While there are several tips on the do’s and don’ts of effective gift-wrapping, the secret really lies in the shape of the gift. Of course, boxes and books are easy to wrap, but it’s with those oddly-shaped items that most of us come unstuck.
Ingrid Blohm, from local bespoke stationery company, Flowermill.co.za, offers these clever tips:
- Collect and save pretty tea boxes and used gift boxes for awkwardly shaped gifts. Place tissue paper inside the box, or better still, create homemade confetti in star or flower shapes for an extra special touch.
- Instead of discarding the looped ribbon you may cut off from new clothes, save them to tie on homemade gift tags.
- Potato stamps can be really effective for homemade tags! Simple graphic shapes are easy and trendy.
- Keep your eye out for pretty shells, beads, feathers, sticks, flowers and even old brooches to use as decorations.
- When wrapping presents, make them look neater by folding a seam on the edges, and if you’re a perfectionist, use double-sided tape instead of regular sticky tape.
- When travelling internationally, save newspapers or magazines in foreign languages – particularly Japanese or Chinese – or with interesting typography to use as wrapping paper.
- Instead of conventional gift wrap, cut out striking photo spreads from magazines; get your kids to draw pretty pictures on plain paper; or draw something yourself!
- The quality of wrapping paper is important: if it’s too thin the paper will tear, especially at corners; and paper that’s too thick doesn’t fold easily.
IMAGE CREDIT: 123rf.com