You’ve been picking up gifts here and there, online and as you come across them and just as that feeling of accomplishment washes over you, you remember you have to wrap them. We used to stress out about this, thinking we had to come up with a new approach (a friend used her recyclable, used-once wedding runner to wrap her holiday gifts), a new twist (plain craft paper tied with chic colorful ribbon) or at the very least, creative nametags. But we learned to beg, borrow and steal ideas from the best sources out there, finding shortcuts and timesavers that made wrapping less labor and more a labor of love, and fun. We also broke down and used the rolls of wrap you find at the store (gasp!) and we weren’t kicked out of Pinterest. And have you noticed, the cheaper (and tackier) the paper, the more your kids love it? So there’s that.
You can hop on
Pinterest and
Real Simple,Martha Stewart, and
Apartment Therapy for simple to elaborate gift wrapping ideas. Make your own, have your kids create, dress up craft or parchment paper, use living accents, experiment with ribbons and twine, master the art of natural and glittering embellishments and more.
1. Create a gift wrapping station. We’re not talking about an entire room with spools of paper, tissue and ribbon with Martha Stewart cheering you on, just a table or a corner of the floor with everything in reach. Gather everything you need before you get started so you’re not having to stop and start and search and get frustrated. Grab essentials like gift wrap(s) of choice, tissue paper and/or recycled shredded filler for boxes and bags, a sharp pair of scissors (or two), tape, ribbon, twine and string, nametags and a few Shapies or good pens.
2. Make things easy. All those spools of ribbon? Grab an old paper towel holder, remove the top, and stack your ribbon as high as they’ll go. Then when you’re mid-wrap with one hand, you can just roll out as much as you need.
Store small bits of ribbon, a glue gun, extra tape, nametags, pom pons, natural accents and other craft items in a toiletries bag you can hang right over a chair. Or try a large tackle box to organize and keep everything together. We’ve also seen people store their rolls or wrapping, craft or parchment paper in a tall basket or new trash can for easy storage that keeps them from wrinkling and rolling across the floor and well within your reach.
3. Make it yourself. We’ve talked about making your own wrapping paper and how you can find virtually endless ideas on DIY charm, but another idea we came across that we really loved was to gather your old, wrinkled wrapping paper and run it through the shredder. Use the shredded material to line boxes and bags.
4. Get in the spirit. Pick a Christmasy
Pandora or
Spotify station (both general services are free) or crank some of your own playlists to channel your inner elf.
5. Get comfortable. Bare feet, sweats, yoga pants, pajamas, slipper socks. Whatever it takes.
6. Break out the snacks. You didn’t think we’d forget to mention this, did you? But having a bowl of chips or popcorn and a beverage of choice can make anything better. We’ve heard some people save all of their giftwrapping for one designated day. They gather all of their supplies, set aside the time and crank it all out. We can see the genius, but we like to wrap as we go, keeping our supplies tucked away in our baskets, bags or boxes and wrapping something special as we check it off our list. We want to move beyond getting it done this year and actually enjoy it. We’ll let you know how it goes. Hop on Facebook and share your tips and tricks for creating a little wrapping bliss.
