Inspiration Nook
#CCCChallenges – The ‘Pirates’ entries!
It’s time to share some amazing submissions of yours. We host a creative challenge for each month’s Vintage Craft Box named the #CCCChallenges. After our shop owner Coralie selects four finalists, it’s up to you, our followers on Instagram to decide who wins the contest. So here are the selected entries that our customers submitted for the June theme, „Pirates”! In this article you will find the four finalists from 4th to 1st place. You can read Coralie’s opinion about these entries, why she selected them. So let’s see the runner-ups and the winner for the #CCCPiratesChallenge! 4th place: Liz (@liz.journaltothemoon) „Liz had the clever idea to combine full color and transparency on those tags by using acetate sheets as a base, with the large sticker sheets as background on one side and the transparent washi tape on the other.” You can check the original video with all the details of this work here! 3rd place: Jill (@bookworm_journal_) „Great use of the vellum sheets to create a small accordion folder. Love the aesthetics of the cover as well as the idea to use the products this way.” You can check the original video with all the details of this work here! 2nd place: Gracie (@sukisookjournaler) „Stunning pages with so many details. To me the pages really stand out because of the way each element is minutely decoupages and overlaid to create a beautiful depth.” You can check the original video with all the details of this work here! 1st place, our winner is: Michal (@michal.schwartzman) „Michal created a large folio completely dedicated to the pirate and marine worlds. What caught my eye is the huge amount of details that went into this project. Each page has pockets, inserts, little tags and an amazing pop-up page at the end. It’s a real treasure.” You can check the original video with all the details of this work here! Congratulations to all the participants and thank you so much for joining our monthly challenge! Stay tuned for the upcoming #CCCChallenge features and don’t forget to join our friendly contest if you have our vintage craft supplies subscription boxes! If not, it’s never too late to join us – you can choose your preferred subscription plan over here! We are thankful to the creators for providing their photos about their works for us!
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#CCCChallenges – The ‘Insects’ entries!
It’s time to catch up with sharing some wonderful submissions of yours. We host a creative challenge for each month’s Vintage Craft Box named the #CCCChallenges. After our shop owner Coralie selects four finalists, it’s up to you, our followers on Instagram to decide who wins the contest. So here are the selected entries that our customers submitted for the May theme, „Insects”! In this article you will find the four finalists from 4th to 1st place. You can read Coralie’s opinion about these entries and why she selected them. So let’s see the runner-ups and the winner for the #CCCInsectsChallenge! 4th place: Tracy (@tracy_lw65) “Tracy did an amazing job combining paper crafting with the art of cross-stitching. I was really amazed at how beautiful the result turned out, with the small cross-stitched insects on the Insect Papers and some beautiful stitched framing of the pages.” You can check more photos of this work here! 3rd place: Mary (@maryemagnolia) “The ‘dark’ aspect of these pages drew my attention. I love the contrast of the bugs and insects with the dark background and all the decoupage details that make these pages stand out. This makes me feel like we are observing insects at night.” You can check the original post here! 2nd place: Alexandra (@tazzodicreativita) “This project really stood out for me because it is truly unique and fun: making a tea box with the supplies and the tissue paper. I thought the idea of making the honey dipper with the twine was also so clever.” You can check her original video with all the details of this work here! 1st place, our winner is: Felicia (@fefethefabfaejournals) “Loved the vintage style, yet colorful aspect of this folio. The details added with the pocket and the window really inspired me and I loved that Fefe decided to reuse the tissue paper for this project.” You can check her original video with all the details of this work here! Congratulations to all the participants and thank you so much for joining our monthly challenge! Stay tuned for the upcoming #CCCChallenge features and don’t forget to join our friendly contest if you have our vintage craft supplies subscription boxes! If not, it’s never too late to join us – you can choose your preferred subscription plan over here! We are thankful to the creators for providing their photos about their works for us!
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#CCCChallenges – The ‘Witchy’ entries!
