Use what you’ve got to create gorgeous packages!
Sustainability. It’s a part of our life. It’s engrained in our souls. We’ve been trying to practice it since we were little, but have you ever attempted to increase your sustainability output during the holidays?
I thought it might be about time I tried. I’m a crafter, so this means I always have an art bin full of things like scrap fabrics, trinkets, gems, beads, ribbons, and more. So I thought that this year, I’d like to try making my own gift-wrap out of things I had on hand – rather than purchasing new rolls of wrapping paper from Target as I usually do.
Since I’m at home more this year, I’ve started my Christmas shopping early, so I have a little more time to do the wrapping – which is good, because this takes just a bit more thought and effort to put together.
But at the end of the day, wrapping presents in sustainable gift wrapping from things you already have on hand really isn’t that hard. And it’s pretty fun to see how creative you can get.
I’m walking you through two quick ways to wrap a simple gift box, using items from my craft bins at home. Reuse, reduce… recycle! That’s what it’s all about!
Fabric and Ribbon
I used to be a clothing designer. So by nature, I love fabric. And I love to hoard it. I have tons of yards of random fabric I’ve picked up over the years. One of my very favorites, because of its versatility, is a simple cotton muslin fabric. You can easily get it at JoAnn’s or Michael’s for somewhere around a dollar a yard. It’s what designers use to make their initial patterns and samples out of, before cutting into the actual fabric rolls.
For our first package, I’ve taken a square of white cotton muslin and I’m simply wrapping the package, and tying it off with a beautiful gold ribbon that I also had on hand.
This is extremely simplistic, but it’s really pretty. And for your purposes, you can get as detailed as you like. Grab a gold holiday stamp, and stamp away at the fabric. Or find a fabric marker and draw a holiday picture on the fabric. Lastly, you can use paint or dye to really make a colorful impact.
Tissue, Ribbon, and Floral Appliques
Again, I wanted to give you guys ideas that are simple – because I know the more complicated we make them, the less likely you are to implement them. LOL!
For this next package, I took a piece of pearly white tissue paper (I always have a ton of extra sheets of this from wrapping presents) and wrapped the box.
Fun fact: did you know you can iron your crinkled up tissue paper? I learned this in fashion school years ago, and it’s an invaluable piece of information! Just lay your piece of tissue paper on your ironing board, and cover with a dish towel. Then iron! It’ll come out looking like new.
Back to the wrap. The box is now wrapped in the white tissue, and I then tied a gorgeous bright pink ribbon around it. The fun thing about using recycled materials is that your color palette is going to vary widely based on what you have. But I think this is really fun!
In this case, the pink ribbon is such a beautiful contrast to the pearly white tissue paper. I then felt like adding some texture, so I finished it off by gluing on some small, floral appliques.
These are some fun ways you can make your gifts look extra special this year. This year, more than ever, it’s the thought that you put into your gifts that really count. Don’t spend a lot of money on wrapping paper. That stuff is expensive and you are forced to throw it out. Instead, find scraps of fabric, ribbon, and other craft supplies from your own home that you can repurpose into beautiful and special packaging for your loved ones’ gifts.