It is less than a week until Christmas…how has that happened? So, hopefully, all the gifts have been made/bought, and now they need wrapping. Well, I have lots of gift wrapping tips, tricks and ideas to help level up your gift wrapping game this year.

If you are looking to give your gifts a bit of something extra this year, then I have you covered with my gift wrapping tips, tricks and ideas in this post. This will range from helpful tips to get your presents wrapped, to different hacks that I use. Not forgetting some pretty beautiful wrapping ideas to take your gift wrapping to the next level.

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There are loads of gift wrapping tips in this post, so without further ado, let’s get wrapping!
Jump to the video version of this post below!

Gift Wrapping Tip 1 – Double-Sided Tape

I started using this tip a few years ago and haven’t looked back. Use double-sided tape to secure your wrapping in place. This conceals the tape and gives the wrapping a much more flush and neat look. No more shiny tape on the outside now!
This double-sided tape* is also super handy if you are using brown kraft gift wrapping, as regular sellotape does not always stick to it.

Tips 2 & 3 – Trim and Crease folds

This tip maybe a little harder to do on awkward shape gifts, but helps to give your gift wrapping the professional look. Always trim down the edges where you will be folding the wrapping. Don’t trim so much that you can’t fold it, but enough so the edge flap parts don’t come up over the side. If that makes sense?

Also, when folding the side flaps, make sure to score and put pressure on the creases, as this will give the folds a crisper edge. This makes it look much more professional, as well as making it easier to keep it together.

Tip 4 – Use Toilet Roll Tubes

Now, you might be thinking, “what?…toilet roll tubes?!” But, hear me out, they come in so handy for many different reasons when gift wrapping.
Firstly, you can use the toilet roll tubes to keep your wrapping together on the roll. All you have to do is make sure the wrapping paper is tightly around the roll and then place over the toilet roll tube. When the wrapping begins to unroll, the toilet roll tube stops it from fully unwrapping. Genius!

Gift Wrapping Tip – Toilet Roll Tube gift box

I loved this idea when I first so it and knew I had to try it out! If you have a gift that doesn’t have a gift box or is small but awkward to wrap, then you can transform a toilet roll tube into a gift box. This isn’t just exclusive to toilet roll tubes either, you can upcycle paper towel rolls too, for items that are a bit bigger or you have more of.

What you need:

• Toilet roll or kitchen roll tubes
• Mod Podge*
• Decorative tissue

Now, you can just tack on wrapping paper if you don’t have mod podge or water down some PVA glue to make your own type of mod podge. Basically, we are going to decoupage the tissue paper onto the roll to make it more decorative.

Start by trimming down the paper to the size of the tube. Then place a thin layer of the mod podge onto the tube, all the way around it. Gently place on the paper and secure it onto the roll, applying another layer of mod podge over the top.

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Allow drying fully before using as a gift box.
Start at one end of the tube and fold this down halfway, followed by folding the other side down on top. Make sure the point parts and squeezed together to seal. There is no need for any tape as the cardboard of the tube should stay in place.

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Then, fill the tube and repeat the folding technique on the open end. Finish off with a gift bow, and the toilet roll tube gift box is complete!

You could also just paint the tube, or draw different designs. The possibilities are endless!

Gift Wrapping Tip 5 – Create your own Gift Bows

So these gift wrapping tips are going to be split into four, as I have four different types of gift wrapping bows that you can make. You know the ones that look all fancy in the gift wrapping sets you can buy? Well, they are super easy to make yourself, and what’s better is you can make them out of your wrapping paper so that they match!

I haven’t included this in this list, but you could also make your own tissue paper flowers, as they can resemble a pom-pom style bow too.

DIY Gift Bow 1 –

All you need is:

• Wrapping paper
• Scissors or trimmer*
• Double-sided tape*

Start by cutting down strips of the wrapping paper at 2cm wide. You will need:

• x3 – 24cm long
• x3 – 21.5 cm long
• 1x – 16cm long
• 1x – 6cm long

Then, starting with the longest strips, fold these in a figure of 8, so that you have two loops with the ends meeting in the middle. Secure in place with double-sided tape.

