3 Christmas Gift Wrap Ideas

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December is upon us...and those Black Friday/Cyber Monday packages have started arriving...which means it is time to start thinking about wrapping presents. Here are 3 ideas I came across that look great and are easy to execute.

Star Garland and Kraft Paper

Image via Pottery Barn

I am pretty much the worst at tying ribbon for presents, so this Star Garland DIY from Pottery Barn really appeals to me. First of all, it is simple. Second of all, I like the casual vibe of the white garland paired with the brown kraft paper. Third of all, it doesn't involve tying a bow. So, it's pretty much a win-win-win in my book. (Here's a small star punch from Fiskars that would work well for this project.)

Hexagon Gift Tags and Pink Paper

Image via The Home Depot

I love the modern vibe of these presents with the bright pop of pink from the paper, the simple gold ribbon, and the playful hexagon tags. The image is via the Home Depot and includes an elaborate DIY for spray painting the paper and tags. I personally would just find a pink wrapping paper, some gold paper, and purchase this hexagon paper punch to recreate the look with a lot less effort.

Glitter Letter Tags and Simple Paper

Image via Boxwood Clippings

I really like how simple and yet beautiful these presents look. The oversized chipboard letters are really fun without much effort, and I think you could play around with the color combo of the wrapping paper, letters, and ribbons to fit almost any style. (I found some Glitter Chipboard Letters from Michael's that come in a variety of colors.)

Cheers to your present wrapping efforts, and happy December!

4 Simple Gift Wrapping Ideas

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{Image sources clockwise from top left: 1, 2, 3, 4}

Opening presents on Christmas is a lot of fun, but I personally find wrapping presents just as enjoyable. I like to pick a general theme for my presents, usually using gift tags and pretty ribbon, so that I can get all the supplies and wrap everything at once. Here are four simple ideas from around the web.

Sparkly Initial—Wrap your present in a light colored paper (kraft paper might work too), add a striped or polka dot ribbon in a corresponding or contrasting color, and finish it off with the person's initial (instructions in this post). If you have more than one person with the same initial, simply write their full name on the back of the letter so the gifts don't get mixed up.

Paper Snowflake—Wrap your present in brown kraft paper, add a DIY paper snowflake, tie it with string. Simple as that! I would probably tape a small label onto the back to identify whose gift it is.

Merry & Bright—Wrap your present in white paper or tuck it into a white box, add a DIY 'Merry and Bright' gift tag made from kraft paper, and tie it all together with a neutral string. This is such a simple but chic option for most any present. The leaves and cinnamon stick take the present to the next level, but I think it would be pretty without it as well.

Tis the Season—Pick up a few rolls of pastel wrapping paper, make or buy some 'Tis the Season' tags, add a bright colored string to tie everything up, and you are all set.

P.S. Learn how to tie the perfect bow.

P.P.S. Christmas Printable and Vintage Christmas Clip Art Roundup to create your own cards or present tags.

A Creative Way to Give a Cash Gift

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A lot of times it makes sense to give cash or a gift card as a present for someone's birthday. Either they have something in particular they are saving up for, or then they can pick out their own item to ensure it is the right size, style, etc.

In this case, it was my sister's birthday. I had asked what she wanted, and she said that she would love to go thrift shopping or that she would like a statement necklace. I looked at a few stores for a necklace but didn't find anything that seemed quite right. I would love to go thrifting with her, but she lives in NYC, and I live in Minneapolis. Cash was the best gift idea so that she could go thrifting and hopefully find the perfect necklace. I didn't want to just stick a wad of cash into an envelope, though. Then, I remembered something.

A friend gave me a really fun gift where she took a few different envelopes, wrote a little instruction on the front, and then put some money or a gift card inside. For me, she had picked out a few of my favorite things to do for a relaxing day—grabbing Starbucks, reading a magazine, and then picking out a treasure at a local vintage store. It was so fun to see what she came up with, and it made getting the cash a lot more exciting.

I wanted to do something similar for my sister so she had something to open on her birthday. It's sort of like a treasure hunt. For her, I had 3 stages of the gift—a new scent, breakfast/coffee money and one of her favorite magazines to fuel up for her day, and money to go thrifting. It was fun to have 2 packages to go along with the envelopes.

First, I picked up a birthday card from Target to explain the concept.

When I got home, I went through my stash of tissue paper, envelopes, and ribbons to find some coordinating options so that the magazine was in a paper that went with its envelope and the perfume wrapping could be tied with ribbons to go with its envelope.

Then, I wrote on blank note cards to stick into each envelope and tucked the cash into the corresponding ones.

To finish it off, I decorated the front of each one.

There you have it! I'm really happy with how it turned out, and my sister loved it!