I am a chocoholic creating chocolate themed jewellery as I explore Canadian chocolate one bar and bonbon at a time

Bonbon with cacao bean in it next to a bronze cacao bean necklace.

Recent blogs

New Adventures – The Chocolate Notebook

This year I was fortunate to be asked to join the team of The Chocolate Notebook, a notebook/calendar/agenda/journal. I had a first edition of The Chocolate Notebook and used it throughout 2020. I was surprised and excited when Anelisa Lauri and Lauren Heineck, the minds behind the creation of The Chocolate Notebook, invited me toContinue reading “New Adventures – The Chocolate Notebook”

by canadianchocoholic January 8, 2021January 9, 2021

Wreath made using Chocolate Bar Wrappers

Make this stunning wreath out of chocolate bar wrappers to add fun, whimsy, and chocolate flair to your Christmas decor. A DIY paper Christmas craft.

by canadianchocoholic December 21, 2020December 21, 2020

Chocolate Bar Garland

DIY Paper garland using chocolate bar wrappers. Great for upcycling old chocolate packaging and creating decorations and ornaments for Christmas.

by canadianchocoholic December 17, 2020

Canadain Chocoholic links

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🍫 Cacao Pods ⁠ ⁠ 🌴 In April I went on va

🍫 Cacao Pods ⁠
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🌴 In April I went on vacation with my mom. She has always wanted to go to Hawaii, so we made it happen. We spent two weeks in Maui. Most of our time spent there was relaxing, exploring, sitting on beaches and doing new things. The one thing I said had to be on our list was to see Cacao.
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❤ It was love at first sight when these beautiful orange cacao pods came into my view. We did a @mauichocolatecoffee and I am so glad we did. We had an amazing time and learnt so much.
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🌺 The trip was the highlight of 2019, and this photo was taken exactly 2 years ago.
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☮ #peace⁠
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❔ Have you been amazed by the beauty of cacao growing on a tree?
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#chocolate #tttt_o #tttt_2021 #ilovechocolate #chocoholic #beantobarchocolate #beantobar
#singleorigin #singleoriginchocolate #cacaopod #loveatfirstsight #loveatfirstbite #chocolategrowsontrees #trees #maui #mauivacation #chocolatetour #orange #travel #chocolatetravel #love #peace

☕ I have been playing with my morning drinking c

☕ I have been playing with my morning drinking chocolate lately.⁠
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🍫 Never using the same recipe twice. ⁠
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👩‍🍳 This one has a lot of macadamia nut milk foam, some ice, some water, some chocolate and is sprinkled with nibs!⁠
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❔ What's your favourite way to enjoy drinking chocolate?⁠
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#chocolate #drinkingchocolate #foam #nutmylk #coolchocolate #sippingchocolate #hotchocolate #enjoychocolate #morningritual #instachocolate #cacao

🍫 Sometimes a bar just calls to me. 🤗 I was

🍫 Sometimes a bar just calls to me.

🤗 I was wishing there was a piece of this Sponge Toffee bar from @questxochocolate still in the house as I was craving sponge toffee today. (This bar dissapeared quickly once it arrived)

🎨 I wasn't sure what was the front and what was the back of this stunning bar as they were both so beautiful.

🍫 Have you had any chocolate cravings lately?

#chocolate #artandchocolate #copper #toffee #spongetoffee #chocolatecravings #madewithlove #stunning #chocolatejoy

