There’s nothing like some home-made wrapping paper and gift tags to add a personal touch to your gifts. And a stunning design will help your gift to stand out, amongst the piles of presents under the Christmas tree.
We’ve collected a few easy ideas for you to try out in 2020, to make your presents look really special.
Stencilled Wrapping Paper and Gift Tags
You don’t need to be super-crafty to pull this off! All you need is some plain white paper, a ready-made stencil, some paints and some brushes. If you have one, it’s a good plan to use a special stencil brush, and a finer brush for any extra details you want to add to the design.
First, decide whether you want to have the stencil design arranged in an ordered way across the paper, or more randomly. Then lay the stencil onto the paper for your first stencilling, and apply the paint to the stencil with a dabbing motion. You don’t need much paint for a striking effect – the brush should seem to be quite dry when you’re applying the paint.
You can use the same stencil on some thin card to make matching gift cards – you’ll need a hole punch to make a little hole to pass string or twine through to fix the tag to the parcel, once wrapped in your stencilled gift wrap. Or you could add a funky ribbon as a final finishing touch.
You can apply exactly the same principle to gift boxes, applying a stencilled design with your chosen paint to make a really beautiful and stylish gift. If your kids are into arts and crafts, they can decorate plain white or brown Kraft paper using potato prints, stamps, finger paints, or by cutting out shapes like stars in bright colours and sticking them onto the gift wrap.
Fabric Gift Wrap
Fabric gift wrap looks set to be one of the biggest trends of 2020. With increasing concern for the environment, people are looking for reusable, plastic-free options – Plus there is a growing interest in crafting.
Furoshiki is the traditional Japanese art of fabric-wrapping, where fabric is used to transport food and clothes or to wrap gifts. Because fabric is much more malleable than paper, it can be the perfect choice to wrap awkwardly-shaped items and still look professional – no more awkward corners of wrapping paper! There are plenty of tutorials online for different ways to use fabric to wrap gifts.
If you have a large piece of fabric, you’ll need to cut it down to suit the size of your gift. You can experiment first with other pieces of material to test the size needed before you make irreversible cuts to your beautiful fabric!
You can use the material to wrap a box, or just wrap the gift itself without a box. The weight of the fabric will make a difference in how you can tie it. Some types of fabric such as chiffon are easy to make ties in, whereas heavier fabrics such as velvet may need a ribbon to hold the fabric in place. Delicate items will need extra padding.
Don’t forget that this option is only environmentally-friendly if the fabric wrap is reused many times (for more ideas about easy ecologically-friendly Christmas wrapping and gift ideas, check out this article). Another option to make sure the fabric is reused it so incorporate the wrap into the gift. For example, you could use a scarf as wrapping, or a blanket for a gift for a baby. If you have friends who are into crafting, you could use an unsewn piece of fabric which they could incorporate into one of their own projects.
Have a Crafty Christmas!
2020 might be the year that more people get crafty, as lockdown bites and there are less other entertainments on offer. Comment below on your craft plans for the festive season!
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