It’s time to share some amazing submissions of yours. We host a creative challenge for each month’s Vintage Craft Box named the #CCCChallenges. After our shop owner Coralie selects four finalists, it’s up to you, our followers on Instagram to decide who wins the contest. So here are the selected entries that our customers submitted for the April theme, „Folklore and Witchcraft” or as we called it in the hashtag, this was the “Witchy” challenge! In this article you will find all four works that made it to the final round in no particular order but with highlighting our winner at the end. You can read Coralie’s opinion about these entries, why she selected them. So let’s see how the #CCCWitchyChallenge ended! Brandi (@brans_beautiful_pages) “What caught my attention on these pages is how aged the pages look. Bran recreated the look of a real antique grimoire so well, by aging the pages and created a burnt effect on the edges and on the window in the middle. The window is also a really nice detail as it gives a peek into what lies on the other side. I also liked that she reused various parts of the papers and the text across the pages.” You can check her original video with all the details of this work here! Alexandra (@tazzodicreativita) “This piece is truly unique in my opinion as it differs from the usual paper crafts and journal pages I come across for the challenges. She managed to take paper crafting supplies from this box to the next level by creating an entire wall decor piece. This large piece of fabric was entirely decorated to create a bit of a witchy cabinet. I absolutely love the 3D elements that were added such as the mini bottles. It really makes the whole piece come to life.” You can check her original video with all the details of this work here! Diana (@luna.lunera_scrap) “I love that she created a full journal from scratch around the supplies of the box. The dark cover opens up on thick and uniquely decorated pages and pockets, with potions and spell pages which gives it a real grimoire feel. There was so much work and details that went into this project, it really deserved its place in the finalists.” You can check her original video with all the details of this work here! 1st place, our winner is: Gracie (@sukisookjournaler) “Love the huge format of this journal that opens up to a beautifully decorated witch lair, with potions organized on shelves. The result is once again very realistic, with the moss and other small details that make a big difference. Cherry on top is the hidden page that opens up on a beautiful 3D pop-up piece.” You can check her original video with all the details of this work here! Congratulations to all the participants and thank you so much for joining our monthly challenge! Stay tuned for the upcoming #CCCChallenge features and don’t forget to join our friendly contest if you have our vintage craft supplies subscription boxes! If not, it’s never too late to join us – you can choose your preferred subscription plan over here! We are thankful to the creators for providing their photos about their works for us!
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Meet Our Customer – Brandi
We are happy to introduce a new type of article for you in our Unboxings & Customers section of the Inspiration Nook: the customer interview! The first creator we chose was Brandi (@brans_beautiful_pages) who has been a loyal CoraCreaCrafts supporter for more than a year. Now we would like to introduce her through her way of getting into crafting and finding our products, also to give you inspiration through Brandi‘s wonderful spreads! Please, introduce yourself for us! Hello, my name is Brandi. As a mom (35 years young), business owner, dog mom and soon to be wife, I stay super busy. I have found journaling, crafting, writing and planning have always brought me comfort and a sense that not everything has to be perfect. I am a professional organizer, so making everything perfect is something I strive to do… I don’t think being a Capricorn helps! I find writing out my life and documenting my experiences helps keeping me in the moment while expanding my perspective. Could you share your story with crafting? How did you get into this hobby? I started my crafting journey again about a year ago, January 2022. When I was 10 till 23-ish I made photo scrapbooks. I gave it up to teach myself how to knit, crochet, make bread and try to teach myself other “lost arts”. When I was about 24 I switched my hobby to jewelry making. I would search for antique beads and stones to make my version of Mesopotamian jewelry. I feel in love with the use of lapis and coral, I used these to make many pieces. This is a hobby I would love to get back into. When I was in my late 20’s, early 30’s I realized both of my grandmothers had beautiful handwriting. I really wanted to learn this and teach my kids. When I was not practicing writing I would take scraps of paper and other random ephemera I could find and started making collages. This type of art brought me to this wonderful community of artists. Products in use: Green Gate Washi TapeLandscape Gardens Washi TapeVintage Gardens Clear StampsVintage Gardens Foam StampsVintage Gardens CardsDecoupage Rice Paper – White Florals What is your ideal crafting environment? My ideal crafting environment would be in my office that I have intentionally created for writing, journaling and scrapbooking. After I take kids to the bus stop I will have a cup of coffee and input the week’s tasks in to my planner. In the evenings I find myself often in bed next to my fiancé, with tray desk, glass of wine and Naked and Afraid on the TV. This is when I feel I am most relaxed and feel less pressured to make the art perfect. Besides making collages and calligraphy do you experiment in any other crafting fields? I have experimented in the art of knitting. I very much enjoy making Nordic pattern socks that has at least two colors. I have found that it takes me about a day to knit a woman size sock and about three to make one single sock for male. It