The Art of Holiday Gift Wrapping

Since I love to wrap gifts, I thought it would be fun to share my easy formula for creating stylishly wrapped gifts. Even though it’s a pretty simple formula involving paper, ribbon, tags and a fun accent, it’s what I do with these items that turns my wrapping into an art.

My gift wrap formula:

PICK YOUR PAPERS–While I love to splurge on beautiful wrapping paper (check out one of my splurge sources here), you can find good quality papers in just about any color and style you may want at stores like HomeGoods, World Market and Target. The holiday season is a great time to stock up on basic patterns like stripes, dots and checks and also classic colors like red, white, gold, silver and green. Select three to five wrapping papers that have coordinating colors so there will be a theme to your wrap. And similar to interior design, a good pattern combination to work with is a stripe + a geometric + an abstract.

COORDINATE YOUR RIBBONS & WRAPS–Once you have your paper selected, pick ribbon that works with the colors in the paper. Don’t settle for solid colored ribbon, look for ribbon with holiday designs, patterns, novelty trims and textures. And decorative elements like beaded garland, decorative twine or even upholstery trim can be used as a unique ribbon alternative.

TAG IT–Paper √ Ribbon & Wraps √ So now it’s time to get your tags. There are so many fun and festive gift tags on the market and just like paper you can pick them up inexpensively at most of the big box stores. Or you can use your crafting skills to DIY your own gift tags like these chalkboard tags I created with craft store wood shapes, chalkboard spray paint and a chalk marker.

ENHANCE WITH EMBELLISHMENTS–The final detail of a beautifully wrapped gift is the embellishment. This is where you can have fun and give your gifts some extra flair. Embellishments can anything from stickers and jewelry charms to tassels and mini ornaments. A couple of years ago I embellished all my holiday gifts with mini ornaments and bells I picked up from the Target dollar spot. And another fun embellishment I like to use on gifts is vintage brooches and clip earrings.

As you shop for gift wrap supplies, buy quality papers, ribbons and tags. The materials you use can have a big impact on the way your gifts will look so buy thick wrapping paper, wired ribbon and unique gift tags.

As you can see, The Art of Holiday Gift Wrapping is pretty simple and easy, it’s the creativity you put into each gift that makes it special.

But wait, there’s more…

If you’re looking for a gift wrap theme this year, here are 3 groupings I’ve pulled together from two of my favorite gift wrap sources, Container Store and Paper Source. You’ll notice that all of the elements work together so you’ll have endless wrapping possibilities.