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December 3, 2009 9:23 AM Subscribe
Creative, attractive recycled or reusable gift wrap ideas. Got any?
I'm breaking the gift wrap habit. So far I've been relying on reusable shopping bags and my stash of used gift bags. I'd like to try some Furoshiki, but I'm having a hard time coming up with good sources of large enough fabric squares without buying and hemming new fabric. I've also considered sewing simple drawstring bags (but I don't always have the time to do this).
What are some other clever eco-friendly gift wraps?
I'm breaking the gift wrap habit. So far I've been relying on reusable shopping bags and my stash of used gift bags. I'd like to try some Furoshiki, but I'm having a hard time coming up with good sources of large enough fabric squares without buying and hemming new fabric. I've also considered sewing simple drawstring bags (but I don't always have the time to do this).
What are some other clever eco-friendly gift wraps?
Are you completely opposed to using newspaper? The local Italian deli will probably have leftover sports pages which are an awesome shade of pink.
You can also use some really great black and white Japanese newspapers that were otherwise headed to the bin.
Just wrap the gift and add a nice silk ribbon which can be used for the giftee for their hair, decor, or teasing their cats.
posted by banannafish at 9:31 AM on December 3, 2009 [1 favorite]
You can also use some really great black and white Japanese newspapers that were otherwise headed to the bin.
Just wrap the gift and add a nice silk ribbon which can be used for the giftee for their hair, decor, or teasing their cats.
posted by banannafish at 9:31 AM on December 3, 2009 [1 favorite]
You could use brown paper shopping bags and decorate them with a rubber stamp of something Christmas-like.
posted by sickinthehead at 9:33 AM on December 3, 2009
posted by sickinthehead at 9:33 AM on December 3, 2009
Seconding old maps. An old Rand McNally road atlas is great: 50 states and Canada, maps of major cities. Great stuff. I generally need a new road atlas every three or four years, and I tend to always have enough map material for wrapping -- between the atlas and other sources.
posted by bumpkin at 9:50 AM on December 3, 2009
posted by bumpkin at 9:50 AM on December 3, 2009
I once made gift wrap from the pictures in a dollar store book on the California Gold Rush. I just cut them out and taped them together.
posted by Xalf at 9:56 AM on December 3, 2009
posted by Xalf at 9:56 AM on December 3, 2009
You could cut up old shirts/skirts that maybe have a stain or hole, so aren't quite good enough for the thrift store.
If you have any plastic grocery bags around, you can use an iron to weld them together for a more substantial material.
posted by orme at 10:04 AM on December 3, 2009
If you have any plastic grocery bags around, you can use an iron to weld them together for a more substantial material.
posted by orme at 10:04 AM on December 3, 2009
I like to save packaging that I get from things I order or buy, and then upcycle it into recylcable wrap - like cutting newspaper or packaging tissue into strips, and braiding - or into shapes.
My mom and I used to cut stamps out of potatoes and dip them in food dye and stamp on paper-wrapped packages - this would work great for old newsprint, or even over a box that contains the item itself - you can turn those containers inside out and decorate.
Depending on your group, you could work out a gift-giving method that doesn't need wrapping - like, everyone closes their eyes, and you place their unwrapped gift behind them to discover - or create a gift hunt, like an easter egg hunt, and hide the unwrapped ones. Or, ask your recipients to loan you a tupperware or other container that they use at home, and give the gift to them in that, where the sizing works.
posted by mccn at 10:06 AM on December 3, 2009
My mom and I used to cut stamps out of potatoes and dip them in food dye and stamp on paper-wrapped packages - this would work great for old newsprint, or even over a box that contains the item itself - you can turn those containers inside out and decorate.
Depending on your group, you could work out a gift-giving method that doesn't need wrapping - like, everyone closes their eyes, and you place their unwrapped gift behind them to discover - or create a gift hunt, like an easter egg hunt, and hide the unwrapped ones. Or, ask your recipients to loan you a tupperware or other container that they use at home, and give the gift to them in that, where the sizing works.
posted by mccn at 10:06 AM on December 3, 2009
I usually use fabric scraps to wrap presents:
-Using pinking shears trim fabric to the appropriate size.
