Gift Wrap: On the Cheap

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I am not a fan of buying gift wrap. It is so expensive for something that gets ripped up and thrown away. I am okay with gift bags occasionally. After all, they CAN be re-used. Don’t you remember your mom or grandma carefully re-folding them and sticking them in the closet to be re-gifted? It only makes sense.

So, I have some creative wrapping ideas for you.

•  Buy wrapping paper on clearance! Really, yes, I am that cheap. Thank you Wal Mart for you 75% clearance. Just a tip. Do not buy a predominately red color for next year. It breaks down in the course of the year.

• Newspaper. Yes. “Reduce, Re-use, Recycle” baby!  My favorite is the comic section but you could use the Sports section for a sports lover, politics for a political person, etc. (Just don’t DISCUSS the politics on it. It could be the most memorable gift in a BAD way.)

•  Paper bags. This is a great gift wrap for grandparents.  Let the kids have fun decorating it and then carefully wrap so that when the gift is unwrapped Grandma and Grandpa (or Mom-Mom and Pop-Pop) have a nice piece of artwork.
• Plain old tissue paper – get several colors and fold them over to make a striped wrapping paper. You could also make paper flowers out of it to decorate the top. Google it. Super easy.

•  Decorate – Make your own ribbons by curlyq’ing the cheap ribbon with scissors. Use twine for an old fashioned look. Use real ribbon to give it an elegant flair. Curling irons even make it “curly” (DON’T TRY THIS WITH THE PLASTIC RIBBON.) Use strips of fabric to give it an old fashioned feel. Bright colored, frayed fabric makes a great bow to compliment newspaper or paper bag wrap.

• Use your imagination, have fun, think outside of the box.

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