There is nothing more exciting than receiving a gift and when that gift is wrapped beautifully, it shows even more thought and love. The good news is, that elaborate gift wrapping needn’t be complicated nor expensive. With these crafty tips of gift wrapping, you can delightfully wrap all kinds of gifts, sitting on your upholstered dining chairs at your table without spending a penny on wrapping paper.
Many of these suggestions use items that you already have to hand and also re-use wrapping paper, tissue paper, string, ribbon etc. that you have kept from previous birthday and Christmas gifts. So what do we suggest?
Take a Walk!
When the rain stops, and the wind is no longer howling, step outside and enjoy the crisp winter air and everything this season has to offer. We may associate winter with sparseness and hibernation, but many shrubs and trees drop their seeds to the ground in readiness for spring growth.
Fir cones along with a few small sprigs of an evergreen pine or holly bush make for a simple, yet effective adornment alongside homemade gift wrap.
Sitting in the warmth of your home at a wood dining table, loop string or twine (or old ribbon if you have any) around the centre of the gift many times, with a gift tag looped in, and tie securely at the back. Insert the spring of greenery and use string looped over the base of the fir cone to securely anchor it to the gift.
Homemade Gift Wrap Style
As well as buying gift wrap, you can make your own by recycling wrapping paper and tissue from previous gifts you have received.
For your own unique touch, wrap the gift in a block colour paper – a lot cheaper than festive paper – adding your own layer of colour and detail over the top.
For example, this black tissue paper base entirely coverts the gift but the star-festooned tissue paper is recycled, with a small band covering the top of the wrapped gift. Again, use natural elements to complete the look such as twine or craft string.
For a fantastic display, wrap gifts in similar colours, using the same natural adornments and cluster them together under the Christmas tree or hide them in plain view in the glass cabinet.
Newspaper Chic
Save a few of your broadsheets to create your own bespoke wrapping paper. Use twine to hold it all together, tying a spring of cinnamon and a parcel tag to give it not only a festive look but a festive smell too.
Ribbon Perfection
Adding decoration to a wrapper gift is the ideal way of adding a little bit of the wow factor to it. Ribbon is used not just on gifts, but on clothing and other bought products. Keep all these for the Christmas wrapping season, matching your ribbon to recycled tissue paper, or use with newspaper too to give it an extra bit of chic. There are some great online sites that will show you how to tie elaborate bows too, great for adding even more detail.
Other material can be recycled too, especially if you make your own hampers. If it doesn’t look festive enough, why not spray it with glitter paint for added sparkle?
Map It
Frankly, maps are a little old hat, especially with Satnavs and smartphone apps taking over. Reuse the pages of old atlases and maps for wrapping paper. Use ribbon and string to add detail, just like in all the other examples.
Creating your own gift wrap is about a little bit of imagination, and plenty of reusable wrapping materials.