-Wrap gift like you would using paper, using straight pins to hold the tucks and folds in place.
-Get some buttonhole thread or something that sews easily and will still go through the fabric but will hold up to being pulled a bit.
-With a needle appropriate to the thread, do a running stitch starting at the outer corners and working your way to the center. Be sure to use medium length stitches and NO knot in the thread.
-When you get to the center, cut the thread leaving a long tail.
-Repeat this working from the outside folds to the middle.
-When you are done, you will have four to six threads that are all long in the center.
-Braid these together and attach a small tag that says "Hold gift firmly, pull this braid."
What would be the bottom of the paper wrapped gift becomes the top of the fabric wrapped gift.
If you have been careful with each step, it will spring open in their hands.
The trick is to make the lengths of thread so they are straight line from beginning to braid - they cant make too much of a turn or double back on themselves.
posted by Tchad at 10:23 AM on December 3, 2009
-Using pinking shears trim fabric to the appropriate size.
-Wrap gift like you would using paper, using straight pins to hold the tucks and folds in place.
-Get some buttonhole thread or something that sews easily and will still go through the fabric but will hold up to being pulled a bit.
-With a needle appropriate to the thread, do a running stitch starting at the outer corners and working your way to the center. Be sure to use medium length stitches and NO knot in the thread.
-When you get to the center, cut the thread leaving a long tail.
-Repeat this working from the outside folds to the middle.
-When you are done, you will have four to six threads that are all long in the center.
-Braid these together and attach a small tag that says "Hold gift firmly, pull this braid."
What would be the bottom of the paper wrapped gift becomes the top of the fabric wrapped gift.
If you have been careful with each step, it will spring open in their hands.
The trick is to make the lengths of thread so they are straight line from beginning to braid - they cant make too much of a turn or double back on themselves.
posted by Tchad at 10:23 AM on December 3, 2009
My mother in law was legendary for collecting all gift wrap after a gift occasion like a birthday or Xmas, carefully smoothing it back out, and saving it. She had a large enough collection that her presents were a joy to get: beautiful old vintage wrap on all of them. We still do this and never have to buy new wrap. We save old gift bags and ribbon too. Just another option for you.
posted by bearwife at 10:43 AM on December 3, 2009
posted by bearwife at 10:43 AM on December 3, 2009
Brown paper from grocery sacks and "ribbon" cut from strips of colored paper or plastic bags can look quite artistic and beautiful. Pictures clipped from magazines make nice tags or elements in a collage...even pieces of copy paper strategically taped together can look good if you dress it up a little.
posted by aquafortis at 11:10 AM on December 3, 2009
posted by aquafortis at 11:10 AM on December 3, 2009
Blueprints. Check with your local university, if they have an Architecture department. If not try the City Planning or Zoning office.
posted by Hardcore Poser at 11:28 AM on December 3, 2009
posted by Hardcore Poser at 11:28 AM on December 3, 2009
How about reusable bags? I found these as an example, but you could also sew bags yourself. I just sewed some today, and they really don't take long. Mine look like this one. You can see the bag on the left; the pocket on the outside doubles as a small bag into which the main bag folds. I found the instructions on a weblog in German Let me know if you're interested in making these and need instructions in English.
posted by amf at 11:40 AM on December 3, 2009
posted by amf at 11:40 AM on December 3, 2009
Landscape designers and architects often generate a large number of draft design plans with beautiful lines and colors. I know a landscape designer who reuses these for gift wrapping. If you found someone local, maybe they'd let you scavenge their recycling bin.
posted by alms at 12:35 PM on December 3, 2009 [1 favorite]
posted by alms at 12:35 PM on December 3, 2009 [1 favorite]
I use fabric as well. You can get some ideas by googling "furoshiki" and here's a good starting point for folding techniques.
posted by spec80 at 12:36 PM on December 3, 2009
posted by spec80 at 12:36 PM on December 3, 2009
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posted by Kimberly at 9:27 AM on December 3, 2009