simple Analogy

Gift Wrap: Ruffles Are For Girls

Since my house is dominated by everything male, I really wanted to fluff up the gifts for my mom, sister, and niece.  That means lots of ruffles!

Making ruffles is very easy!  Just follow this tutorial for machine gathered ruffles without a ruffling foot.  I tore the edges of my fabric so that it would have a little fray, then went to town making lots of ruffles.

#1  For this present, the ruffle is about 3-4 inches wide.  Layer two ruffles on top of each other that go over the top of the box and down each side about an inch.

 

Then tear two strips of fabric (unruffled) that are about 2 inches wide, fold each strip in half, and sew one of the folded edges to each end of your ruffle.  Tie around your box and add a tag backed with burlap.

#2  This next present used a long ruffle about an inch wide.  Cut a piece of felt into a circle the size you want your flower to be. 

 

Start gluing the ruffle in a circle starting on the outside edge of your felt, and working in toward the middle overlapping the ruffle edge a little.  When you get to the middle, snip the excess ruffle off and glue the edge.

#3  For this one, use lots of long ruffles. 

Using a hot glue gun to adhere the ruffles in small sections, work a scroll pattern over the top and sides of your box.  It takes a bit of time, but it turns out full of ruffly texture.

This is not a detailed tutorial, so if you have any questions please feel free to leave them in the comments.  I'll answer them there. 

Brown Paper Packages

The variations:

Inspiration for this year's packages:  neutral wrapping, little drummer boy silhouettes, burlap, ruffles, garland. 

The paper is Spritz from Target.  It has subtle little stripes which I like better than plain craft paper.  (Don't buy the Spritz boxes though!  They stink.  Literally - they smell really bad.)  I got the jute, hemp, cream colored burlap, and fabric at Hobby Lobby on the cheap.  The tags are images I found on Google printed on watercolor paper.

We're keeping the boys presents under lock and key.  Absolutely no peeking allowed - not even at the shape of the box, which might give it away.  Noah's present had to be photographed in a different room, but it is one of the other ways that I wrapped this year.  Just a loose version of this.

I'll be back tomorrow with a little bit more on the how to for the ruffley versions ...

The Gilded Bee Giveaway Winner

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The over all consensus was that these paper lace ribbons are just gorgeous!  So let's see who won The Gilded Bee giveaway...

Random.org says #4 - Njeri who said...

Sasha's shop is full of eye candy but my favorite are the vintage paper ribbon trims, the lotus blooms and all the butterflies.

Congratulations, Njeri, and have fun shopping!

{PRESENT}ing the Wrap Up

Well, I hope you've had plenty of inspiration to get you going for the holiday season and beyond.  To make it easier to find what you're looking for, here's everything we've covered in the last month all in one post!

  Day 1:  Gift Wrap Supplies

  Day 2:  Basic Bow

  Day 3:  Sew Your Own Gift Wrap

  Day 4:  Chalkboard Tags

  Day 5:  Chevron Boxes

  Day 6:  Tag Bags

  Day 7:  Recycled Tea Tin with Make It Snappy

  Day 8:  Yarn Wrapping

  Day 9:  Handmade Envelopes for Gift Cards

  Day 10:  Paper Towel Flowers - Part 1

  Day 11:  Paper Towel Flowers - Part 2

  Day 12:  Layering Ephemera

  Day 13:  Felt Envelopes

  Day 14:  Furoshiki Wrap

  Day 15:  Origami Boxes

  Day 16:  Gingerbread Tags

  Day 17:  T-Shirt Ribbon

  Day 18:  Drawstring Bag

  Day 19:  Yarn on the Loom

  Day 20:  Neutral Gift Wrap

  Day 21:  Confetti

  Day 22:  Corn Husk Flowers

  Day 23:  Baked Goods Boxes/Bags with Make It Snappy

  Day 24:  Paper Buttons

  Day 25:  Gift Wrap Giveaway (CLOSED) - I knew you'd be asking what happend to day 25 if I didn't include it in this list.

  Day 26:  Stamped Clay Tags

  Day 27:  Ribbon Roundup

  Day 28:  Stamped Boxes

  Day 29:  Sealing Wax

  Day 30:  Gift Wrap Corset

{PRESENT}ing Day 30: Gift Wrap Corset

Corset, girdle, cumberbun... whatever you want to call it, this is one of my favorite elements to add to a package.  And best of all, you can use just about any kind of medium to make them...

quilter's cotton embellished with yarn embroidery and buttons,

paper lunch bags and staples (plus a paper sack flower),

t-shirt fabric and sewing machine adorned with sequins, buttons, and a fluff of fabric.  Look familiar?  I used this one for the banner and badges for our party.

What better way to wrap up this gift wrap party than by doing a gift wrap corset tutorial.   Here's how to make them...

Cut your fabric:  Measure the perimeter of your box and add about a foot (more if you want tons of pleats).  This will be the length.  Then decide on the width that works for your box. 

My box was 6 x 6 x 6 inches.  Perimeter 24 inches + 12 inches = 36 inch length.  I used a width of 4 inches.  I cut my fabric 36 x 4 inches.

