30 Days of Creativity - Day 7: Billfold

Happy One Week of Creating! It was high time the sewing machine came out for creative uses. I made a bunch of these billfolds (which were on our Etsy shop and more will be posted soon) awhile back.

Under normal circumstances I would not say that I have a "hoarding problem"; although, when it comes to paper, I will admit that I do. I have so much paper that I am no longer sure what to do with it all. (That said, I am open to ideas!).

The idea of making sewn billfolds came to me at a time when I was in the market for a new wallet. That said, I do not like wallets and I never have. I am also not a purse person. I like to carry the bare minimum around with me when I go out. This is how I got the idea to make a paper billfold. My sewn billfolds can only 4-5 cards at a time without overexerting the snap. Perfect for me - I can carry my drivers license, credit cards, insurance information and cash. I like being able to have this with me and use it regularly because it reminds me that I am creative and has proven to be a great conversation starter.

I have revamped my design a bit. I used two different types of paper for this one. The inside is lined with a textured stock paper and for the outer layer I used a silver water-repelling paper. Since I changed up the design a bit, I am going to add a velcro strip instead of a snap. I'm glad I made one today - I needed a new one :).

New collection.

It seems like it has been awhile since we posted photos of our creative endeavors. Don't be deceived - we still have been using our creative powers to make things; we just haven't been very good about sharing them.

I have been humming away at my sewing machine a lot lately. I've been making all sorts of envelopes (mostly black like in this past post). I've used various different thread colors and have also been experimenting with different sizes.

I am still undecided if I will actually try to sell any of these envelopes, since it takes me a good 20-25 minutes to make one. (That's if my sewing machine behaves!) Not sure I could price them in such a way that someone would actually want to buy one. Maybe they will pop up on our Etsy page soon, so stay tuned.

Anyway. I needed a solution to a problem I know many of us suffer from. Too many bags! I am always trying to use reusable bags when we go out shopping. I do this partly because we have more than enough plastic bags to use for the garbage for the rest of the year and I think it is a huge waste to always need a *new* bag. The area for "bag storage" under our sink was getting a little overwhelming. That is when I decided to make some envelopes out of brown paper bags.

These envelopes are surprisingly durable. I like how some of the bag graphics peak out of the top (like in the photo on the right from a Trader Joe's bag). I am working right now on a design to match for stationary. Once that is complete I will get more photos up.

This has been a good solution to an excess of bags. It's also been a fun recycling / up-cycling project. Sometimes you have to think outside of the box and sometimes you need to think outside of the bag.