How to Wrap Japanese Gifts
While gift-giving is a global custom, wrapping a present in Japan is more important than it is in America. A well-known American phrase is: "it's the thought that counts," but in Japanese culture, your presentation is essentially equal to expressing your feeling for the recipient. A hastily wrapped gift will reflect poorly on both parties. Japan uses a fabric gift wrap, also called furoshiki, as a clever and ecologically sound way of wrapping attractive presents.
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Instructions
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Measure your gift and determine its overall shape. This determines both the size of furoshiki you should buy and the method you'll use to wrap it.
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Place the item in the center of the fabric square, except for long or cylindrical objects, which should be on the edge of one corner. Depending on the size of the object, you may have to lay it on its side. If you're wrapping two items together, such as books, place each item on the edge of two opposite corners instead.
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Wrap the gift according to the size and shape of the item. For square objects, fold two opposing corners so they overlap each other, then fold the remaining two corners. Round objects require you to fold the corners adjacent to each other instead of the opposing corners. For long or cylindrical objects, tuck the corner of the furoshiki closest to the object around it, and then roll the object from that corner to the opposite corner so the wrapping itself takes on a long, thin cylindrical shape. When wrapping two items together, do the same thing as you would with a cylindrical object but tuck the corners of opposing corners around each item and roll them so they meet in the middle before folding over the remaining two corners.
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Tie the corners into knots to secure the object in place. For square objects this normally means just tying one knot from the two corners that are lying on top of the other two, while round objects will have two knots---one from each pair of corners---to make carrying the object easier. Cylindrical objects will only have two possible corners to tie, which you should do near the center of the object as a decoration. When wrapping two objects together, the two remaining corners will come together to separate the objects individually and form a handle at the top.
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Tips & Warnings
A bottle of wine has its own special method of wrapping to avoid shaking the contents too much. Put the bottle upright in the center of the wrap, then bring two corners up and tie them together over the bottle on top of the cork. The remaining two corners should be wrapped around each side of the bottle and tied across the front, like a decorative knot.