Make your pleats:  Starting a hand's width from the middle of your fabric, pinch up about a half inch.  If you want smaller pleats, pinch up less.

Fold to one side and pin pleat in place.

Right next to the pinned pleat, pinch up another half inch.  Fold to same side as before and pin in place.  

Repeat until you have the amount of pleats that you want.

You should now have one long strip of fabric with pinned pleats in the middle.

Now take it to your sewing machine and sew your pleats in place with three or four lines of stitching.  If you don't have a sewing machine, you can tack them down with a running stitch by hand.  If you're using paper, use glue or staples.

Wrap your box:  Place the pleated part of your fabric in the center of the top of your box.

Flip your box over, wrap one end of your fabric to the bottom and cut it about an inch away from the edge of the box.

Wrap the other end of the fabric to the bottom.  Overlapping the first side by several inches, cut the extra fabric off.  Now you can either tape, staple, or glue the end.

I added some yarn, hemp, and a small charm to this version.

And there we go!  A nice finish for our gift wrap party.  The {PRESENT}ing flickr pool will still be around, so please share some gift wrap inspiration anytime.  Every now and then, I'll be featuring pictures from it here on the blog.  You know... after it has a few more pictures from someone other than myself.  So get to wrapping and add your pictures!

The holidays are just around the corner, so you have the perfect chance to try out some new gift wrap techniques. I really had a lot of fun putting this together and hope that you've been inspired to wrap beautifully.  Cheers!

**The Gilded Bee Giveaway is still going on, so sign up soon!  It ends on Friday.

{PRESENT}ing the Black Friday Giveaway Winner!

The winner is #3...

Mel said...  I still think that placing the gift in a box and wrapping it with wrapping paper and then wrapping a bow around it is the best. I have turned into a gift bag person but wrapping is the best!

 

Congratulations!  I'll be sending you an email shortly.

Today's the last day of our gift wrap party.  I'll be back in a little while with one last gift wrap idea for you and a tutorial to boot!

{PRESENT}ing Day 29: Sealing Wax

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I had a sealing wax set when I was a kid.  It felt so official to seal letters to my grandparents and friends.  But now that I'm an adult, I'm sold on sealing wax for an added touch to gift wrapping.  It's so nostalgic.

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And for those that would rather not play with fire, they even have sealing wax that can be used in a hot glue gun!  (Saw it at Michael's in the wedding section.)  Check out Etsy for a great variety of seals, wax, and even jewelry made out of seals.

*We've got two giveaways going on!  Don't forget to sign up for them here and here.  

**Also, you can add pictures of your creative gift wrapping to the {PRESENT}ing flickr group! 

{PRESENT}ing Day 28: Stamped Boxes and Another Giveaway

*This giveaway is closed*

Today's ideas come straight from Sasha at the The Gilded Bee.  I found her as I was doing research for this gift wrap party.  Her shop is a creative gift wrapper's dream! 

Wouldn't you just love to use these pairings to wrap a present? 

 

And if her shop has lovely things in it, you can just imagine her blog!  Lot's of gift wrap inspiration.

As I was reading through her archives I came across the shipping boxes that she uses for her business.  She turns plain old shipping boxes into ones full of color and life using layered stamps.  Love it!

Now for even more fun, Sasha is offering one of my readers a $25 gift certificate to The Gilded Bee!!!  To enter the giveaway:

• Leave a comment on this post telling what items in her shop are inspiring you. 
• One entry per person, please. 
• The winner will be announce on Friday, December 2nd.
• The winner will receive an email on December 2nd and will need to respond by December 5th.
• If there is no response, I'll pick another winner. 

And don't forget we still have another giveaway going on.  Sign up here for that one!

 

{PRESENT}ing Day 27: Ribbon Roundup

Need some ribbon inspiration?  Beware! 

by One Charming Party

by Sea*Life*Style

by Sur la Table

by Good Housekeeping

by Saipua 

by The Lonely Heart

as seen on Paper Crave

from Real Simple

sari yarn from darn good yarn

by October Afternoon

by The Three Sweet Peas

by Songbird via Country Chic Cottage

Woven, with jingle bells, around a potholder, velvet, with flowers, printed with special messages, tie-d, jump rope, recycled sari, stitched with name tag, with flower, laced through doily... so many different ways to use ribbon!

***Sign up for the gift wrap giveaway here.  And don't for get to share your wrapping inspirations on the {PRESENT}ing flickr pool.

{PRESENT}ing Day 26: Stamped Clay Tags

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Totally loving these stamped tags by Marley and Lockyer - buy here.  These were made using earthenware clay, which may be a little hard to find, a little expensive, and needs to be fired in a kiln.  Bummer!  Or maybe not...

What if we could make something similar using Sculpey clay!  It's cheap, readily available at craft stores, and can bake in an oven!  Amy at Then She Made gives us a great tutorial.  Besides stamping the image on the tag, add some texture as well by placing lace or a doily over a part of your blank tag and roll over it lightly with a rolling pin.

These could double as pendants for necklaces or ornaments for the tree!

***Have you entered the gift wrap giveaway yet?  Sign up here!  And be sure to add your gift wrap creations to the {PRESENT}ing flickr pool.