Gift Presentation Tips
Getting gifts is great. Who doesn’t love ripping open a package and all the good feelings that come as we reveal what is inside? Even giving a gift is great too. The time and money spent picking out that perfect gift is completely worth it to see the happiness on our friend’s face. Wrapping that gift is not so enjoyable a task.
Trying to wrap a box is fairly easy. You just cut the paper to size, wrap the box once, fold in the ends, tape, and go. Wrapping a stuffed bear, a bottle of wine, or anything with an irregular shape is nearly impossible to do without it looking sloppy or the shape giving away the gift immediately.
Oddly shaped gifts usually get the same treatment. You buy a gift bag, stuff it with tissue paper, shove the bear or wine in, and then try to arrange some tissue in the top of the bag so it hides with gift inside and still looks pretty. It’s a perfect solution, but the execution can leave much to be desired. Trying to get that special pretty look with the tissue sticking out the top can be just as frustrating as trying to paper wrap the gift would have been in the first place.
What’s the answer? Throw the bag and tissue paper in the trash and just wrap a bow around the teddy bear’s throat? Smash the bear in a box and wrap it that way? Never buy anything that doesn’t come in a box as a gift? The idea behind wrapping is to make a presentation of your gift, to make the recipient feel special. You can defeat the weirdly shaped gift by using a homemade gift bag, a folding box or a plastic pillow to make a beautiful presentation with relative ease.
A homemade gift bag is great because you probably have everything you need in your house: scissors. Tape, and some medium weight wrapping paper. You simply measure out the size for your gift. Fold it over like it you would for box. You’ll have a flat tube of paper. Fold the tube up at one end to make the bottom of the bag. Pull the center points of both sides of the bottom flap to make an origami diamond fold, flatten it down, and then tape the points in. Insert your gift, roll down the top and you’re done. A gift bag with no tissue in sight.
A folding box is another solution and accomplishes a couple of things. Number one, it takes the heartache out of attempting to make the packaging look good. Number two, it makes the gift feel like a trophy. Imagine being given a teddy bear or a bottle of wine in a clear case with some ribbons and bows. It’s a personal showcase for the gift. Folding boxes are convenient, come in different sizes and shapes, and look really good. They also store easily and do not take up much space.
Another solution to the odd shape gift conundrum is a plastic pillow. These are a cross between the giftbag and folding box, but are usually intended for smaller or loose items, like Legos or chocolates. These also come in a variety of shapes, are easy to use, and easy to store. An alternative to the pillow is to use printed plastic Tupperware containers. With either option, you just place the items inside and add a ribbon or bow. It’s a very easy and very beautiful alternative to giving a misshapen lump of paper and tape.
