Christmas Gift Wrapping: Make it Enjoyable by Being Organized

By Mary M. Alward

If you do your Christmas gift-wrapping well before the holiday, it can be a very enjoyable task. When you leave it until the last minute, it can be come a dreaded chore filled with chaos and stress. You’ll be scrambling for tissue paper, gift bags, boxes, ribbon, nametags, scissors and tape. Avoid leaving your gift-wrapping until the last the last few days before the holiday and get organized now. Here’s how!

Gift Wrap

Don’t buy gift-wrap that’s covered with santas or snowmen. Instead, choose plain red or green, plaid or metallic gold or silver. These can be dressed-up for a spectacular showing. The leftover paper can then be used for anniversaries, birthdays, Valentine’s Day and other occasions throughout the year.

Tissue Paper

Tissue paper gives a festive look to gifts. Use several colors to line boxes, cushion fragile gifts or add to gift bags. You can also use tissue paper to wrap gifts and then add holiday stickers for an old fashioned look. Buy tissue in a bulk variety pack at party stores. These packs contain almost every color in the rainbow, as well as white and glitter tissue paper.

Gift Bags

Purchase metallic and plain bags in blue, red, green, gold and silver. These look beautiful under the tree and if you have one or two left over, they can be used for any occasion. Cello bags are great for small, delicate gifts. They come in a variety of colors and can be sealed using ribbon, stickers, raffia and cording. Cello bags are available in a variety of sizes to fit all your gifts. They are available in bulk at most party stores.

Tags

Tags add a look of elegance to any gift. However, they can be easily detached and lost. Purchase tags that are self-adhesive and be sure to write information on the top of the package or the ends of the ribbon. In lieu of tags, a card can be securely taped to the top of gifts, if desired.

Add a personal touch to gifts by making your own gift tags. Use cardstock, colored paper or last year’s Christmas cards to make nametags. There are also a wide variety of online sites that offer nametags for free printing.

Decoration

Use artificial greenery, mistletoe, small artificial packages, ribbon and bows to embellish your packages. It’s always nice to add a personal touch. If the gift recipient loves nature, add a small bird or animal to their package. If they love golf, add a package of golf balls to the package, unwrapped. There are so many ways to bring a personal touch to gift packages. Embellishments can be purchased at most craft stores.

Ribbon

Beautiful ribbon is widely available on today’s market, but can be very expensive. Watch for sales throughout the year and use expensive ribbon only on small packages. Wired ribbon is more affordable and can be used in a variety of ways to adorn gifts. Most wired ribbon is glittered and can be used to create hearts, stars, trees and silhouettes. Wired ribbon can also be used to close gift bags. Just use a small pair of wire cutters to cut it to the desired length. Wrap the ends around a pen and pencil to create curls.

Metallic cording can be used instead of ribbon. Choose several colors and braid them together for a festive look. Add a pinecone, a sprig of mistletoe or a small artificial poinsettia blossom. Cord can be recycled and used on other packages and gifts throughout the year.

Seam binding can be purchased in fabric stores for a reasonable price and it looks great when used to tie gifts. Also available in fabric stores is cording, satin binding, rick-rack and fancy buttons that can be used to create beautiful designs to enhance the beauty of gift packages.

Gift Wrapping Nook

Create a gift-wrapping nook in a corner of your home where you can easily organize all or your gift-wrapping supplies. Supplies you will need include:

• A variety of plain and decorative tapes.
• Scissors – both regular and those that will make decorative edges.
• A hole punch for attaching tags with ribbon.
• Gold and silver glitter pens, markers and pencil crayons to use for decorative purposed.
• Gift bags – plain, cello and metallic in a variety of colors and sizes.
• Gift tags – store bought, or make your own.
• Seam binding, satin binding, rick-rack and decorative buttons. • Holiday stickers.
• Tissue paper in a variety of colors and sizes.
• Ribbon of several colors and types.
• Cording and raffia.
• A large table to accommodate your gift-wrapping needs.

Use these tips to set up your gift-wrapping nook. Add small plastic baskets to your gift-wrapping table to hold tape, tags, ribbon, scissors, stickers and all of your gift-wrapping supplies and tools. This provides easy access to all of your gift-wrapping needs and will make the task much more enjoyable.

© DoItyourself.com 2006