part of my homesteading lifestyle is being as frugal as possible. i take no exception when it comes to wrapping gifts. to me, gift wrapping is an art in itself but it seems foolish to me to spend as much on the wrapping as i would on the present, or even more, considering i make the majority of my gifts.
i tend to collect items throughout the year that i think would make good wrapping decorations. i tend to get a lot of packages in the mail that are padded with brown or white paper. it is usually wrinkled but i like the crinkled look and often wad it up more before smoothing it out to use. although i prefer it plain, sometimes when the kids are helping, i let them decorate by drawing pictures or stamping on them.
another medium i use for wrapping is newspapers. foreign newspapers are especially fun. occasionally, i get a chinese newspaper that was used as packaging for some herbs i buy. comics are great for kids, especially the colorful sunday ones.
fabric scraps are another great way to wrap. lay the item down, pull up the ends, tie with string and decorate as desired. buying old sheets and clothing at the thrift shop is a great way to recycle fabric and put it to a great use. an alternative to wrapping with the fabric is to sew up gift bags that can be used again. these are fun and easy and can be cinched closed with string as well.
i’m also extremely fond of corrugated cardboard. it makes lovely wrapping and when i get an item in the mail packaged with some, i covet it and save it for special items through out the year and more importantly, someone who truly appreciates my efforts in wrapping.
i also have the advantage (ha!) of inheriting a lot of junk when we moved here since the previous tenants used the back yard as their dump. i collect old rusty washers, wire and other interesting looking items to decorate the packages with.
other garnishments i find during nature walks…miniature pine cones, interesting twigs (once after an ice storm i found some with buds on them that were red. they made a lovely contrast to the white background), fresh flowers during the spring and summer, dried flowers during the fall and winter, bird and chicken feathers, corn husks, even cicada shells make exciting decorations for boys’ gifts. nothing is safe if it can be tied down!
binder twine makes excellent ‘ribbon.’ i’m partial to the natural twine and shun the orangy plastic twine although sometimes, it is a nice contrast. i’ve also used baling wire before. never barbed wire though. 
morning glory vines make excellent ribbon as well.
to me, wrapping is the best part of gift giving. i could spend days just playing with them!
does anyone else share my passion for wrapping using recycled items? what other fun things have you tried for wrapping?
Beautiful. Really, I’m very impressed.
O, beautiful! I especially like the cloth ones with the spruce tied to them and the coordinating cards. Gorgeous! I used to take so much time wrapping my gifts, but my “spirit” has just been down the last few holiday seasons. Doing some wrapping like this might just jump-start my mood.
I don’t wrap gifts. I leave them in the package they came in or the fancy bag someone else put it in or in just a brown paper bag. Most of my friends are not frugal so I get a fair amount of ribbing about it but I don’t give a hoot.
I second Catofstripes. Very, very creative.
Beautiful and unique, your wrapping makes me want to open them all. Gift giving is special and this shows the recipient how much thought you put into their gift.
A friend and I have two cloth bags that we put our gifts in, that we trade back and forth each year. It is fun to the see the bag again every other year.
Holy Cow!
These are so wonderful. I’d love to receive something wrapped with so much love.
Absolutely terrific! I don’t know what else to say about it. they look great!
I absolutely love these ideas! We tend to scrimp on wrapping paper, but I have struggled with creative ideas. I have thrown out so much “packing paper” because it was wrinkled and I thought no good for anything! But seeing yours, I love the wrinkled look and the embellishments are fabulous. Thanks for the ideas!
Amazing and so beautiful. I especially like how you used part of the envelope as a gift tag – we are so gonna use that this year.
We do not exchange alot at Christmas as I work to get my girls what they need when they need it. They will each receive one gift. Hopefully something they wanted and can use! =)
When my dad and stepmom moved to Florida a few years ago, I inherited a box of wrapping paper from her. I havent bought wrapping paper since! She must have given me 30 rolls!! my goodness! Some of it is vintage and I use those for people that appreciate and recognize it for what it is.
I love the way you used the string and washers, so creative! I would have never thought of that!
I bake and give lots of cookies every year, and I get creative with how I present them. Sometimes I cut up old boxes and use bits and pieces wrapped in foil for holding fudges or mini loaves.
everybody – thanks for the compliments. it’s one of the few creative pursuits i have right now and i really enjoy it!
gina – i hear you on the lack of spirit…it is hard with little ones to get anything done…sigh.
moh – that is a great tradition!
annette – unfortunately, i can’t claim that idea of using the envelope…i think i stole it from natural home magazine a few years back.
i only get my kids 1 gift a year usually. and usually, i try to make it. sometimes that works out, sometimes it doesn’t. the first few years i tried it, i was paranoid the kids would felt let down and i stressed about it. but, i’ve relaxed and if i can’t figure out how to make what they want, i buy it and don’t worry about it. and, i’ve learned that if i buy/make them something they truly want and love, they are thrilled to have just 1 gift. plus, i put a lot of ‘fun’ practical gifts in their stocking too…
jenny – i started this adventure with using up what i had and then started adding the natural elements.
we had a stack of washers and i may have seen the idea using shiny new ones in the natural home magazine article and thought aha! that would work perfectly! it’s fun to look around the house and see what you can do with what you’ve got. i enjoy the challenge, especially since most of my challenges include a 2 year old and tend to stress me out (like, did he REALLY get up there and get the matches and light one AGAIN?!).
Very attractive! Sleek. Good use of those washers I always have bumping around too
Gorgeous, Tansy! What wonderful ideas…thanks so much!
Fantastic ideas Tansy. I have been collecting pine cones and acorns to decorate but you gave me more to think about.