Christmas wrapping ideas
Are you looking for new Christmas wrapping ideas to make wrapping presents part of the seasonal fun? If you like a bit of Christmas crafting, I hope you'll like some of my simple, but very effective, gift topper and gift wrapping ideas for Christmas and holiday gifts. If you don't have time for homemade gifts (I rarely do) it might make the festive season seem less frenzied if you can set aside a little time for some kind of creative activity. Making unique gift wrap is very satisfying.
Christmas wrapping party
I love to see other's gift wrapping ideas too, and it's something people often enjoy, so why not consider making it a group activity? In previous years we've taken part in gift wrapping parties, where we supply brown paper, craft supplies, a bit of greenery and some festive drinks - and ask for a charity donation in exchange.
The cost is pretty minimal - brown paper is inexpensive, and bakers twine usually comes in 100m rolls - so it doesn't cost too much to execute. I try to group supplies together so it isn't too chaotic - I organise washi tape by similar colours on these large safety pins. I've found that friends are generally happy to stick with classic colour schemes, so rather than catering for everyone's wrapping whims, try being consistent in your supplies. I like to use a silver and gold Christmas theme, with natural brown paper and foliage.
If you're expecting a lot of people or think this is something you might do in future years, you might be able to buy brown paper and tissue paper and bulk from your nearest whole flower market - we bought bunches of eucalyptus and a ream of pretty gold star tissue from London't New Covent Garden flower market (you don't need to be a florist or have a wholesale account to shop there, just remember that the prices quoted will exclude VAT, and that if you show up a little later the sellers will be more patient with you.) A traditional colour theme using red ribbon and dark green paper also works well.
In more ambitious years we've combined gift wrapping with making beeswax candles, lemon curd and peppermint bark, and provided the jars and catering boxes to wrap them in - but more recently I've found it easier to just let people wrap their own gifts. If you really want to include a 'making' element, people love making pom poms with the inexpensive plastic pom pom makers you can easily buy online.
Have you ever done something similar? If wrapping Christmas presents is not your idea of fun, you might find an event like this at least focuses your mind on the task - or you might find someone enthusiastic to do it for you! I've seen some friends in a new light when I've witnessed creative skills I didn't know they had!
Easy ways to make unique gift wrap
1. Add a personalised touch
An easy way to make a parcel look special is simply to use a letter sticker to add the recipient's initial, or a rubber stamp to stamp their name or initial. I love the font on these alphabet stamps.
2. Add a small crafty touch
Even a small crafty element will make your Christmas gift wrap unique. Your friend or family member will appreciate the extra effort! Here's some easy ideas that anyone can manage:
Make your own gift tags
- Even if your crafting skills aren't amazing (I'm all about the quick crafty fix myself), you can stamp a design on a plain brown tag (don't worry if it goes off the edge - that looks great too), add a little washi tape to the edge of a tag or small envelope, or layer a couple of items (try a letter sticker on top of washi tape stripes). You may find creative skills you didn't know you had!
- Use a stamp to make the tag itself. Many of our rubber stamps are a good size for making tags (we added a silver star sticker on top of our Christmas tree stamp). You can use a rivet punch (this is the one I bought from Amazon) to make a hole at the top.
Make your own wrapping paper
- Use stamps on plain brown paper to make your own wrapping paper. We keep paper from online deliveries, stamp it with nature-themed stamps, and then scrunch up the paper afterwards for a rustic look! Geometric designs look better on smooth paper. It doesn't matter if the designs are randomly repeated and not in exact lines so don't worry about accuracy - when it's wrapped up no-one will notice. For small parcels you can add washi tape or glitter tape triangles to jazz up plain paper. I'd stay small scale if you do this one - you'll soon get crafter's fatigue if you attempt anything more ambitious! If you don't have many Christmas-specific craft supplies to hand you can still be creative - try using the rubber on the end of a pencil to make polka dots on plain paper!
3. Less doesn't have to be more
Add as much bling as you're comfortable with: things I like to add include eucalyptus stems (these dry out nicely, so you don't need to worry about bits of pine all over the carpet), gypsophila, dried orange slices, jingle bells, cute paperclips such as these arrow paperclips, and glitter stars.
4. Add a touch of luxury
This year I'm using this leather string, which is a beautiful quality and a stylish alternative to Christmas ribbon. I'm mainly using it on small gifts, as it's pricey if you're wrapping huge boxes, but for larger boxes, why not try this gold and white bakers twine or this elegant black wax string. Both are 100 metres long so will wrap lots of presents!
What are your favourite Christmas gift wrapping ideas?
Everything used above is available in my shop. You can find all of the gift wrap supplies here.
//
Other blog posts you might like: