How to Wrap Christmas Presents Without Wrapping Paper

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By Christina Jordan
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Get creative with alternative wrapping paper.

Twas the night before Christmas, and suddenly the end of the wrapping paper roll appeared. What's a last-minute wrapper to do? Relax. You can wrap a great-looking gift without using wrapping paper. You've got plenty of alternative wrapping solutions laying around your house.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

Aluminum Foil
Newsprint/Comics section
Paper bag
Fabric remnant
Old calendars
Bows and ribbon

Step 1

Aluminum foil isn't just for food.

ALUMINUM FOIL. The first place to look for wrapping paper alternatives is in the kitchen. If it's a small or medium-sized present you have to wrap, grab your aluminum foil. It's shiny, and it'll look festive if you top it off with a bow or some ribbon. Just be delicate with it if you're not using the heavy-duty foil as the plain type will tear easily.
Step 2

Brown paper bags are an eco-friendly option.

PAPER BAG. Check out your pantry for leftover paper bags. If you cut the bag down the side and turn it inside out, the blank side will make excellent wrapping paper. Since the material is recyclable, you can also feel good about wrapping presents for your "green" friends in this material. Dress up your plain brown bag wrapping with bows and ribbon or get even more creative by attaching alternative present-toppers to the top of your gift: gingerbread men, jewelry, or even paper snowflakes are great alternatives to bows. If you're giving a bottle of wine, you won't even have to cut apart the bag; just bunch it around the bottle and secure with ribbon.
Step 3

NEWSPAPER. The next place to look for alternative wrapping paper is in the recycle bin or on the magazine rack. Chances are you have plenty of newspaper laying around, and it'll serve as great alternative eco-friendly wrapping paper. As an added bonus, the paper is black and white; it'll match with whatever color bow you've got left in your stash. If you're wrapping a fun present, grab the comics section. Its bright colors combined with a nice bow and some ribbon will look really playful.
Step 4

Fabric gift bags are available at the Body Shop. But you can make your own.

FABRIC. If you're a sewer or crafter, you probably have a stash of fabric in your house. Go ahead and raid it to find alternative wrapping options. One option is to use a fabric remnant to wrap the present as you would do with paper, fastening the edges with safety pins where you would normally use tape. If your present is going to another sewer, she'll appreciate being able to add that fabric wrapping to her stash. Give her an extra thrill by using gold quilter's pins as fasteners; she can use these too at a later time. The other option for using fabric as wrapping paper requires a little more time and effort: sew up your own draw-string gift bags, and embellish them with beads or embroidery. Your giftee can re-use this bag for a variety of purposes. If you want to get really fancy, you can even sew up a hand bag or tote to house your present.
Step 5

Who wouldn't want a present wrapped in Squirrel calendar paper?

CALENDARS. The year's almost over, so why not raid your calendar for alternative wrapping paper? This idea works best for smaller presents like jewelry boxes. Choose a fun page from your calendar, and wrap as you normally would with traditional wrapping paper.

Comments

Muzikpeach said

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on 1/17/2009 Really cute idea for any time of year!

MariM said

on 1/13/2009 That is such a good idea.

TheWriterLady said

on 1/7/2009 These are some interesting and good ways to think outside the box when it comes to wrapping presents. 5*

giambattista said

on 12/30/2008 Aluminum foil is a good idea. I've never thought about it before. When I was a student and didn't have money I often used a Sunday comic of newspaper to wrap a present.