Creatively Wrap a Gift

4 Parts:

Steps to Creatively Wrap a Gift

How to make dahlias by Adrienne Wong:

Tips, Tricks and Warnings

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Christmas is here once more and with it, people enter into a season of gift giving. Most stores will carry a line of gift wrapping items for people to put their presents in, and some novelty shops even offer gift wrapping services so that the items bought by their customers can be all dressed up.

In the past, gift-wrapping was a real art, and gifts would be so beautifully put together it was almost a shame to open them. Then, with the world becoming so much busier, people began to invent more convenient packaging for gifts. Pretty paper bags with the season's designs have become a popular alternative for people who are in a rush to get their presents ready for giving away.

However, every now and then, people get a hankering for gifts that are personally and creatively wrapped. These gifts would be appealing, and a special joy to receive because they tell the recipient that much thought, care, and time went into the giving.

There are many creative ways to put a gift together without spending a lot of money. Read on ways to add your own personal touch to the gifts you give - no matter what the season.

1. 1
   You can use your computer and printer to come out with customized prints you designed in the computer

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   You don't have to be a computer geek to print out messages like "All the best!" or "So happy to be spending your birthday with you!" Just print out the appropriate line, and include your name in the text if you like. A ribbon to match would make this a truly special, personalized wrapper.

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2. 2
   Attach pieces of sand dollar and coral on a piece of string to highlight the gift

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   1. If the person you are giving a gift to is fond of the sea, wrapping your gift with something from that environment will probably be a good way to show that you understand his or her preferences.
   2. This would be especially nice if your gift is related to whatever pastimes he or she has at the beach.
   3. Attaching pieces of sand dollar and coral on the string can highlight the gift.

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3. 3
   Use mixed tapes to create the season's look

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   1. Joy D. Cho, a graphic designer, covered her gift with Kraft paper and decorated it with masking tape laid out in vertical and horizontal strips. She arranged paper straws with candy stripes at the top to form a snowflake figure.
   2. Minhee Cho, the owner of Paper + Cup, wrapped boxes with tissue paper and added some clip-art silhouettes, and then wrapped them with cellophane. As a gift tag, she put creative bubble stickers where she put her messages.
   3. Nanny Laboz of Game Time pasted vintage game boards on top of plain cardboard boxes. These incomplete games make novel gift wrapping materials and they only cost a few dollars at garage sales and flea markets.

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4. 4
   Use a velvet ribbon on plain white paper to give your gift an elegant appearance

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   You can use any color to provide contrast and make your gift stand out because of its beautiful simplicity. Just make sure that your ribbon is well proportioned in relation to the size of your box.

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5. 5
   Wax and tissue paper for artistic wrappers

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   Adrienne Wong creates an abstract print by combining colorful wax shavings on tissue paper.  

   1. She places 3 layers of paper on top of the wax, and 3 layers of tissue paper on the bottom.
   2. She irons the paper until the wax is melted, creating an interesting design on the paper.
   3. She finishes the project by embellishing the pretty gift box with a cluster of tissue dahlias, and an asymmetrically arranged satin ribbon.

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1. 1
   Place crayon shavings in between tissue papers

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   Place two sheets at the bottom and two on top. Prevent stains from leaking by using a piece of newspaper to cover your ironing board, and setting your iron on medium heat.

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2. 2
   Remove the newspaper and separate all 4 sheets of tissue paper

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   Cut on each piece into 5" x 6", the second into 4" x 6" and the third into 6"x 6". Discard the fourth piece. # Accordion fold all 3 sheets into half-inch widths. Trim the edges to make rounded ends.

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3. 3
   Unfold and place sheets one over the other

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   Cinch the middle lengthwise using a string or floral wire then knot. Gently pull the tissue up at the center, and scrunch to make the petals.

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4. 4
   Use newspapers creatively

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   You can also use a similar technique with newspaper and follow Murnane's idea. She added striped corkscrew ribbons in the middle of the paper dahlias to give her gift wrapping effort a classic look.

