Wrapping Ideas




WRAPPING IT UP

Begin to buy wrapping paper, ribbons, transparent tape, parcel wrapping paper and labels in November.
(Or better yet, buy these just after Christmas, they year before.)

Clear a space on a table or counter that is large enough to accomodate the largest package.

Assemble all the packages to be wrapped, dividing them by sizes.



WRAPPING BASICS

To wrap square and rectangle boxes, center the wrapping paper beneath the box.
The paper should extend over both ends a little more than half the box's depth.
Fasten the ends by folding the top flap down, sides in and the bottom flap up.
Secure with tape.

For round or tubular packages, you have three options.
The first is to wrap the package, leaving extra wrap at both ends, and then gather the ends and tie with ribbon or yarn (this leaves a crinkle of gift wrap at each end).
Or you can cut a large circle of gift wrap and gather the wrap at the top for a perfect ruffle of paper.
Finally, for larger items, such as a basketball, lay out two rectangles of paper on an "X">
Gather the ends and tie.

Label each box, as soon as it has been wrapped.

Save the small pices of wrapping paper for smaller packages.



RIBBONS AND BOWS
Try placing ribbons slightly off center.
Split the ribbon to varying widths for a decreasing stripe effect.
Two colors or shades of ribbon can easily be woven into a nostalgic baket-weave pattern.

Use paper for wrapping and trimming.
Make a bow by stapling strips of paper together like the spokes of a wheel.
Draw the paper over a dull edge to create curls.

Ordinary items such as small toys, candy and old greeting cards make eye-catching trims and may be used to hint at the contents of the packae.

If you run low on favored gift-wrapping paper, wrap the gift in a matching solid and use scraps as trim.

Dress up the obvious.
If the gift is a tie or a giveaway shape, use trims and bows to give the package a little extra pizzaz.
You may even be able to hide the shape.

Coordinate the wrapping of different gifts for a dazzling foot-of-the-tree array.



IDEAS FOR CLEVER PACKAGING

There are many other ways you can wrap up your presents besides the ordinary ribbon-and-paper routine.

DECORATE WITH UNUSUAL TRIMS
Deck out a hostess girt with tinsel and an ornament she can hang on her tree.

Tie up a home-sewer's present with pretty eyelet trim she'll use later on.

Use leftover yarn as "ribbon" on a knitter's gift; a pair of knitting needles makes an interesting "bow".

Please a little girl with a streamer of hair ribbons to wear all year long.

Tuck a silk flower into a box -- it will look lovely in a bud vase for the rest of the year.

Guarantee a thank-you: Put a sprig of artificial mistletoe atop his tie box.

Delight a gardener with a bright bunch of seed packets strung together.



REVIVING OLD GIFT WRAP AND BOWS

To take the wrinkles out of gift wrap, spray the underside with starch; iron.

To perk up a ribbon bow, run a curling iron in and out of each loop.



WRAP UP WITH YOUR LOCAL NEWSPAPER
Make kids laugh with the comics; top with lollipops

Give a crossword buff a clue with the puzzle page; trim with pencil and eraser.

Put a new homeowner's gift inside the real estate ads.

Impress a nusinessperson with the stock market pages (or The Wall Street Journal).
Top with a bag of chocolate gold coins.



TRY OTHER CLEVER PAPER SUBSTITUTES
Wrap a magazine subscription card in the cover of an old issue.
Point your favorite jogger in the right direction with a map of the city; tie with a pair of shoelaces.

Fancy up plain brown paper with gold cord and a First Prize blue ribbon.

Strike the right note with sheet music for a CD or concert tickets

Ask your child to draw a picture -- this wrapping gets raves from grandparents.

Decorate colored tissue paper with stickers for a youngster's gift.

Turn on the holiday glow with wine bottles wrapped in aluminum foil.
Put confetti inside the foil and tie with paper streamers.

Use a travel poster for someone on the go.



STORING GIFT WRAP

Store rolls of gift wrap in long cardboard floral boxes used for long-stemmed roses.
Or, reroll it tightly, then insert it inside the wrapping's cardboard tube.