Next, place these three folded ribbons on top of each other, in a cross or star style, joining them in the middle. This should then be the start and foundation of your gift wrap bow.

Repeat the process with the next set of strips, folding them into a figure of 8 and adding them to the bow stack with the double-sided tape. Next, create the figure of 8 with the 16.5cm long stip and secure this onto the stack. Finally, create a loop with the 6cm strip, and secure this into the middle of the stack.

You should then have a lovely wrapping paper gift bow to stick onto your well-wrapped presents.

DIY Gift Wrap Bow 2

This one follows the same process as the bow above, however, it is more of a looped design, rather than a pointed design.
You will need to cut the wrapping paper into 2cm wide strips again with:

• x4 – 11.5cm long
• x4 – 9 cm long
• x1 – 3 cm long

Instead of folding the strips into a figure of 8, all you need to do is create a loop, securing both ends of the strip in the middle. You want these to be attached to the bottom of the strip so that you have two loop ends and a dip in the middle (hope that makes sense!). Do this with the 11.5cm strips and the 9cm long strips.

Then begin stacking these in a similar fashion, in a cross and star shape, layering the bow up. The only difference is, for the first loop, place the join side facing up, and then for the next loops, place these join side down. That way you do not see all of the joins of the loops.

Then the second wrapping paper bow is complete.

DIY paper Curls

To add a bit of something extra to both of the gift wrapping bows above you can add on some dangly and twirly pieces. All you need to do is use any of the spare bits of wrapping paper strips, and place the blade of the scissors along the underside. Slide the paper down scissors several times, creating tension by holding underneath your thumb. This should create friction on the paper and cause it to begin to curl. This will thin the paper, so you may find that you have a bit of paper dust coming from this, but they hold up just fine and look really pretty.

Simple but effective, don’t you think?

DIY Paper Bow

Now this one is just delightful and it gives the gift an element of luxury with a paper bow. All you need is:

• Gift wrap or decorative paper
• Scissors
• Double-sided tape
• Pencil or pen

Firstly, cut the wrapping down into a rectangle measuring 21cm X 10cm. Then, fold this in half right side to right side (so the pattern is on the inside of the fold) and draw an eye shape. You want this to have two tab-like tails on either side of the round part. Cut this out and unfold, and you should have something that resembles a bow shape.

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Fold the loop part of the bows into the middle of the bow, securing these ends in place on the back of the bow with double-sided tape. This should now look more like a classic bow.

Cut a small piece of wrapping and wrap this around the middle of the bow, again, securing it on the back.
Then, cut a strip of the paper measuring 13.5cm X 2cm and bring the two ends together, so the strip is slightly folded in half. Use scissors and cut a triangle shape from each corner of the ends to the middle. This should give the strip that classic bow end look.

Finally secure this onto the back of the bow, with the pattern side facing upwards with double-sided tape and the paper bow is ready to be secured onto your awaiting present.

Gift Wrapping Tip 6 – Tie the Perfect Bow

The next tip in my gift wrapping tips and tricks is how to tie the perfect bow. You know the ones you see on those store wrapped presents?

I will do my best to explain it here, however, if you are a visual person, then you can see how to complete this in the video below. This bow is around the 11.28 mark.

I would advise keeping this attached to the roll until you know the amount you will need. You will probably need more ribbon than you realise too! For the part of the ribbon being wrapped, I will call it the working end to make it easier to follow (hopefully). Keep the working end of the ribbon the longest part, as this will be the bit doing all the wrapping.

Start by placing the ribbon onto the gift, where you want the bow to be. Wrap this around the present until it comes back around to the starting point. Place your thumb on the now two pieces of ribbon to hold them in place.
Then take the working piece of ribbon and wrap it in the opposite direction, making sure to take this the same way it is placed rather than crossing over. When it comes around to the top of the gift, tuck this under the already wrapped ribbon and bring this through to tie to the end of the ribbon.

Tie this securely and then form the bow, allowing a decent length of tail for the bow. Fold the tail ends in half lengthways and cut from the ribbon end diagonally to the folded edge. Place over some clear nail varnish to stop the ribbon ends from fraying. You then have the perfect bow for your presents!

