DIY Crystal Collection

Jeff and I were in Whistler not too long ago and we stopped in to check out a rock and gem shop. Although their selection of stones was pretty limited, they did have a wall of collector's kits that was kind of awesome. Inspired by these little boards with a variety of stones glued on them and interpreted in various ways (metaphysical stone collection, dinosaur fossil collection...) I've made my own mini crystal collections as swag for Got Craft? at the beginning of December. The first 45 people through the door on Sunday, December 4th at the Royal Canadian Legion on Commercial Drive will get swag bags, and each one of those will have one of the bedside crystal collections that I've put together. And yes, making 50 of these things did take a few episodes of Breaking Bad.

For those of you who aren't able to make it to Got Craft? I thought I'd share how I made these little boxes so you can make one of your own, with stones of your choice.

Supplies (and where to find them):


kraft paper box, I used 3" x 2 1/8" x 1" (available online here or at local beading supply shop)
clear-drying craft glue (I used Beacon 527 multi-use glue)
1/2" wooden cubes (optional - I used one for each stone)
Avery 5667 clear labels (or equivalent)
label template
various stones (look for mixed lots online, be sure to check dimensions, like this one)

The real key to this DIY is this list of materials. After that, it's all pretty self-explanatory.

1. Design your labels in Word or Indesign and print out one of each of your labels to see if you like the scale of the text and if they will all fit in the box you're using. I had to trim the labels in order to evenly space them inside the box. My text refers to some of the properties that some people believe these stones possess, you could also list things like the name of the stone, the type of crystal formation of the stone, or a full description of the physical properties of the stone.

2. Place all of your labels inside the box.

3. Glue in wooden cube plinths (if you're using them). It's a good idea to use this glue near an open window or in a room with good airflow. Let the glue set a little bit before adding the stones.

4. Place one drop of glue on the top of each cube and drop your stones into the glue, trying to position any flat side of the stone down for better contact.

5. Decorate the lid of your box however you'd like. I used a simple Sadie stamp and then tucked a mini card into each box.

That's it! You're finished! If you make one, please send me a picture!

five friday favourites: wedding edition

satomi kawakita jewelry

just married banner by celebratewithfun

inter-species cake topper by melabowed 

invitations by shira leuchter

via design editor

Today's five Friday favourites are wedding themed. Now that the big day has come and gone I can reveal some of our secrets. I wanted especially to thank some of the great Etsy shop owners who helped us make our wedding day special in every way. Our just married banner was a custom piece by Celebrate With Fun (this isn't exactly ours, but one like ours). It arrived so quickly and the seller was great about customizing it. Our MelaboWed cake topper was also a custom request. We wanted it to add a bit of weirdness to our cake and keep everyone from thinking we were taking things to seriously. I can't recommend this shop enough. Great communication, everything was very well packaged and arrived quickly and the piece itself is even more awesome than the pictures imply. LOVE it. Wolf and squirrel forever.

I think the Etsy seller who maybe deserves the biggest thank you from us is Shira Leuchter. Her beautiful and affordable wedding invites fit our theme of vintage garden party perfectly and she was such a pleasure to work with. She quickly adjusted proofs and made very helpful suggestions when we were working on the design. She also went so far as to courier our invites to us during the Canada Post lockout and packaged everything absolutely beautifully. Seriously, if you're getting married or having a big event that you need some invitations for, work with Shira. She is wonderful and her work is, too.

The ring at the top of this post is not my current wedding band, but it is the one that I'd love to have to wear on days when a lower profile ring is more appropriate. I love the delicate band and the asymmetric layout of the tiny diamonds. The Satomi Kawakita engagement rings are also ridiculously awesome. Perhaps a few of you need to send the link to your boyfriends?

Finally, what wedding is complete without some Martha Stewart tissue paper pom poms? We made some for my friend Roberta's wedding reception a few years ago, and made many, many more for our wedding. We adjusted the way we made them a little to keep the back flat to make big wall pieces, inspired by Elsie's huge backdrop at her truly beautiful wedding. Check out the super easy DIY instructions over on the Martha site. She always knows what's up.

Which Etsy shops are your favourites for wedding-related awesomeness?

married within a year

Wedding details are starting to happen and I have to thank the talented and amazing girls who came over to help Jeff and I make some decorations and taste some champagne last night. Amanda, Jacqui, Emily, and Glenis made so many decorations last night and after the wedding I will certainly share more photos of what we came up with, partly inspired by Elsie's beautiful wedding decorations. I think it's funny that the wedding colour palette has slowly morphed to be even closer to my original inspiration image, a gorgeous, messy bouquet from a New York City Hall wedding.

Since we got so much done yesterday, and had so much fun doing it, I wanted to share this video from Paulette magazine that I discovered via Diane at Pagan Poetry. So beautiful, and it has many of Diane's gorgeous jewelry pieces in it. While you're watching perhaps you can think of some ceremony music that we could consider. If you're married, what did you walk down the aisle to? And would it sound good played on a saxaphone?

five friday favourites: participaction

Do any of you lovely Canadians remember these gems?

Boy, we were a healthy nation in the 1980s (I'm assuming...I mean, check it out, everyone was psyched, wandering around with this "do it, do it, do it" song lodged in their brains). In the spirit of the long weekend here in British Columbia and with the ultra-positive encouragement of Hal Johnson and Joanne McLeod (see below) here are a few good things to participate in this weekend. Check them out and then get out there and enjoy the weekend! Do it! Do it! Do it!

There is a Sadie Designs giveaway at Oh Mishka! You have until Sunday to enter. An amethyst core sample is up for grabs.

A giveaway for a beautiful Little Ocean necklace, discovered via Marie Bee.

I'm also really excited about this friendship bracelet swap at Grainline Studio. You have until Friday at midnight (any time zone) to sign up to be a part of it. Check out some of the amazing patterns for friendship bracelets on this site. Here are some that I made last summer when I had a busted ankle for weeks and weeks. Also '80s nostalgia.

And now a little DIY fun:

I really want to make this fringed suede clutch. It reminds me of an amazing pair of vintage winter boots I used to have, which I wore until they totally blew out. I got them for under ten bucks in Calgary, talking them down at the thrift store because the boots may have a had a little poop on them. Too much information? It was a long time ago...

Finally, Jill at LUNE always posts the best tutorials and DIY projects. Here's her latest, a video that shows you exactly how to wrap the most perfect summer beach bangle.

Enjoy! Happy weekend, everyone, and happy long weekend fellow British Columbians! What projects do you have planned? I'm making wedding decorations until I can't see straight!