Turn your holiday gifts into works of art with some easy gift-wrapping ideas.

Sometimes the most odious thing about the holidays is the present wrapping–it just seems like a such a chore. You work really hard buying (or making) all those presents and then there’s more work. Have a little fun with it by using one of these easy gift-wrapping ideas. From fun to elegant and many involve repurposing stuff you already have on hand–these are gift-wrapping game changers!

10 Gift-Wrapping Ideas for the Holidays

1. Repurposed Paper Bags – Cut open brown paper bags, turn them over so the plain side is facing up, and decorate with holiday-themed stamps. Wrap up your packages and tie with string for a vintage wrapping look.
2. Metallic Painted Tissue Paper – Repurpose tissue paper from holiday gifts past, but bring it back to life by painting it with gold or silver paint. Many home improvement stores carry the Martha Stewart line of specialty finishes that features several different metallic options.
3. Old Road Maps – Turn old paper maps (who uses them anymore anyway!) into fun wrapping paper this season.
4. Brown Paper Packages – You can buy rolls of brown wrapping paper that can be customized a billion ways. One of the simplest is to use gold and silver pens to draw stars or snowflakes on your packages. Tie them up with pretty red and white bakers’ twine.
5. Origami Wrap – Wrap packages in white paper. Cut shapes out another layer of colored paper and double wrap your packages for an easy but pretty effect.
6. Chalkboard Wrapping Paper – If you haven’t seen it before, Chalkboard wrapping paper is a thing. It’s super easy to customize your packages with just some simple white paint markers. You can find it online and at some craft stores.
7. Washi Tape – Decorate plain white or brown paper with colorful patterned washi tape. Washi tape is Japanese masking tape, but it comes in all sorts of colors and patterns and is available online or at craft stores.
8. Duct Tape Gift Bags – By the same token, turn practical duct tape into gift bags. Here is an easy tutorial.
9. Repurposed Magazine Bows – Top your packages with pretty repurposed bows made from the pages of old magazines. Here’s a how-to.
10. Burlap, Black Ribbon and Gold Spray Painted Pine Cones – Turn everyday burlap into an elegant package by adding black velveteen ribbon and gold painted pine cones. It looks impressive, but it’s actually pretty easy to pull off. Burlap is available at most fabric stores.

Related on EcoSalon

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Image: Christmas Gift via Shutterstock

The post 10 Easy Gift-Wrapping Ideas and Solutions to Make a Wrapping a Breeze appeared first on EcoSalon.

If this is your idea of gift wrap, you really need to read on.

‘Tis the season we generate entirely too much trash. The EPA and Use Less Stuff estimates that from Thanksgiving to Christmas, the garbage we toss out increases by more than 25%, including food waste, shopping bags, packaging and – you got it – wrapping paper. Not to mention the bows and ribbons and frills, all of which add up to an additional 4 million tons in our landfills.

Here’s another option: go outside and source your trimmings from nature.

Stock up on recycled craft paper for the basic wrap-up, and use natural elements to provide the bling-factor. (Side note, old newspaper can fill in nicely here as well.)

Leaves and a bit of velvet ribbon adorn this bag, and the tag was made from a chop saw and birch log.

Invest in some baker’s twine and it will last you a forever.

If you could only smell this one, wrapped in craft paper, ribbon, raffia and rosemary.

My personal favorite: a bark wrapped gift, with acorns fixed to a black velvet ribbon and craft paper.

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See also…

DIY Alternatives to Traditional Holiday Gift Tags
11 DIY Alternatives to Traditional Christmas Trees
The Perfect DIY Gift: Mason Jar Photo Candles

Images: meddygarnet

The post 5 DIY Alternatives to Traditional Holiday Gift Wrap appeared first on EcoSalon.