USE CONTAINERS INSTEAD OF PAPER
Cove an empty candy box with plush red velvet; make a bow with lace.

Fill an apothecary jar with a batch of your best cookies.
Top with a cookie cutter.

Glue fabric to the cover of a gift box, then to the bottom -- it will be a handy storage box after the holidays

Put cash or gift certificates in old-style tins or piggy banks.

Give a casserole dish with some of your favorite recipes and a few of the herbs and spices needed -- just tie with a big bow.



FOOD WRAP-UPS

Once you've baked your cookies, glazed the fruitcakes and prepared the snack mix, it's time to wrap your food attractively and safely.

Look for attractive bottles and decanters to hold flavored vinegars, oils and homemade liqueurs.

For jams and jellies, look for decorative jars with tight-fitting lids.
If desired, top with a Decorative Jar Cover (see below), a doily or a round piece of fabric cut with pinking shears and tied around the top with ribbon or yarn.
For thick spreads, try attaching a small wooden spoon or spreader to the lid.

DECORATIVE JAR COVER: Cut a circle one-inch wider than the top of your jar out of a piece of lightweight fabric using the pinking shears.
Sew some lace trim around the edge of the round.
Sew 1/4-inch elastic 1/2-inch from the outer edge.



For both jars and bottles, you can tie a piece of one of the ingredients (such as a whole chili pepper or a knob of fresh gingerroot) around the lid, using a piece of yarn or ribbon.

Use large mugs to hold snack mixes and hors d'oeuvre straws.
Tie with ribbon and wrap in heavy cellophane.

Place fruitcakes and breads on top of a breadboard that is big enough to hold the food.
Then wrap your creation in heavy cellophane and tie it with a ribbon.

Give cookies in baskets lined with doilies and threaded with grosgrain ribbon.
Wrap it all up with heavy cellophane.

Present cakes and cupcakes in the pans in which they were baked.
This way, it's a double gift.

Use fragrant herbs and greens to decorate the tops of jars and baskets.

Wrap cookies and confections in colored tissue and twist the ends.
Pile wrapped nibbles in a decorative tin or basket.

Make homemade jams extra special by giving them in crystal jars.

Small, plastic-wrapped loaves of bread look even more tantalizing when wrapped in colorful fabric.
Try adding some ribbon, too.

Sew sacks from fabric that are large enough to hold jars and bottles, then thread the tops with some decorative ribbon.



PACKING AND SHIPPING FOOD

Be sure to choose the right cakes, breads and cookies for mailing.
Foods to be mailed must be sturdy and should keep well.
Soft drop, bar and fruit cookies are good travelers, as are fruit- and pound cakes, and all kinds of breads.
Give your crisper cookies and tender pies to neighbors and family nearby.

FOR COOKIES
Use empty metal coffee or shortening tins for packing.
Wrap two drop cookies back to back, but wrap bar cookies individually with foil, and then seal using cellophane tape.

FOR BREADS AND CAKES
These should be sent in strong cardboard boxes, after you've wrapped your delicacies first in plastic wrap or strong plastic bags, and then again in aluminum foil.

TO PACK
Line your containers with waterproof plastic wrap, wax paper or aluminum foil.
As filler, use crumpled foil, tissue paper or wax paper but NOT unsalted popcorn, which can become moldy, especially if the package is sent overseas.

Pack cookies close togehter in order to leave as little empty space as possible.
Shifting will cause them to break.
If you're sending a variety of cookies, place the heaviest ones in the bottom.
Place wrapped cakes and breads in a filler-lined box.

Add more filler to the container, packing it down to minimize shifting and breakage.
The box should be so full that you have to use pressure to tape it shut.

If you can, wrap your package in corrugated cardboard, then a double layer of brown paper.

Label only the top with the address of your friend or family member.
Write "Fragile -- Handle with Care" and "Perishable -- Keep from Heat" on top and on the sides of your package.

Send overseas packages by air whenever possible to avoid spoilage.