Gift Wrapping Tip 7 – Washi Tape

The next on my list of gift wrapping tips, tricks and ideas are to use washi tape as a decorative part of the wrapping. If you don’t have any ribbons, but still want to have that cross ribbon look, then you can achieve it with washi tape.
You can get so many designs of washi tape*, so you can change up the style to suit the person you are gifting to.

All you need to do is place the strip of washi tape from one end to the other lengthways, keeping this central to the gift. Then place another piece in the opposite direction, either central or off centre, depending on the style of ribbon you are going for. And voila!

You can finish off the design with some embellishments if you want a fancier look.

Tip 7 – Glitter Stripes

If you have some plain wrapping paper that you want to spruce up, then adding on a bit of glitter is the way forward. Nothing screams Christmas like glitter, does it?

All you need to do is use the double-sided tape, and place this in strips on the gift (once wrapped). Remove the backing and sprinkle on some glitter. Press the glitter into the tape to fully lock it in and dust off any excess. Ideally, you want to use eco-friendly or biodegradable glitter, as this is much better for the environment.
Also if you are wanting the gift wrap to be recyclable, you may have to leave it plain, as even with using biodegradable glitter, it may still make the paper un-recyclable.

Tip 8 – Draw/ Write

Another tip in my gift wrapping tips tricks and ideas is you spruce up plain wrapping paper with drawing or writing. You can also stamp onto the wrapping too to jazz it up. I combined writing “Ho Ho Ho” with the glitter stripes for a two in one look!

Tip 9 – Use Foliage to Decorate

To create a more rustic look you can use lots of different types of items to do so. Think jute twine, brown kraft wrapping and kraft card tags. For an added touch, do some foraging and place in some foliage for the decor.

I opted to use a bit of ivy and conifer from the garden to give it the natural, rustic look. I also added on some dried oranges and lemons for that more Christmas look to the presents.

For the gift tags, I used my Christmas present early (Silhouette cameo 4…shh don’t tell anyone!) to cut out these beautiful craft Christmas tags by Watcha Working On. I added on a few embellishments to spruce up the tags too.

DIY Burlap Bow

This bow is so simple to make, all you need is a piece of burlap ribbon and some jute twine.
Start by cutting a piece of the ribbon off. Scrunch this in the middle to form the two sides of the bow. Then wrap and tie the jute string around to secure it together. Then the burlap bow is complete and ready to be stuck on.

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Tip 10 – Use Cards as Tags

Keeping in the theme of gift tags, and if you like to recycle, then this one is a tip to use for next year. If you are receiving Christmas cards this year, sift through them when it is time to throw them away and look through the designs. You can then cut around your favourite designs, and use these as gift tags for next year’s presents.
I love doing this and have been doing it for a few years. You can get some really pretty embellished cards that look beautiful on the gifts. Most of the tags in this post (apart from the kraft ones above) are old Christmas cards cut out.

Tip 11 – use a Hard Surface

The final tip in my gift wrapping tips, tricks and ideas are to use a hard surface when wrapping. Wrapping on a table makes it so much easier than on a carpeted floor or even your bed. It just helps to secure all the wrapping together and makes sure the wrapping is just so.

So there are all my gift wrapping tips, tricks and ideas for you to use in the lead up to Christmas. What is good about these, is they can be used for any type of gift wrapping throughout the year. Obviously, some will be more suited to Christmas, but don’t all types of gifts just look extra special with a tied bow on them?

Do you have any gift wrapping tips, tricks and ideas to share? Let me know in the comments below!

For more Christmas inspiration, why not check out my Handmade Christmas Selection?

This post will also be my last of the year, as I am planning on taking a short break over the festive period, ready for more creative and crafty inspiration in 2021!
I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas if you celebrate. I know this year is going to be slightly different, but hopefully, it is onwards and upwards from here. Who knew what 2020 was going to turn out like at the beginning of the year, eh?! Also wishing you all the best for 2021 and I hope it brings everything you hope and wish for!

Gift Wrapping Tips, Tricks & Ideas – Video:

Here is the video version of this post, where you may be able to follow along with some of these tips and ideas a bit more easily. Don’t forget to give the video a thumbs up if you have enjoyed and subscribe to my Youtube Channel for more creative ideas and inspiration!

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