How to Wrap Your Gifts: 6 Basic Techniques

Don’t feel like wrapping gifts is a chore – because, ok, it takes time and (maybe) a little dexterity – but it can be a very easy activity that everyone can do in no time! Take a look at our six easy techniques below which should make your life easier 😉

1. Make a Gift Bag for Bulky Items

Whatever items you choose to offer this Christmas, you can pretty much slip anything into a gift bag – regardless of its shape. Plus, it will save you money by not buying a special gift bag from a shop. Simply use a pair of scissors, clear tape, wrapping paper and maybe a ribbon or gift tag.

Instructions:
1. Cut enough wrapping paper to cover the item
2. Lay your paper flat and fold the right and left sides to overlap nicely depending on your wrapping paper pattern and tape together
3. Fold the bottom of the wrapping paper in a rectangle to create the bottom of your gift bag
4. Hold the two sides and flatten out the corners to make a square shape
5. Fold the top and bottom corners towards the middle and tape
6. Open your bag and fold the top over
7. Place your present inside and tape
8. Decorate with a ribbon, gift tag, or tape your Christmas card to the front
Et voila! You’ve just made your gift bag!

Tip: If your present is a little heavy, you might like to add a cardboard cut-out to the bottom of your gift bag.

2. Make Mini Trees for Any Bottles

Choose green-themed wrapping paper to make them look like a Christmas tree. Plus, once you’re done, they will sit very nicely next to it – just like cute mini tree replicas!
To make them, it’s very easy, simply gauge how much wrapping paper you will need by cutting enough wrapping paper to cover your prezzie, and then cut a big enough rectangle to make a conic shape.

Instructions:
1. Simply gauge how much wrapping paper you will need by cutting enough wrapping paper to cover your prezzie
2. Cut a big enough rectangle
3. Make a conic shape and insert a bottle
4. Fold the bottom and tape it

3. Create an Envelope Shape for any Gift Cards or Cheques

Why not make your Christmas card envelope a little funnier and special this year, perfect for slipping in a gift card or a cheque. – You can create it entirely yourself with any wrapping paper you’d like! Just follow these quick steps to jazz up any boring plain card envelope.

Instructions:
1. Take your square paper and fold it in half across the diagonal
2. Fold the right corner over a third of the way across
3. Fold the left corner over to meet the right corner
4. You should now have two triangle pockets: open them back out and slide the left triangle into the right pocket, and press everything flat
5. Fold the top triangle piece down to form the envelope flap
6. To fill, fold the top piece of the triangle flap down. There should be a pocket inside. Fill with your card or goodies and seal with a sticker or some tape

4. Use Good Old Geometry to Create Your Own Boxes

Remember your geometry classes? Christmas is THE perfect time to bring back some of your maths memories and revisit your school knowledge. It could also be the ideal excuse to incorporate some shape exercises into your kids’ activities! Let them choose the shape they like best and download their template for them to practice a little geometry over the holidays 😉.

5. Easy Wrap for Flowers or Bouquets

Remove your supermarket flowers’ plastic and aesthetic wrapping, and choose one that will make an impact, or just bring a laugh to your recipient. For example, why not customise our wrapping paper with a bright Christmassy red “Every day I’m brusseling” around a plain white flower bouquet? All you’ll need is a pretty, classy, or funny Christmas wrapping paper and some tape.

Instructions:
1. Cut a large rectangle
2. Fold it in half but slightly on the side
3. Wrap around your fresh flowers
4. Tighten with a ribbon or twine

Tip: Don’t forget to place your Christmas card in the middle of it.

6. The Japanese Swivel Blitz

Our last method had to be the viral Japanese swivel blitz – a unique and quick wrapping technique used in Japan which only uses one bit of tape or sticker at the end. So if you don’t want to fiddle with bits of tape cutting, simply try this innovative method.
Find below the very well explained method by BeatTheBush with a brilliant step by step tutorial on wrapping your Christmas presents super quickly.

If you’d like to make more Japanese creative shapes, you can also try to make cute origami for your delicate or small items. Origami is such an innovative art form, so why don’t you challenge yourself with a cute strawberry to box in a piece of sweet new jewellery you bought your girlfriend?

We hope you enjoyed our easy to make wrapping gift techniques and feel confident enough to try at least one of them. Don’t forget that you can jazz up any packaging by sticking on colourful pompoms, adding a thick satin ribbon, or even using spray mount glitter to give any present an extra festive look 😉

For more ideas visit our personalised wrapping paper and add any name or face to your wrapping paper!