I’m sharing ten tips for wrapping Christmas presents that are a major upgrade from slapping a simple sticky bow on the top (and they’re super easy to do too!)
One of my favorite things to do around the holidays is to sit down with loads of beautiful wrapping paper, tags, and ribbon and wrap presents while watching cheesy Christmas movies. I’ve loved wrapping Christmas presents ever since I was a kid and when I was in high school I even had a little business going where busy families paid me to wrap all of their holiday gifts!
I was always surprised by how blown away my “clients” were when they saw their wrapped gifts. In my mind, I wasn’t doing anything special and certainly nothing difficult, but I realized it was the little extra touches that they might not have thought to do themselves that left such an impression.
Today I’m sharing ten tips for wrapping Christmas presents that will take an ordinary present to “next level” status. (post includes affiliate links – full disclosure statement available {here})
1. Use a Chalk Marker Pen!
For darker colored gift wrap, white chalk marker pens (such as {these}) are great for writing messages on your packages or even just for writing who the present is “to” and “from” without the need for a gift tag. They’re simple to use (they work just like paint pens) and definitely add a little something special.
I often pull up one of my favorite fonts and write my message on my laptop and then reference that when writing it out on the present but using your everyday handwriting is just fine too!
2. Add a Pre-Made Bow or Embellishment
This idea is perfect for wrapping Christmas presents if you don’t want to mess with ribbon. Simply choose a gorgeous paper and place a pre-made bow or other little “extra” on top! With this gift on the left, I added a premade curly bow – simple and quick but also beautiful!!
3. Stack ‘Em!
There’s something about stacked gifts that makes them irresistible! Simply wrap two presents (one slightly bigger than the other) in the same gift wrap and tie them together with ribbon, leaving long, cascading tails. Wire-edged ribbon like {this white ribbon} works best because it’s easy to add those pretty waves to the tails.
4. Layer Your Ribbon
This is one of my favorite ideas for wrapping Christmas presents! Layering a thinner ribbon over a different colored thicker ribbon makes presents look luxurious! I usually choose two colors that are both found in the gift wrap so that everything coordinates. For this gift, I used a thinner gold metallic mesh ribbon layered on {a 1 ½″ black satin wire ribbon} along with a cute jingle bell wreath tie-on.
5. Clip It On!
An easy way to add embellishments and tags is to simply clip them on with a mini clothespin and as a bonus, it’s super cute and makes your present unique! For this present I clipped on one a metallic gift tag and a cute glitter snowflake with a plain mini clothespin like {these}.
6. Add a Treat!
Adding a little sweet treat is one of my favorite ways to make a wrapped present special, especially for kids. You can simply tie a candy bar or other sweets on top with ribbon or buy an embellishment like this mini stocking and tuck your treat inside. Just be mindful of pets and don’t leave gifts with chocolate or other food anywhere that they can get to them!
7. Tie It Twice
This is one of my favorite tricks for wrapping Christmas presents when you’re working with rectangular/narrow packages. Instead of your typical bow, simply wrap two lengths of ribbon or decorative cording around your present lengthwise and then tie both pieces in knots with the first knotted piece a little higher up than the second.
For my gift, I used a wood grain glitter wrap with a sheer gold ribbon like {this}, and a glitter snowflake gift tag – such a simple Christmas present wrapping idea but so beautiful!
Here’s another present from a few years back that I wrapped the same way but with braided twine:
8. Use Your Gift Wrap Scraps
This is the perfect way to keep the scraps of your favorite gift wrap from going to waste! Wrap your present in plain kraft paper and then take a long scrap of wrapping paper, fold it along both sides to give it clean, straight edges, and wrap it around the length of your present. Then simply tie a bow on top to hold it all together:
9. Use What’s Outside
Adding natural elements from your own backyard is another favorite idea for wrapping Christmas presents. It can be as simple as tying on a few sprigs of greenery clipped from your yard. Or if you want to spend a few more minutes, hot glue gun 2-3 small pine cones to the ends of ribbon and tie them on!
10. Throw It In A Bag or Box!
There’s no shame in using a gift bag, especially when it’s a super pretty one! Using tissue paper that has a decorative edge such as {this scalloped edge tissue paper} takes it to the next level!
Or you can buy pretty gift boxes that don’t require any wrapping such as these white and gold scalloped edge beauties (I got these a few years back from Target – they have beautiful new designs every Christmas – check them out {here}):
I try to wrap as I go throughout the holiday season so I have pretty presents to put under our tree and sprinkle around our home too.
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Where to Buy Gorgeous Gift Wrapping Supplies
My four favorite sources for gift wrap, ribbon, and boxes are (1) The Container Store – every year they have a Gift Wrap Wonderland section that has gorgeous wrapping paper and ribbon options along with lots of fun little embellishments. The only downside? It’s pricey!
I also find a lot of great supplies at (2) Target – especially online where they have better selection than in the store. My favorite things to buy at Target are their beautiful decorative boxes from Sugar Paper – you can see their current offerings {here}.
I also find lots of great wrapping paper and ribbon online at (3) Amazon. A few current favorites are {these plaid wrapping papers} and {these darling kraft papers}. They have a huge selection of ribbon too! And last but not least I’ve found some of the cutest papers at (4) Minted – you can see their current holiday gift wrap options {here}.
I hope you all picked up a new trick or two to use while wrapping Chrismtas presents this year! When you’re buying your gift wrap, ribbons, and other supplies this season keep in mind that…
- Wire-edged ribbon works best for making bows because you can shape it to make your bows full and the tails wavy.
