I Will Wrap Your Gifts for You. Japanese Jewelry Boxes From the Paper Demon

You love giving gifts, but you hate wrapping gifts.  I get that.  Wrapping gifts is stressful.

That’s where I come in.  I wrap your gifts for you.  I send you hand-folded Japanese jewelry boxes, hand-folded Japanese gift boxes, and hand-folded Japanese gift bags.  All created using traditional origami box folds, and all made from eye-poppingly gorgeous imported Japanese chiyogami paper.  Lacquered jewelry boxes also available.

The PDJ Hand-Folded Origami Gift Bag with Japanese Bead Zipper Pull Extra

Two of the sizes available--2 inch and 4.5 inch

The flat box--6 inches; other sizes available.

And all complete with coordinating ribbons and handles, and optional Japanese imported cute doo-dads for customization.  Custom size orders also gladly accepted!

The PDJ Heirloom Gift Bag is like enclosing your gift in another one of a kind gift.   I start with heirloom quality chiyogami paper.  Each of these papers comes with a story.  All chiyogami papers are replete with history and symbolism.  This paper in the photo, for example, is the Hinadan Pattern.  It is the pattern traditionally used to decorate the doll display for the Girls’ Day Celebration in Japan.  This pattern has been used and loved by Japanese girls and women since the 18th century.

With optional zipper pull from imported Japanese bead

The bag shown is 4 inches high.  (Custom size orders gladly accepted ) .  It’s finished with metal eyelets and handles of imported mizuhiki cord from Japan, in your choice of colors.  The one pictured here is sparkly red.  Green, white, silver and gold also available!

Inside view

If you want, you can add on an optional zipper-pull or pendant dangle made from an imported Japanese bead like this one, embossed with a glorious chrysanthemum pattern.  Goldfish, fabric beads, geisha hair dangles and other one of a kind items are available.

You need these.  You really do.  You want to impress her.  Christmas is coming.  Do you really want to wrap all those gifts?

(Special Introductory Pre-Christmas Price:  $4 for small boxes, $6 for heirloom gift bag; $4 for regular gift bag)

 

New in Paper Demon Jewelry’s Etsy Store

It’s all about the colors.   At Paper Demon Jewelry, we HAVE THE ABILITY!  The ability, that is, to make jewelry in the most eye-popping, mind-blowing colors on the planet.  Sure there are beads out there, and crystals, and felt, and resin, and many fine and colorful products.  But really, in the end, there is nothing that makes jewelry as SATURATED with color as paper.

And the funny thing is, it doesn’t have to be special handmade Japanese washi paper to do that.  Good old American crepe paper produces some of the richest, most saturated color tones possible, as long as it is treated right.  The trick with crepe paper is treating it right. It is a tempermental little beastie.

The Paper Demon scored a box of recycled crepe paper at MECCA awhile back, and I’ve been experimenting with it.  Here is my favorite item to date, just listed today in the Etsy store:  REDCOSMOS Spinning Sphere REcycled Paper Sculpture and Pearl Choker.

I love this piece.  I love the way the red is a fiery red. I love the organic shape of the spiral.  I love the freshwater pearls and how their lopsidedness mirrors the bead, and vice versa.  I love that it looks super cool on.

And I love the inspiration of this piece:  The Team Challenge of the Crafting in Color Team on Etsy, of which Paper Demon Jewelry is now a proud member!  This is, you know, kind of a big thing.    You see, jewelry makers can’t get onto the Crafting in Color Team, unless they request “special consideration” and prove to be, in the eyes of the administrators, “truly extraordinary.”  Well, who’s truly extraordinary now?  Hmm?  Oh yeah.  That’s right.

Crafting in Color is all about finding the most colorful, most color-forward, color-innovative, color-inspired artists on Etsy.   I like the sound of that.  Because at Paper Demon Jewelry, it’s all about the color.

 

Mia Michaels Wears Paper Demon?

We love So You Think You Can Dance (hereafter SYTYCD) at our house.  We watch it faithfully.  It’s a really cool show.  First off, you get to see spectacular dancing.  You also get a crash course on the styles and lingo of the dance world.  I grew up dancing as a kid and young adult–mostly ballet–and I like showing off my knowledge:  “dude just totally biffed his grand jete!!  Where is his technique??”

But my favorite part of all is actually the judges.  Nigel Lithgow, Adam Shankman, and Mia Michaels.  These judges, leading Emmy-winning choreographers, dancers, and producers of dance, are passionate.  They are committed.   They’re funny and dramatic, and incredibly articulate and well schooled in dance.  But most of all, they are generous of spirit.  They  believe in the dancers and the importance of what they achieve through their dancing.

Mia Michaels is one of my heroes.   She is one of the most ‘real’ people I’ve ever seen on TV.  She ties the professional and the personal together and demands total honesty from the dancers.  Her choreography is spectacular and powerful and heart-wrenching.  She’s faced personal trauma in her life that she processes with great, if sometimes startling, honesty herself.  And, she has amazing style, and wears great jewelry.

Mia Michaels

Why do I bring up the wonderful Mia Michaels on the PDJ Blog?  Well, the Paper Demon’s wonderful partner has a cousin who is a promoter in Las Vegas.  One of her good friends is Stacey Tookey, one of the leading choreographers on the program.  Through this friend of the cousin of the partner of the Paper Demon, there is a possibility, a possibility mind you, that a piece of Paper Demon Jewelry will end up being worn by Mia Michaels herself!

I think Mia Michaels would look cool in Paper Demon paper jewelry.  Paper jewelry is fluid– it moves with the body; it’s light–it doesn’t weigh down your grand jetes!   It floats–like the best dance.

I could see her in some washi stained glass jewelry. Or recycled vegan jewelry.  Or best of all, reversible riveted chunky cuff!

Reversible Riveted Chunky Cuff

How cool would that be?

 

How to Make a Paper Crane (Christmas Ornament)

The first 15 fans of Paper Demon Jewelry on Facebook scored a freebie!  They will get the brand new, as yet unreleased, Paper Demon Jewelry DIY Origami Crane Christmas Ornament Kit or Origami Crane Earrings Kit!

Paper Demon DIY Origami Crane Christmas Ornament Kit

The kits, now in production, include pre-folded Paper Demon cranes made from the finest handmade imported papers in my collection  (2 tiny ones for earrings; one large one for Christmas Ornaments), glaze, s0me really nice coordinating accent beads selected by MOI, all the hardware, special hanging cord from my travels in Japan, and instructions.   All you need is a paintbrush and a pair of pliers (needlenose are best but any will work)!  They will come in a range of patterns:  Mostly they’ll be in colors of Japanese floral, but they’ll also come in retro, geometric, and abstract patterns.

Paper Demon DIY Origami Crane Christmas Ornament Kit

The cranes are pre-treated for durability and strength, and only need glazing for shine and a bit of water-resistance.

The one in the picture features one of my all time favorite papers–an ultra thick high end embossed paper with a Japanese floral pattern: white and red winter plums on a shimmering frosted metallic silver background with lovely tiny metallic gold accents.  I pick up the pairing of frosted metallic silver and gold in the gold and silver textured beads above and dangling below, and gold hardware with silver vintage cord.  Red seed beads and a red sequin finish the look.

I have one of these on my own tree. It shimmers softly and magically in the Christmas lights.