Wrapping Presents for Children

I_keep_forgetting_my_name

I save any cellophane from flower bouquets and use that for wrappig. I made 3 gitfts for our hospice raffle using that and ribbon taken from past parcels given to me. ilovefreegle.org is a good source of ribbons and things if you ask in advance. even wrapping paper.
Daughter used to use magazine and comic pages to wrap gifts too.

I_keep_forgetting_my_name

might try the fabric warapping if I give gifts next year. getting more into tickets and adotpion certificates for animals and children/ give a gift of teaching materials to a child in Africa etc.

HappySad

Love reading everyone's ideas. I use Amazon.co.uk sheets of packaging paper you get inside the box.

OrkneyStar

I got 'bike' wrappers in Dealz, £1.20, figured they will do for DS big presents.

I would be wary of newspaper but would consider using a nice mag or something.

kippygolf

Use left over ends of Wallpaper. If you don't have any, major DIY stores often have open rolls so you can tear off a sample...! :T

Ratstjohn

You all seem to be going to an awful lot of trouble to save only a very little in terms of money AND effort - if that! Using newspaper or brown paper is cheap as long as you don't pay a lot on the fancy ribbon - otherwise you are back to square one! New brown paper isn't that cheap. neither is printing costs using inks and paper tho I agree designing your own would be a kick and original tho NOT cost-saving.
I suggest starting the year before and buying in reduced paper. gift tags, ribbons, etc., and then you are set for the following year. join in with 2 or more members of your family and buy in a lot of stock to share out. Can also be done with reduced Christmas cards too. I do this just as an individual and even though I have a small family and extended family I know I am saving money whilst still getting quality. Also, cheaper still - recycle any decent paper or gift bags on any gifts you receive or your family receive so you can reuse these next year. Even if torn a little you can cut this down so it may wrap a small present next year - just don't screw this wrapping up and throw it away unless it is beyond recycling. Motto for us all is: 'waste not, want not!!'.

Linnyg

Old maps, or road atlases, especially including the area the recipient lives in make quirky wrapping paper. I have known people to be more interested in studying the map than in the gift!

pigpen

zanuda wrote: »

Looks lovely when it's wrapped that neat... The only problem with newspaper - it leaves a lot of pain (print paint which is not healthy) on the hands and with kids all these paint eventually ends up - you guessed it right - in the mouth... Just have to watch them crarefully.

exactly.. I would be really pee'd with anyone wrapping gifts in newspaper for mine, especially the tiddlies. Dirty ink smeared all over their sticky faces and dribbly hands and stains on their pretty festive clothes.. :eek: So while the children might not care the parents will.


I got 24m of proper wrapping paper for £2.99 .. no excuse for using rubbish to wrap presents.


http://homeshopping.24ace.co.uk/search/24m%20roll%20wrap


It was even less at halfcost.co.uk ... no excuse!

themull1

The ink will get everywhere, and they don't look very Christmassy wrapped in newspaper, more like a fish and chip shop order.!! Just get cheap wrapping paper! If newspaper ink fingermarks get everywhere they'll be a !!!!!! to remove!

The_Cre8tor

Old maps work brilliantly as wrapping paper. Add some ribbon and you can dress up the dullest present. Because maps are usually on quite thick paper, they're great for wrapping and you can't see through the paper. Books look like something precious when wrapped, and wine bottles, for some reason, take on a look of 'costly', can't work out why though.

Maps also work really well for man presents.

Check out charity shops where you might get them for a few pennies, and also places where they're getting rid of old stock because the maps have been updated. (ask among relatives and friends too. Often folks have maps which they bought for a holiday journey or bought years ago and have never used again.). Also - some councils still give away maps of their area free of charge, and you can pick up some free maps in the leaflets sections in supermarkets. (Asda spring to mind. The big one where I live has a BIG leaflet spinner stand, filled to capacity with all sorts of advertising leaflets, and some of those have large, open out maps in them.)
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