- If you’re using glitter paper like {this gold glitter wrap} I used, regular tape won’t hold well. In the past I’ve always used my hot glue gun to stick down the ends of glitter paper but for the first time this year I tried {this double sided clear super tape} and it works really well too! So if you get glitter papers like one of the three that I used, be sure to have a glue gun or super tape on hand.
- If you wrap your presents early, you can use your presents to decorate your home for the holidays! Along with putting them under the tree, you can stack pretty presents on shelves, use them as coffee table decor, few small presents sticking out of the stockings hanging from your fireplace mantel, or even stack a few in a chair or two:
Happy wrapping!
Wendy J says
I absolutely LOVE wrapping presents, too! Loved your ideas in this article. One of my favorite Christmas traditions is to make fresh wreaths and winter-themed floral arrangements to decorate the house. Oh, we also love baking different varieties of holiday cookies and giving them away to friends and family.
Kathy Kern says
Great post! Thanks!
My favorite holiday tradition is visiting a botanical gardens near me.
Longwood Gardens is a beautiful place and gives me lots of decorating ideas.
Ashleigh Hall says
Oh my gosh!! I love all of your Christmas wrapping! So beautiful!! AND I just had to hop on over to The Container Store to get some of my own! I love all of the tie-ons and embellishments! So fun! My favorite Christmas tradition is volunteering with my family at the local homeless shelter to serve others!! So rewarding and makes us ALL so grateful for the blessings we have! Thanks for the chance to win! Have a blessed holiday season!
Diana Kotecki says
Love all your clever ideas. I never thought of using a chalk pen and writing on a package. Ingenius! I’m also going to try the layering of ribbons. So pretty!
Nicki says
Thank you for sharing your wonderful wrapping ideas. Our family gathers at my daughter’s house on Christmas Eve for dinner and a white elephant gift exchange. Our family is so into tradition and we tried to change things up a bit. However, our teenage kids didn’t want anything different. The best part of the tradition is the love and laughter that flows amongst us.
Bethany K says
I love to make Christmas Cookies with my kids!
Kimberly says
Such adorable wrapping ideas! Thank you for sharing. One of my favorite traditions is picking out the tree with my boys and decorating it while listening to Christmas music or watching Elf and laughing at all of the ornaments the kids made as little boys!
Kathryn says
I just discovered The Container Store’s wrapping paper and I LOVE it!!! I’ll be a repeat customer forever!
Our favorite Christmas tradition is everyone getting in their Christmas jammies and watching all of the old holiday shows (we have DVD’s!), like Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer, Santa Claus is Coming to Town, etc. We start around 3p and end the night with Christmas Vacation. We plan dinner to be easy (pizza or a table full of appetizers) and we hang out all afternoon/night. Our girls are in college and still ask when we are planning Jammie Day. It’s the best night of the holiday season!
Beverly Hayes says
Every Christmas we make bread baskets/platters for sale! I include a cutting board, a bread knife, a jar of local honey and a special treat. I wrap everything in beautiful cellophane with a gorgeous bow, a Christmas ornament, and a gift tag. I obviously bake the bread–it is the best recipe for whole wheat bread, I promise! For pics of my baskets, you can check out my Simply Wheat Facebook page.
or simplywheatbread.com. Love your ideas for gift wrapping presents. I am going to the Container store to check it out!
Annemarie says
Loved this post and I even saw some of the gift wrap I purchased from the Container Store already. I will be using some of your tips – especially using scraps of my favorite paper the way you showed it on the rectangular package. Our favorite holiday tradition is Christmas Brunch with the same favorite dishes my children have loved since they were little. They are all grown and married now with in-laws in different parts of the country so Christmas Brunch may be the week before Christmas or New Years day, or something in between but it’s being together and the tradition of the favorite foods that makes it wonderful.
Lorelle Hendricks says
We started the Christmas Eve tradition of having crab legs and chocolate fondue for dinner the first Christmas we were married. Now, forty years, 3 kids, 3 kid in-laws, and one grandchild later we save up for the crab legs for a month and melt lots more chocolate!
Lauren says
Love this post! The tree is stunning too! My husband and I complete a holiday activity each day leading up to Christmas. We started it many years ago, and it’s one of our favorite traditions. Some nights we drive around looking at lights, we might watch a holiday movie, or donate our time for a cause. We have made so many memories.
Sara Petrus says
Beautiful tree and wrapping! My favorite tradition is finding traditional Old World ornaments for my children and grandchildren. Every year, I give them a new ornament. We have done this for more than 20 years. When they are on their on, decorating their tree, they have a substantial collection of personal ornaments picked for them over the years.
Cece says
Thank you for all the beautifully created inspiration, and giving me a sneak peek of your blog readers favorite Christmas traditions. My childhood traditions were driving the back roads with my grandfather to seek out our greenery deep into the wilds of the Florida woods, and see the houses lit with Christmas lights along the way. We would bring a tree home to decorate and my Nana would always create some sweet or salty treat with hot chocolate (floating marshmallows of course) waiting for us when we arrived. Today I long for the simplicity and scents of my “long ago…” so I recreate these memories each year by hunting down nature’s best at farm and nursery stores, and pack up our car with goodies to go on the adventure of Christmas findings! Simple white twinkly lights and the smell of the tree is all I need for the holidays. Ok, and maybe something chocolaty? [ Thank you for including me in your Container Store giveaway! ]
Debbie Welchert says
Every year we like to get everyone in the van and drive to the city to see all the beautiful Christmas decorations and then on the way home we drive around our little town looking at all the beautiful Christmas lights before we go home.
Elaine says
My favorite holiday tradition is putting on our matching Christmas aprons with my boys and making Christmas cookies together.