did take little bit of trial and error but with mistakes you do learn to be creative and just keeping going to see the finished product. Usually the mistakes are the best part of the piece. How do you see, what did finding this hobby, crafting bring to your life? What does it mean for you to create? How did it „affect” you as a person or your mental health? Crafting and journaling has brought such a joy to my life. I have never been the one to use my phone calendar or type out blogs. So being able to write with antique or new instruments and finding a way to pass on my cherished memories to my kids or other family members without the fear of my ideas or events being wiped away brings me so much peace. The best thing it has brought to my life is the relationship between my kids, nieces, nephews and other family members. They love coming over to make cards, write letters or learn about something new. It has been amazing to know I can make such a positive impact. How did you discover CoraCreaCrafts? I discovered CoraCreaCrafts a few months into my new hobby of crafting and writing in March of 2022 while scrolling through Instagram. I fell in love with the craft boxes and stamps, they where so unique and made of high quality materials. With the supplies I received from my first order I found a huge spark of creativity and began my journey. What caught your eyes from our store that you wanted to order first? And what did you order in your first package? The first package I ordered contained the Roman Architecture Clear Stamps, the Vintage Map Washi Tape, the Victorian Gothic Ladies Washi Tape and stickers. My first project with these supplies was repurposing the boxes they arrived in into something new. What made you become one of our regular customers? I shop regularly at CoraCreaCrafts, I love expanding my imagination and allowing myself to be creative. I really love that this company and Coralie take the time to research and design their own products. They have found ways to big pieces of the past to the present while keeping the essence and making it fit modern life. The style and unique items will always keep me coming back. Which are your most used and/or favourite CoraCreaCrafts items? My most used item is the Ephemera Pouch. It has so many useful options from carrying inks, stamp blocks and stamps to holding ephemera cards, papers and scraps. I have a small collection of them, two black and one rose gold. Some of my other favorite products are the multicolor Vintage Leather Journal, the Art Deco Gold Washi Tape and the Enchanted Forest Foil Washi Tape. How would you recommend us for others who don’t know our small business? I absolutely love this company, the people who help and assist are phenomenal. They are always willing to help with any technical, product or shipping issues. I recommend this craft store to anyone who is wanting to get started in crafting or has already begun but has yet to find this unique store. Thank you Brandi for doing this interview with us and for providing images about your works!
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#CCCChallenges – The ‘Vintage Gardens’ entries!
It’s time to catch up with sharing some wonderful submissions of yours. We host a creative challenge for each month’s Vintage Craft Box named the #CCCChallenges. After our shop owner Coralie selects four finalists, it’s up to you, our followers on Instagram to decide who wins the contest. So here are the selected entries that our customers submitted for the March theme, „Vintage Gardens”! In this article you will find all four works that made it to the final round in no particular order but with highlighting our winner at the end. You can read Coralie’s opinion about these entries, why she selected them. So let’s see how the #CCCGardensChallenge ended! Bec (@Amethyst Journals) “I love how Bec brought junk journaling to her regular journal pages by creating a beautiful pocket and tags with the Vintage Gardens Box supplies. The way she created the pocket background fully with the green gate washi tape to create that greenery pattern looks amazing. I also really liked the simplicity yet very vintage style she brought to the tags.” You can check her original video with all the details of this work here! Adriana (@Splendormd) “The splash of color on these pages immediately caught my eye. I love that there is so much going on on these pages. I really like the choice of watercolors and how they perfectly blend in with each other and with the paper supplies from the box. This is so unique and aesthetically pleasing that I had to select it as one of the finalists.” You can check more photos of this work here! Megan (@paper.by.design) “I loved all the tiny details that went into this spread. Despite the ‘minimalistic’ black & white look, when you look closer, there is so much going on, with different textures and layering. The frames with the subtle mesh in the background, the superposition of the stamped leaves and the wax seals are part of what caught my eye on this unique and aesthetic spread.” You can check the original post here! 1st place, our winner is: Gracie (@sukisookjournaler) “I love that when the page opens, you feel like you have been transported into a real garden. The moss effect she created is what really caught my attention as it completes the vintage garden products beautifully. Overall I love the originality of this project and the emotions it gives me.” You can check her original video with all the details of this work here! Congratulations to all the participants and thank you so much for joining our monthly challenge! Stay tuned for the upcoming #CCCChallenge features and don’t forget to join our friendly contest if you have our vintage craft supplies subscription boxes! If not, it’s never too late to join us – you can choose your preferred subscription plan over here! We are thankful to the creators for providing their photos about their works for us!
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#CCCChallenges – The ‘Ancient Egypt’ entries!