💌 I have been busy working away on @HappyMailfo

🌱 My desk is feeling all the springtime vibes r

🌱 My desk is feeling all the springtime vibes right now, but I am not really feeling the sit at it and work energy.⁠
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☀ It’s been unseasonably warm here in Ottawa, +24C today! So I may have spent a few hours in the hammock dreaming and drawing and planning with a good old fashioned notebook and paper.⁠
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🎨 Because I am a maker. A creative. I find so much joy in creating things with my hands, and so much more joy when those things are enjoyed by others. For me the planning part of the process is often done on paper, maybe I have always started that way, back in the days before technology.⁠
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👩‍🎨 As a maker I make all kinds of things, some of them you see and some of them you don’t. Here is a little peek behind the scenes to the favourite corner of my desk, that not only includes chocolate to be eaten, but also things I have made.⁠
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🔸The malas in the bowl I made, one with moonstones, one with cacao wood beads, while this isn’t the typical jewellery I make, I did work in a bead store in my teens.⁠
I blew the bowl as well, in Seattle in 2013, it is not the first piece of glass I have blown.⁠
🔸I also made the plate the pieces of chocolate are sitting on, at @hintonburgpottery a few years ago in a hand building pottery class.⁠
🔸Plus, there’s @chocolatenotebook which I worked on with @chocolatedriven and @laurenonthewknd.⁠
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🧡As much as I specialize, studied, and love making jewellery, I also just love creating art in all forms.⁠
So there’s a look into a corner of my maker life, tell me, what do you make that I may not know?⁠

⁠ 🙂 This year has been full of changes for me

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🙂 This year has been full of changes for me. You may have seen me talking about Synergy, a tea and chocolate pairing box that I am working on with my friend Ji. (Cyndi + Ji = Synergy)⁠
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🍵 Ji has a tea shop here in Ottawa and has an incredible wealth of knowledge about teas, and we are working together on this monthly tea and chocolate pairing box.⁠
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❤ I’d love for you to check it out if tea is your thing. As many of you know, I am not a huge tea drinker, but I have been experimenting and trying so many new teas with Ji’s help and I have really been enjoying the journey. So, if it is something you are curious about take a look at @SynergyTeaChocolate.⁠
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🎁 Each month we aim to offer a box with 3 bags of loose teas and 3 chocolate bars that pair well. The box also contains tips on tasting the two together and tasting pages for tea and chocolate to write your notes on. ⁠
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🎉 Right now we have a giveaway over @SynergyTeaChocolate if you are curious and want a chance to win a box.⁠

❔Do you prefer tea or chocolate?
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#Synergy #SynergyTeaChocolate #teaandchocolatepairing #teachocolate #teaandchocolate #chocolateandtea #chocolatepairing #pairingbox #ottawasmallbuisness #womeninchocolate #ecolechocolategrad #teaexpert #chocolateexpert #ottawa #ottawafoodies #giftsforfoodies #canadiangifts #teagifts #chocolategifts #womeninchocolate #womeninbusiness

🍫 I am currently nibbling on all things nibby a

🍫 I am currently nibbling on all things nibby and nutty.⁠
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😋 This week a few things that have been nibbled on here include Goats Milk Hazelnut Chocolate, Pistachio White Chocolate, Hazelnut nest noodles, and caramels with nibs and a chocolatey coating.⁠
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🙂 Let’s talk about nibbling….⁠
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❔ Do you nibble on chocolate? Do you munch it? Do you savour it?⁠
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🍫 I do all of the above, depending on the chocolate, why I am eating it, where I am eating it or what I am eating.⁠
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⏳ Somethings are easy to nibble on a bit here and there, while others require my full attention and want to be savoured slowly.⁠
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🍫 So nibble away, enjoy ever mouthful of chocolate you enjoy.⁠
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🥜 As for nuts. Do you have a favourite nut to nibble?⁠
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#tttt_n #tttt_2021 #nibble #chocolate #chocolatecommunity #chocolateeducator #explorechocolate #discoverchocolate #canadianchocolate #chocolateartist ⁠
#chocolate #ilovechocolate #chocoholic #beantobarchocolate #beantobar #hazelnut #nuts #nibs #nest #noodles #nature #nib #notable #enjoychocolate #eatgoodchocolate