    

   1. Have eight newspaper sheets and cut into 8" square.
   2. Accordion-fold into 1"width.
   3. Then cut 4 pieces of ribbon to a length of 8".
   4. Slightly unfold the paper and place a corkscrewed ribbon in each crease.
   5. Gather the folds back together, pinch the paper tightly at the center. This will appear like a bow tie.
   6. Bind it tightly with a rubber band.
   7. Starting from the top paper, bring each sheet up while slightly twisting to spread the flower's petals.
   8. Scrunch the base of the flower together, where the rubber band is, curl the ribbon to form a cluster in the center of the topper.

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5. 5
   Decorate the wrapper with snowflakes

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   Use paper punchers to form confetti-like circles and other shapes. There are punchers that create stars, such as stars, snowflakes, hearts, icicles and others.  

   1. You will need the following materials:  
      1. Large-eyed needle
      2. Paper punchers with fancy designs
      3. Pearl-finished paper
      4. Mohair yarn
   2. Steps:  
      1. Use a puncher to create big and small snowflakes from pearl-finished paper.
      2. Glue these shapes to the paper you will use to wrap your gifts.
      3. Thread some of these shapes on mohair along with sequins and Stars of David.
      4. Create tiny trees and villages and paste them on the wrapping paper, and use the tiny pieces as flurries in your village. You can use these paper puncher figures to decorate your gift tags as well.

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6. 6
   Use brown paper to make pretty natural wrappers

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   1. You will need the following materials:  
      1. Cardboard boxes
      2. Brown paper bags
      3. Twine
      4. Crepe paper
      5. Candle
   2. Steps  
      1. Simply fill the boxes with candy, soaps, or other treats. Decorate with twine.
      2. Cover the candle with 2 pieces of crepe paper from Plum Party, then cinch the ends with twine. Use a scallop-edged ribbon from M & J trimming to wrap the center.

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7. 7
   Use the sleeves of old sweater to wrap bottles

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   You may use this kind of wrapping for wine, condiments, apple-cider vinegar, and other bottled gifts.  

   1. Materials:  
      1. Thread and needle
      2. Sprig of holly or pine for decor (optional)
      3. Two different-colored 28-by-28-inch square fabrics
      4. Two wine or condiment bottles
   2. Steps:  
      1. Place two squares of varied colored materials on top of each other with the right side of the fabrics facing each other.
         
      2. Sew the fabrics together along the seams. Leave 1/2 -inch gap and use this gap to turn the material right-side out.
      3. Place the bottles down, they must be 3 inches away from the center of the material.
      4. Roll the bottles with the cover, leaving a small triangle at the end.
         
      5. Tie the remaining triangular cloth into loose knot.
         
      6. Make sure the bottles can stand up.

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• Use brown paper bags to cover gifts. Use old shopping bags to wrap gifts and add some twine, confetti, yarn, etc.
• Gift tags function as address labels. You may make address labels using old school gift labels.
• You may also use tissue paper as confetti.
• Yarn can also style the package.
• Use doilies.
• Tree pop-up. Fold a piece of patterned paper into half, cut into a tree shape, and stick to your box.
• The use of metallic confetti can add more disco style than a variety of tissue paper.
• Use duct tape sleeves. The neon sleeves are what the doctor ordered on a winter season.
• Duct tape envelopes is created for September weddings. This is a creative handmade container for cash gifts and gift card.
• Paper cones can use to place jewelry or those something small.
• Cotton ball snowmen. Use cotton balls or twigs, pom poms, and Sharpie hat.
• Parchment paper envelopes are used for business cards and table cards, these confetti-filled envelopes can be used as gift tags.
• Repurposed holiday cards. These are from old Christmas cards.
• Colorful stockings. It is a nice way to reuse the legs of tights. This was the way of the olden times.
• Sweater sleeve. Let your old sweater become a gift wrap.
• Table cloth. Use a table cloth to wrap large gifts.

If you have problems with any of the steps in this article, please ask a question for more help, or post in the comments section below.

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