In our Unboxing & Customers section within our Inspiration Nook we introduce a new column for you: the #CCCChallenges! You are probably aware by now that we host a creative challenge for each month’s Vintage Craft Box. After our shop owner, Coralie selects four finalists, it’s up to you, our followers on Instagram to decide who wins the contest. And now it’s time to share some of the wonderful entries our customers submitted for the February theme, „Ancient Egypt”! In this article you will find the four finalists from 4th to 1st place. You can read Coralie’s opinion about these entries, why she selected them. So let’s see the runner-ups and the winner for the #CCCEgyptChallenge! 4th place: Jan (@janbarlow) „Beautiful mixed media pages with a lot of attention paid to detail. Jan recreated a very antique look on all the papers and details on this page. It looks like it’s coming out of another time.” You can check her original video with all the details of this work here! 3rd place: Cynthia (@moon_fire_studios.journals) „Wonderful and intricate crafting project. She made a pyramid with compartments inside and in one of those she had hidden a papyrus scroll. This is definitely a creation with lots of discoveries!” 2nd place: Tracy (@tracy_lw65) „This journal creation required a lot of detailed work of cutting, measuring and pasting to make that beautiful pop up when the journal opens. I was amazed to see such a large amount of work coming alive.” You can check more photos of this work here! 1st place, our winner is: Alexandra (@tazzodicreativita) „Super creative project of a lantern hidden inside a box. She used the vellum papers to create the pyramid for transparency and this looks amazing with the candle inside!” You can check her original video with all the details of this work here! Congratulations to all the participants and thank you so much for joining our monthly challenge! Stay tuned for the upcoming #CCCChallenge features and don’t forget to join our friendly contest if you have our vintage craft supplies subscription boxes! If not, it’s never too late to join us – you can choose your preferred subscription plan over here! We are thankful to the creators for providing their photos about their works for us!
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HOW TO… use the Enchanted Forest Foil Washi Tape
Let’s continue with our “How to” article series that will give you ideas and tips on how to use CoraCreaCrafts products! This time we focus on the Enchanted Forest Foil Washi Tape that was part of our “Enchanted Forest” January subscription box. We came across some wonderful ideas from creators who show us how you can use this washi tape design. Take a look! 1. Cover a box Susana (@suchi_journalive) made another creation that is bursting with creativity. We were impressed with how Susana upcycled a small box containing her Enchanted Forest products. She covered it with the Enchanted Forest Foil Washi Tape and decorated the box inside and out with stickers from the Enchanted Forest Sticker Book and the Enchanted Forest Washi Tape. This creates a nicely decorated storage box for anything you want! Check the original post here! 2. Punch that! Daisie (@scrapbooker.asmr) created a stunning window spread. With the Enchanted Forest Foil Washi Tape she had a clever idea: she used a puncher with different motives to have shaped papers with that design. We especially loved the flower ones: as seen in her video below, she layered cutouts and decorated them with gems so that she could create more realistic floral decorations. The result is really enchanting with all of the flowers around the window and our fairy behind it. Check the original post here! 3. Framed background Clarence (@scrap_n_love) shows us how we can reuse anything for collages and other creative projects. What we really loved about her spread is that even our “thank you” card was used for making something magical. She cut the frame of that card and the fairy paper and added those to her work. The Enchanted Forest Foil Washi Tape was cleverly used as a background material behind the frame. Check the original post here! 4. Cutting on the edges Ana (@dream.n.journal) made a beautiful hanging art she calls “A window to the land of the fairies.” She used the Enchanted Forest Foil Washi Tape on a paper as her solid base. Then she added a paper frame and cut the edges. She did the same with the washi, allowing the floral pattern to comes alive with the way it was cut. A transparent background, the fairy and many butterflies from the Enchanted Forest Sticker Book complete this mesmerizing work. Check the original post here! 5. Framing & scraps Brandi (@brans_beautiful_pages) created a complex, multi-page spread with many elements of the “Enchanted Forest” box. It’s even interactive as you are able to move a page. She used the foil washi tape on the edges and as scraps for details. They are surrounded by pop up paper cutouts (from our paper bundle in the subscription box) and painted Enchanted Forest Clear Stamp windows, owls and moths with “guests” from the matching sticker book. Check the original post here! We are thankful to the creators for providing their photos about their creations for us!
