So here's the loot:) I was happy to hear that Chakriya liked what I sent her.
From her profile I knew that she was a grad student, collected elephants, + was partial to the colour violet. So I worked with those elements to create some beautiful useful things: a notebook, some notecards, some stickers, a vase, + a little origami box with some polished rocks.
This is my TaylorBook. I decided to make one for Chakriya. What's more beautiful than recording your thoughts + doodles? Plus, I figured someone in school would surely find a notebook useful! I found this great pewter elephant button that I could use for the closure. Thankfully I still had some violet bookcloth on hand so I could make this custom book for her. Inside I picked my "love" spiral notebook to use. Each page has a "love" quote + illustration :)
I took some left over wrapping paper that I made {and no the paper is not print via gocco, just through my printer!} + created an origami box. Again, I used a little elephant button for the top of the box. I then went to my planter filled with polished rocks, and using Letraset lettering, I burnished letters onto the rocks – creating the words "beautiful use".
What's more beautiful than a handwritten note from a friend? Everyone can use customized notecards, no? I did my very best to draw the pewter elephant in Adobe Illustrator. I then silkscreened a set of 10 cards + packaged them up with violet envelopes. I forgot to take photos, but I also made her little pink diecut circle stickers she could then use to close up the envelopes.
Also, by an amazing stroke of luck, I found a beautiful tall white vase that happened to have violet strips at the top. I forgot to take photos of it by itself :(Anyway, forgive all the photos... if I had just bought a lot of stuff, I wouldn't have bothered to post so many photos... but this swap gave me the opportunity to do what I love to do, that's make stuff :) Hope you don't mind!
