It's A Wrap!

I loved working at Hallmark in high school.  So much so, that today when I go to the grocery store and pass through the section of greeting cards { Hallmark Expressions at Kroger is not quite the same thing as the real Hallmark, for the record }, I have a tendency to stop and straighten the cards.  I just can't help it.

{ And then there was that time a ten point buck jumped through our front window and chased sweet Ms. Virginia into the stockroom.  Jayne's Hallmark was always an adventure. }

But by far, the favorite remnant of my high school career is a love for gift wrap. { Plus, it's a lot less inconvenient than a subconscious need to straighten cards }.  I get such satisfaction out of a beautifully wrapped gift, and I honestly think that even the smallest gifts are made more valuable in the presentation.  If someone's first impression of the gift is that you took the care and time to present it well... first impressions are lasting!

Last Christmas, my team at the office asked for Gift Wrap 101.  They asked me for a few of the links again this year, so I thought I'd share them with y'all as well.  Here's to beautiful presents!

Gift Wrap 101

• Buy good paper.  Cheap wrapping paper will tear and make for more work and more waste than if you'd bought the better stuff to begin with.  A sure sign of good paper?  Look for grid lines on the back.  It'll help you cut straight, which also cuts down on waste.  And it doesn't have to be expensive.  Check the square footage of rolls when comparing prices.  A roll may be less expensive on its own, but a slightly more expensive one might wrap twice as much.
• I buy almost all of my wrapping paper at Hobby Lobby. { And earlier this month, Hallmark did a promotion where if you bought one roll, the second was $0.99.  Score! }

• Be gentle with the curling ribbon.  There's nothing worse than uneven ringlets or a store-bought curlicue that's lost its sticky.  The less pressure you put on the scissors when curling, the looser the curls will be.
• Overdo it?  No problem.  Just turn the ribbon over and gently run the scissors over the reverse and it should loosen the curls.  { Be careful not to bear down too hard, though, or you'll wear the ridges completely off and it will be stuck straight. }

• Tulle is for more than weddings and tutus.  I make tulle bows for everything!  Just trying a it like you tie your shoes makes for a fluffy bow that will even survive shipping across the country.  Want more loops?  Just have extra long ends and keep tying like you tie your shoes over and over until you run out of length.  Tulle bows work well with large or small presents, they stay up without having a wired edge, and they definitely don't break the bank!
• Michael's and Hobby Lobby carry spools of tulle in the wedding section, but their color selection isn't the greatest.  I order mine online from http://www.tullesource.com/.  I love the 6" width, and you get 25 yards for $1.99!  Order yourself a good assortment and you'll be set for months.
• This was the biggest part of the little Lunch & Learn we had at work.  I'll do a follow-up post with more specific step-by-step instructions and pictures if anyone is interested.  Just comment.

{ Just one little corner of our happy little tree. }

• Who needs gift tags!  Have multiple gifts for one person?  Tired of spending money on gift tags?  Or, as Spencer and I are facing this year, having trouble differentiating which gift is for whose Mom or whose Dad?  Here's a solution: just select a particular pattern of paper or a certain color ribbon to identify what goes with whom.  That way, when you leave for the in-laws, you can just grab all of the green ones and go!

• Select a signature paper for birthdays and other occasions.  I got tired of having half a roll of fourteen patterns of wrapping paper on hand and never actually having enough to wrap the one gift I needed to.  So, I bought a ton of black and white damask paper { at Hobby Lobby, of course } and now I use it for everything.  Hot pink and lime green tulle bows for birthdays, light blue for wedding gifts... even red and green for Christmas.  Buying in bulk also saves you from the last minute panic of an empty roll.  Whatever you choose, just look for something simple and versatile.

Now, if I can just convince my husband that I need one of these... happy wrapping!

{ Wrapping Cart by Ballard Designs }