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HOW TO… fill a mini journal page
Let’s continue with our “How to” article series that will give you ideas and tips about the use of some CoraCreaCrafts products! This time we are focusing on mini journals. You may wonder how you would be able to fill a tiny page? It can be a bigger creative challenge to make something so small, but we are here to help you out. We collected interesting works from talented creators and from our shop owner, Coralie and we hope you’ll get inspired to start using mini journals! Susana (@suchi_journalive) takes us into a forest and shows how life is out there. She uses tiny stickers for creating the background base then some more from our Forest Sticker Tin Box. A small pop-up forest emerges in front of us with the 3D effect applied to the trees and the fox. She used adhesive foam squares to make that happen. Make sure to bend the papers in the middle and cut the unnecessary pieces so that you can close your mini journal. Check the original post here! Susana used the Mini Belt Journal from our leather items collections. Click here to find them. In a previous „How to” article we already showed how creatively Jill (@bookworm_journal_) can fill up a mini journal page. Now we would like to show two more of her works since we are focusing on tiny spaces! We’re staying in the past with Jill‘s other spread called „Mini Medieval”. She created this page in the Red Leather Mini Journal, using more layers this time. On the left you can find a lady with a hairstyle from Middle Ages (added with our Medieval Headdress Clear Stamps) and on the other side the focus is on a medieval stamping motif (that is our Medieval Wooden Stamp Set). Once again the Renaissance Washi Tape gets its feature here as well as the Frames Notepad, Art Nouveau stickers and the Flemish Hunt Washi Tape. Different art themes come alive so beautifully under Jill‘s hands – and we also encourage you to use your imagination and mix art eras freely! Check the original post here! And now we are moving on to some ideas from our shop owner, Coralie. When she added the Mini Journals to her shop, she also started using them and continued sharing ideas of how to give life to tiny pages. Here you can see a journal page with a focus on astronomical and celestial themes. Using the Vintage Astronomy Foam Stamps she cut out these stampings, added Deco Paper for the background and also parts of the Constellations Stamp Washi Tape. With only a few supplies she was able to completely fill a beautiful page. Check the original post here! The Mini Belt Journal in this orange color was an exclusive product for one of our past Treasure Boxes but it is now available in our new floral styles. Starting with mini Deco Paper die cuts, Coralie filled the middle of the journal with lovely butterflies. She didn’t glue the wings so when you open this page, it will seem like they are flying. Sticker books can give you lots of options to add matching motives to your art and here Coralie went for a vintage theme with frames, a magnifying glass, tickets and writings. The result is simply elegant. Check the original post here!
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HOW TO... use the Burnt Edges Washi Tape
Welcome to our new series of “How to” articles that will give you ideas and tips about the use of some CoraCreaCrafts products! After sharing our first article about the clear stamps of the November subscription box (Ancient China), it's time to move on to the December theme, “Writers & Poets”. From this box we would like to highlight the Burnt Edges washi tape that you can use in a variety of ways. Not sure where to start? Looking for new ideas to try out? Let's see a small selection from social media thanks to some amazing talents and to our shop owner, Coralie! Show those edges!Cynthia (@moon_fire_studios) created an incredible folio with lots of secrets to discover in it. She used the Burnt Edges washi tape as decoration (amongst many other items of the December box). We loved the interesting pocket where she used this tape for the edges of the paper, showcasing its deformed, unique pattern. This gave the paper a burned appearance.Watch the full video here! (this specific idea can be spotted from 8:10) A trick of the eye! When seeing Jana's (@bricolella) journal page, we were wondering how the Burnt Edges washi tape grew in size. Then we quickly realized it was the size of the journal used that tricked our eyes! Even though the tape is not that wide (larger washi tapes are available here), you can use a smaller notebook which will give you the appearance of a larger washi tape. This will give you a beautiful background even for a small surface. Check the original post here! Edge to edge Handwritten letters, fountain pens, coffee stains – an ode to the past. Sasha (@journalbysasha) created an elegant page that she called the “Writer’s Journal”. We absolutely adore the color palette of this vintage collage and we couldn’t be happier to see how well the Burnt Edges washi tape was incorporated. It became the frame of this page and gave the letter in the middle an aged look. Check the original post here! This is a 2-in-1 idea for you from our shop owner, Coralie. If you have plain brown wrapping paper, you can use any kind of stamps on it as decoration (here you can see the “Poet” and “Artist” clear stamps from the December box). To spice up the look of your package, you can add the Burnt Edges washi tape horizontally, vertically or diagonally just like Coralie. Watch the full video here! Be mysterious Showcasing some products from the December box, you can learn from Coralie how to create two projects using the burnt edge washi tape. 1. Make the edge of your journal special (on the left) In this example, Coralie used the fold of an existing journal and covered it with the Burnt Edge washi tape. She started by pasting two lengths of the washi tape on cardstock paper and fussy cut on both opposing edges, she then pasted it on the fold to create this unique look. Watch the full video here! 2. Create a lovely card by yourself (on the right): Fold a paper, cut out a small window on the front (our „Ex Libris” wooden stamp can give you the right shape), add some papers and washi tapes for the edges. Then you can add depth to your front picture by using the Burnt Edges tape. Is that a dark sea motif? Or a literal piece of burnt paper? Even if it’s not the main element of your work, it can provide a pretty background anywhere Watch the full video here!
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