⁠ 👩👩‍🔬👩‍🍳 There are a lot of

🙂 Happy Monday! I hope you are enjoying someth

🙂 Happy Monday! I hope you are enjoying something chocolatey today.⁠
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🍫 We are enjoying this sour cherry cacao pod in a nest of hazelnut chocolate from @somachocolatemaker⁠.
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🎨🍫 We are both enjoying this beautiful piece of #artandchocolate!⁠
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🙂 Hoping you all enjoyed the long weekend and relaxed in some sunshine. We enjoyed time away from screens by baking fresh bread, making Lasagna (homemade pasta too), and relaxing on the deck.⁠
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❔ How did you enjoy the weekend?⁠
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#longweekend #cacaopod #chocolate #sourcherry #chocolatepod #sunshine #spring #takeabreak #enjoychocolate #sharechocolate #ilovechocolate #artandchocolate #pod #madeinontario #eastertreat #nest #chocolate #sunshine #happiness⁠

🙂 So, my partner does not really like craft cho

🙂 So, my partner does not really like craft chocolate, which is totally my thing. Over the years I have learned that our palates are quite different, and that no matter what, he is never going to love most of the chocolate I eat. Sometimes this is a bonus as I don’t need to share or worry about him eating my treats.⁠
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❤ He is pretty amazing though, and I love how supportive he is in all I do. Sometimes I do not realize just how much of what I do with chocolate has sunk in, until I hear him tell people things about chocolate. He recently came home and asked me to pack up a few bites of chocolate for one of his co-workers after they had had a conversation about chocolate, in which my husband talked about 100% chocolate and Old School chocolate.⁠
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🍫 So, while he doesn’t eat much chocolate, I do however go out of my way to pick him up or order the chocolate treats he does like. So today he is enjoying this wonderful bar of Lemon Toffee milk chocolate and toasted pistachios from @somachocolatemaker. I may have a few of these bars in hiding!⁠
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🙂 My advice is this, keep talking about craft chocolate, artisan chocolate, local chocolate and bean to bar chocolate. You may think people aren’t listening, but they are. One day I hope to convince him that chocolate can be amazing, but until then his favourite chocolate bar will continue to be Big Turk, and he will reach for chips first.
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❔ Are there people in your life who are just not chocolate fans?⁠
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#chocolate #bestpartnerever #lovehim #chocolatestash #lemonchocolate #bigturk #sharechocolate #chocolateeducator #supportivespouse #lovelovelove #lemonandchocolate #pistachios #bestfriend #chocolatesnack #chocolatetreat #canadianchocolate #toffee #lemon #Milkchocolate⁠

🍫 Today we started our day with #chocolateforbr

🍫 Today we started our day with #chocolateforbreakfast.

🙂 Banana bread with chocolate in it and a mug of drinking chocolate were a great way to ease into the long weekend.

❤️ Looking forward to a relaxing weekend with some cooking and baking ahead.

🍫 Happy weekend everyone!

#chocolate #drinkingchocolate #bananabread #chocoholic #baking #holidayweekend #easterweekend #relaxingweekend #hotcocoa #cacao #eatwell #celebrate

🍫M is for Magic, chocolate is absolutely magic.

🍫M is for Magic, chocolate is absolutely magic.⁠
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✨ A bite of chocolate can brighten someone’s mood, especially when given as an unexpected gift. It can bring a smile to kids’ faces. It can take so many different forms – bars, bonbons, cakes, baking, ice cream, even in savory dishes. Plus it melts at body temperature and melts like magic in your mouth.⁠
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🍫 I really do think chocolate is magical.⁠
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🙂 But if magic isn’t your thing, lets bring a few other M’s into it. Milk chocolate, maple chocolate, cacao from Madagascar, Mint chocolate, and all the other marvelous M words related to chocolate out there.⁠
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❔ What are your favourite M words that relate to chocolate?⁠
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#tttt_m #tttt_2021 #tbt #chocolatecommunity #Chocolate #cacao #beantobarchocolate #canadianchocolate #magic #magical #chocolateismagical #sharechocolate #ilovechocolate #itsinthecards #artandchocolate #chocolatecards #orangedesk #chocolatebars #madagascar #maple #mint

