Wrap Your Gifts… With stuff you have around the house!

Can I just confess something to you guys?

I. Hate. Buying. Wrapping. Paper!

Seriously. Hate it! I hate paying for something that will be ripped off and tossed away in 30 seconds. I hate trying to find patterns that work on both smaller and larger gifts. I hate trying to find gift wrap that will work for Chanukah and Christmas and birthdays and…

yes, I know I should buy it on clearance after the holidays…

… And I did pick up a roll for $1.50 at ALDI this year. And Dollar Tree has bags. And even my Goodwill had a bunch of gift bags for $.50 each when I was there yesterday.

but, I save the prettiest wrapping for those who will appreciate it…

For my family of boys who just don’t care, I wrap a lot of Chanukah presents with stuff I already have around my house. Do you guys do this too? You can jazz these up more than shown here with bows and gift tags and stickers and stamps and ribbon and little pieces of pine twigs or pine cones or whatever strikes your fancy, too. I might embellish mine more later, but had to get them put away quickly before High School Guy came home from school and found out he’s getting a power bank for his phone this year. 😉 (Nope, he doesn’t read the blog…)

Wrap gifts with the Sunday comics

Those of you who are couponers might have some extra newspapers around, and gift wrapping is a great way to recycle the Sunday comics. (It’s especially appropriate for High School Guy, who loves these every week!) One week of comics sufficed to wrap his battery back up and associated extra cable, with enough left over to wrap his STEAM gift card. (Yup, he still doesn’t read this… lol.) Make it cuter with a stick-on bow, if you like.

Wrap gifts with brown paper bags from the grocery store

You’ve probably seen the Pinterest-y how-tos where people use Kraft paper to artfully wrap gifts. If you have brought home any groceries in brown paper bags, though, you already have some poor man’s Kraft paper in your house. (Note: You’ll likely need a bit of extra tape, though, since it doesn’t stick as well to paper bags.) Just cut your bag open down both seams and then down both sides of the bottom flap to create a flat piece of brown paper, and face the store’s logo to the inside so that you just have the plain brown paper showing on the gift. Tie up with twine or ribbon and decorate with stickers or stamps.

Save gift bags, tissue and boxes all year

See this gift bag? I’m pretty sure it has made an appearance at every Chanukah for the past 4 years. The gift comes out, the bag is tossed aside and forgotten, and I put it right back in the closet where it belongs. 🙂 Save the gift bags and tissue paper from birthdays and any other gift occasion all year, so that you’re set for the holidays, birthday parties, and more.

Wrap a gift in a gift

This one is better when you’re putting together a gift for grown-ups: Wrap a gift in a pretty scarf or a new set of kitchen towels, and you’re talking two gifts in one!

Wrap a gift in children’s drawings

So cute for the grandparents! Trouble keeping up with your little one’s creative output? Tape a few of their creations together and use them to wrap a gift for grandma. You can also wrap a gift in a large sheet of plain white paper and then let the kids go to town decorating it with stickers, crayons, and more.

How do you save on wrapping gifts?

I’d love to hear your creative ideas on how to save on gift wrapping, too! I’m not the only one who does this, am I?