What began with just clay, string, and a few video tutorials has now blossomed into a beautiful shop filled with all things kooky turned into handcrafted jewelry and accessories. Katherine Paton, the founder of Kooky Boutique, shares how it all started, taking their designs to the next level and, along with that, their packaging, and how noissue has provided them with the sustainable packaging solutions they sought.
Tell us a bit about your brand, introduce it to the world!
Kooky, meaning strange, eccentric, unique, and quirky, was born in June 2020, just after the first COVID lockdown, when my sister sent me a photo of a macramé hanging plant and asked if I could make it into a pair of earrings. I bought some clay and watched a few basic tutorials on polymer clay and how to make macramé plant hangers, and as they say, the rest is history.
I started with earrings and have since added keyrings, pop sockets, trinket dishes, necklaces, bookmarks, stitch markers, wine glass charms, and car hangers. I have everything from your childhood classic treats like fairy bread, 100s and 1000s, Shrewsbury, Marmite, Nutella, cookie jars, lolly bags, and iced animals. For adults, treats like cheese boards, chocolate boards, wine glass charms, and everything in between—plants, animals, and 90s nostalgia—are all a little bit cute and Kooky!
Tell us about the design for your packaging and how you’re using them?
I had my designer make me some gifs back in 2021, so when I knew it was time to upgrade to branded tissue paper and tape, I had to go back and let them work their magic again.
I knew I wanted images of my products, so I went with seven pairs of earrings, two hair clips, two keyrings, and two phone pop socket drawings. Little white drawings on a blue background with Kooky are exactly what I was after. It’s that little touch of kookiness when you receive your order.
What made noissue a good fit for your packaging?
I have been upgrading my packaging to be more planet-friendly by using cardboard boxes and biodegradable packing peanuts, so I needed tissue and tape that wouldn’t harm the environment. I had heard so many good things about noissue and when I read about their tissue being made from FSC-certified recycled paper and fully home-compostable and their tape being curbside recyclable, I knew this was the brand I wanted to go with.
I love the personal touch that comes with branded tissue paper and tape. I love the experience of opening a parcel when every detail of the packaging has been thought about. noissue turned my design into a reality, and I love it!