🌄 Easter is coming⁠ ⁠ 🍫 Do you celebrate

🌄 Easter is coming⁠
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🍫 Do you celebrate with chocolate?⁠
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🥚This year we picked up some Honey Bunnies at the @ottawafarmmkt to enjoy on Easter, if they last that long.⁠
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🐝 The honey ganache filling is delicious and I always look forward to it as an Easter treat.⁠
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🐰 If you are looking for some Easter chocolate treats I suggest checking these Ottawa spots for chocolate: @hummingbirdchocolate @annastubbechocolates @laconfiseriewakefield @jacobsonsottawa @jojococochocolate
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#ottawaeasterchocolate #ottawaeaster #chocolate #easter #eastertreats #artisanchocolate #craftchocolate #chocolatiers #chocolatemakers #ottawafoodie #eatgoodchocolate #locallymade #eastertreatsottawa #ottawa

👀 Looking forward, I am excited to be starting

🍁 Maple is one of my favourite things.⁠
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🍫 On its own it is delicious, but added to chocolate? A fantastic treat or snack. Maple is always marvelous, so clearly it is the focus of today’s #tttt_m #maple post.⁠
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📦 I ordered 4 different @palettedebine bars with maple in them near the end of last year, broke them up and packaged them and sent them off to a few friends.⁠
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🙂 One of those friends suggested we eat them together, so after every package arrived we all sat in front of our computers and enjoyed chocolate together.⁠
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❔Would we have done this pre covid? Maybe. But now we are all so used to meeting and chatting online that the only hard part was waiting for chocolate to arrive in the mail and setting a meeting time that worked in different time zones.⁠
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🍫 Really such a great way to share chocolate and time with friends. I have been sending close friends chocolate for years, but last year I sent even more to make people smile! #HappyMail⁠
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🍁❄️ The only snack that would be more perfect would be maple taffy on the snow! Nothing can beat that experience.⁠
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#tttt_2021 #maple #chocolatecommunity #friendswithchocolate #sharingchocolate #zoom #mapleandchocolate #canadianchocolate #sharechocolate #beantobarchocolate #craftchocolate #artisanchocolate #madeincanada #mapleseason #mapletaffy #canadianeh #mapleeverything #maplesugar

⁠ 🍫 It's a little late for a #tttt_L post, bu

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🍫 It's a little late for a #tttt_L post, but here I am talking about love and chocolate, chocolate love, and all things lovely.⁠
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❤ I love chocolate.⁠
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🧡 Really. I enjoy it almost everyday.⁠
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🍫 I love starting my day with drinking chocolate, I love a small bite of chocolate mid afternoon, and I even enjoy chocolate in the evenings. I love chocolate makers and the creativity they bring to making chocolate. I love chocolatiers and the beauty they create with bonbons. I love pasty chefs and all they create with chocolate.⁠
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🧡 I love chocolate so much I have a jewellery line inspired by it! Really a lot of my work is inspired by chocolate and made to share with other #chocolatelovers.⁠
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🎨 Today for #marchmeetthemaker #reels was the theme and I made one over @HappyMailforChocolateLovers and have linked it in my stories.⁠
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🍫Chocolate is my love language.⁠
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❔ What do you love about chocolate?⁠
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#chocolate #tttt_2021 #cacao #ilovechocolate #chocolateinspiresme #chocolatemakers #chocolatiers #pastrychefs #chocoholics #eatgoodchocolate #createwithchocolate #artandchocolate #enjoychocolate #sharechocolate #chocolatefriends #chocolatelove

🍫 Last night I made a fancy dessert to celebrat

🍫 Last night I made a fancy dessert to celebrate launching @HappyMailforChocolateLovers.

🍫 I had made a ganache a few days earlier and used it to form a base in these small cups, unsure what I'd use it for.

🥛 I added whipped cream with a touch of vanilla.

🍓 Next I pulled some strawberries we picked last summer out of the freeze and made a thick sauce with them.

🍫 A fun way to celebrate Happy Mail for Chocolate Lovers.

