Wrapping presents is supposed to be a fun activity. Cue the hot cocoa and Hallmark movie, right?

Well, I know it can also be very stressful! Here are a few tips to make your wrapping experience more enjoyable.  Try one, or try them all.  Remember to take a breath and enjoy the season! I’m sharing my top tips for creating beautiful bows for wrapping your gifts. 

  1. Buy real ribbon.  Lots of your local stores carry oodles of ribbon. Spend some time selecting a few coordinating ribbons in different sizes for wrapping this year. 
  2. Use non-holiday paper as well.  Don’t leave out the plain year-round paper. It can be beautiful, given the right bow and topper! 
  3. Coordinate your papers.  Get different papers in the same colors but different patterns. This will give your packages that polished feel. 
  4. Set up a wrapping station.  Grab a card table or folding table and set it up in a guest room or basement corner.  Use containers or a jar or basket and put out scissors, tape, ribbon, gift tags, and all the papers to choose from.  This way all the stress isn’t on you to wrap.  Let your spouse and kids get in on it too.  If it is all set up and ready to go, they are more likely to elf on their own! 
  5. Learn how to make at least 1 fancy bow. (I taught this in my Facebook Live this week.  Watch the replay here!) 
  6. Think outside the box, literally! Use pinecones, sprigs of greens, ornaments along with your bows for a fun touch.
  7. Layer ribbons for a finished and fancy look. Larger on the button and then a skinnier different ribbon on top.

I hope you find these tips helpful!  Even though your Holiday gatherings may have fewer people this year, you can still share beautifully wrapped gifts.