No 5: Craft For Christmas: Five Cheap & Easy Gift Wrapping Ideas

Have you finished your Christmas shopping yet? Whether or not you have, I’m sure you’ll be busy wrapping presents the next few days, just like me!

This year, I’ve decided not to buy any gift wrapping paper and just make my own by decorating various plain colored paper. I’ve come up with five easy gift wrapping ideas that are pretty but also cheap. All you need is a little time and some imagination!

1. Sponge-painted Wrapping Paper
For this you’ll need manila paper, dishwashing sponge, paint (poster paint or acrylic will do) and a shallow dish to put paint in.

Make shapes out of your sponges and simply dip it in a little paint and use it like a stamp. Circles work best but you can try out different shapes too. I used white for mine because I want it very simple but you can use as much color as you like.

  

If you choose to make yours as simple as mine, you can embellish by adding another layer of colored paper and some ribbon.

     

Another nice idea is to use some paper doily as an accent. Paper doilies are very cheap but can add a lot of character to your gift wrapping. I got a pack of 100 pcs for less than P40. What’s great is, you can also use these for other occasions!

2. Doodle Wrapping Paper
This is super easy! Using some markers, preferably metallic ones (available in most bookstores), doodle on a sheet of manila paper or any plain colored paper.

  
Draw lines, stars, snowflakes, loops, dots – be creative! Add a tissue pompom (DIY tutorial here) on top and a nice gift card…voila!

3. Watercolored Gift Bags
I have a stash of brown paper bags at home so I’ve decided to use them. But first, I decorated mine with watercolor. This time I used bright colors as well.

  
This one is fun to do with your kids! Play with different patterns and colors. Mix and match ribbons. You can also add doilies on them like little bibs. So cute!

  

4. Old book pages
For small gifts, you can use old book pages and make little envelopes or bags. Cut out tree-shaped tags and use textured ribbon for embellishment.

  

5. Yarn Pompom Toppers
I love yarn pompoms! They’re so much fun to make and they look really cute on gifts. Watch a five-minute tutorial by creaturecomfortsblog.com on how to make these fuzzy balls here.

If you notice, the pompoms made in the video are very round and dense. Therefore, it consumes so much more yarn. Mine are made with less yarn and look shaggier, but I still like them that way. I just combine different colors and put several on one gift. It’s up to you what kind of pompom you want to make, but be sure that you have some fun!

     

That’s about all the gifts I have to wrap as of the moment. I’m sure I’ll discover more ways to wrap gifts using my stash of junk at home. Hope you get inspired! Take these ideas and add your own flavor to it. Be creative with your gift wrapping this season without having to spend so much or anything at all! 🙂

Happy wrapping and have a very merry, CRAFTY Christmas!

Check out the other projects in our 12 Crafts for Christmas:
No 12: Paper Crafts on Wreath
No 11: “Oh What Fun” Paper Mobile
No 10: DIY Advent Calendar
No 9: Christmas Themed Art Display
No 8: DIY Fabric Wrapped Christmas Balls
No 7: A Joyful, Joyful Pillowcase
No 6: Bottle Cap Photo Frame Ornaments