(I also made the truffles earlier this week)

#chocolate #cacao #ganache #celebration #create #ilovechocolate #celebratechocolate #Neapolitan #dessert #happymail #smallbusiness #truffle #handmade #foodart #instafood #yum

🙂 Hello! This is me, Cyndi, in front of one of

🙂 Hello! This is me, Cyndi, in front of one of my favourite pieces of art, a canvas covered in foil and paper linings of chocolate bars. Its sparkle makes me smile every time I walk into my office!

🎨🍫 I have been combining art and my love for chocolate to create so many amazing things over the last few years, from jewellery to screen prints to fabric.

🧡 It's been a crazy year, and for me that meant a lot of changes and a lot of deep thinking about how I move forward as an artist. So I have started something new!

🙂💌🍫 Happy Mail for Chocolate Lovers and I invite you to follow me over @HappyMailforChocolateLovers

❤️ You can find more details on that account, but I will also be sharing here between my regular content.

❔ Do you like #happymail?

#chocolate #chocolatelovers #snailmail #artandchocolate #chocolateandart #womeninchocolate #artist #maker #makersgonnamake #creative #startingpoint #ilovechocolate #cacao #craftchocolate #happymailforchocolatelovers #instachocolate #chocolatelove

🍫 Today was the perfect day for hot chocolate w

🍫 Today was the perfect day for hot chocolate with marshmallows!

🌧️ It was so rainy and grey that I actually had two hot chocolates!

🍫 These marshmallows from @somachocolatemaker are amazing, with layers of chocolate folded into them. Plus they are almost too pretty to eat.

💻 I had a super busy day working in a few new projects and this treat was the perfect afternoon pick me up!

🍫 I also caught @somachocolatemaker with @sethgodin today, go check it out if you haven't already!

#drinkingchocolate #hotchocolate #beantobarchocolate #craftchocolate #canadianchocolate #busyday #newprojects #comingsoon #marshmallow #pickmeup #productive #fullmoonenergy #afternoontreat #markmeetthemaker #ilovechocolate #chocolate #peace

🎨 #Startingpoint #MarchMeetTheMaker

👩‍🎨 I have always been creative. I have always made things as long as I can remember. I truly think that is where it all started, when I was a child.

✋I love using my hands and my mind to bring something I have dreamt up to life.

🙂 I create in so many different mediums that there are often many starting points, and each one fills my heart with joy, a promise of something to come.

◻️ Often the starting point is a blank piece of paper before bites, to do, material lists, or sketches are begun. Really though a lot of the work is the thinking about it in my head.

🖼️ Just for fun in my stories tomorrow I'm going to share some previous posts that show some starting points.

#art #artist #create #start #makersgonnamake #chocolateart #blankpage #ideas #thinkingitthrough #creatart #chocolatejewellery #whereitbegings #creative #joyinmaking

🎁 #WrappedAndPackaged 💌🍫 I just got some

🎁 #WrappedAndPackaged

💌🍫 I just got some new envelopes in (that I love) for a soon to be released project I can't wait to share with you!

🎁 As always the little details are my way of putting a smile on your face. So here are a few photos of ways that translates into my products and offerings and how they arrive to you.

💌 Custom printed chocolate themed grey envelope. (Coming soon.)
✉️ Felt envelope, customized on reverse for origin series jewellery. (Coming soon.)
🎨 Screen printed mini fabric bag for some of my jewellery pieces.
🏷️ Screen printed tags (on chocolate bar wrappers) for extras.
🍫📓🖋️ Hand wrapped @chocolatenotebook looking fun with tissue, twine, and a tag.

✂️🍫 Don't forget my art project #365ChocolateSquaresCC where I cut up chocolate packaging to create a large piece of art. (Coming soon.)

#MarchMeetTheMaker #chocolate #cacao #artandchocolate #chocolateandart #packaging #wrapped #smiles #chocolatepackaging #screenprint #sewn #illustrated #illustrator #designed #cut #minibags #custompackaging #fabricdesign #createart #chocolateart #jewellery #happymailforchocolatelovers

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