support, and organising online craft fairs on the first Sunday of every month.

Each month features the members of Handmade as well as guests, ensuring that we bring a wide range of talent and beautiful items to the fair.

This months market begins at 6pm, Sunday 5th April, on Facebook, where an album of beautiful items will be ready to view and buy. It is already filling up and available to browse here 

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.1571625129778640.1073741837.1520039144937239&type=1

Although based in the UK the majority of sellers are more than happy to post Internationally, so please feel free to browse the album and enquire about postage costs and delivery times, where ever you are in the world.

Party time! Lucky star cake bunting

So it has been party central here this weekend, with my dad's and husband's cousin's birthday yesterday, plus my son's friends Super Hero party (so much fun!)

 my father in law's birthday today and my own in two weeks so I have been  thinking of party decorations and come up with this fab new product that is also super easy for you to make at home!

My new mini cake bunting can created with these gorgeous origami Japanese lucky stars.

These are really cute to make at home, using cake dowling, thread and lucky stars, but I am also now selling these in my Etsy store, and they can be made with as many stars as you need - 5th birthday - 5 stars! 10th Wedding Anniversary - 10 stars! Alternative wedding cake topper just choose your colour and number!

There are lots of great tutorials on the web for the lucky stars, and next week I'll be posting a tutorial of my own.

Lunar New Year Series

This week I have been working on some more shadowboxes for my Lunar New Year range, a series inspired by the colours and sights associated with Chinese/Lunar New Year.

Each contains origami models which I have hand folded from beautiful Japanese Washi and Shoyu papers, then set on natural bamboo and silk fibres, and Chinese style fabric.

My family and I have always loved Lunar New Year since we spent the New Year and Spring Festival in China a few years ago. Our daughter was only 7 months old at the time and we were travelling on our way home to the UK, having lived in Australia for the 18 months before. It holds very special memories for us, reminding us of China itself, of our life in Australia before and the excitement of returning home as well; not to mention the fact that when we did return home we discovered I was pregnant with our son. A very special time indeed.

Valentine's Offer - 20% off of all ready to ship Shadowboxes

For this weekend I am taking 20% off of all my ready to ship shadowboxes on Etsy using code VAL20 at the checkout.

All UK mainland orders placed this weekend will be shipped in time for Valentine's Day.

For custom made items please message me to check before ordering, if you require them by Valentine's Day.

Origami Fortune Cookies - new additions to the range on the way!

My origami fortune cookies have been proving very popular since I added them a few weeks ago so I was thinking, how about a make it yourself set?    

10 precut circles of gorgeous embossed paper plus full instructions plus link to online tutorial - available with or without precut strips of paper for the fortunes, depending on whether you wish to handwrite or print your own.

I also now have some cute little US style take out boxes available to send the cookies in - I'll be listing them soon to either buy alone, as an add on, or as a set with 5 fortune cookies in!

Look out for more details soon!

https://www.etsy.com/uk/listing/219035723/red-origami-fortune-cookies-set-of-10?ref=shop_home_feat_2