Holiday Gift Wrapping: Brown Paper with Layered Snowflakes

This simple tutorial combines a cream coloured felt ribbon with snowflakes. The larger snowflake is made from plain chipboard and the smaller wooden one came from a set purchased at the dollar store. I often find that the wood elements the dollar store sells are comparable in quality to the higher end craft stores. These snowflakes would probably cost close to $5 at a regular craft store. I picked them up for a $1.25 ….what a steal. I love how the smaller wooden snowflake picks up on the cream colour of the ribbon. This is a very simple design, but looks great with the brown paper base. Do you have 45 seconds? Check out my latest tutorial to see how simple it was to pull it all together.

Happy Wrapping!

Holiday Gift Wrapping: Birch Bark Paper & Snowflakes

I really scored when I picked-up this brand new roll of Martha Stewart birch bark-like wrapping paper at a thrift store for 50 cents! The paper is excellent quality and I love the simplicity of the design. What better combination than snowflakes and birch bark! Check out my latest wrapping tutorial that incorporates dollar store snowflake buttons. I bought a large bag of the snowflakes for $1.25 and they make fantastic embellishments for Christmas wrapping. Always be on the look out for great deals!

Happy wrapping!

Holiday Gift Wrapping: Simple Snowflake

This brown paper gift wrapping idea couldn’t be easier. In this video tutorial, you will see how to take a dollarstore Christmas ornament and transform it into the focal point for this gift. Snowflakes are one of my favourite Christmas gift accessories, but you want to make sure your purchases don’t look cheap (even though they are!) I often use dollar store elements in my gift wrapping, but the key is to pay special attention to the “finish” of the ornament when making purchases. I will usually opt for white or wood finishes, as I often find that the sparkly ornaments tend to look cheap and tacky. (I do purchase glittery elements as well, but I make all of my purchases with a very critical eye.) Another trick to up staging the quality of your embellishments, is to give careful consideration to the other elements you include in your design.

For this look, I combine a plain white string with a white plastic snowflake ornament. The simplicity of the string off-sets the finish of the ornament. The finishing touch in this look is a Scrabble Tile “gift tag”. I placed the name in the bottom corner, to add more interest. Even if you don’t use the Scrabble tile idea, this gift would look great with a simple brown or white coverstock tag. Don’t ruin the look by sticking on a tag that doesn’t fit the look of the gift….stick with the theme!

You can check out the full tutorial (‘Tis the Season) or opt for the quicker version (READY, SET, WRAP!}. Enjoy!

Happy wrapping!

Holiday Gift Wrap Ideas: Scrabble Tile Gift Greetings

I’m so excited about the holiday season and have been busy pulling together tons of gift wrapping ideas. I’ve been making some tweaks to my videos and will be launching something new beginning with this video. The holidays are a very busy time of the year and to save us all some time, I’m producing shorter versions of my video tutorials. I’m hoping this will eventually shorten the editing process and thus allow me to post more tutorials. It’s great for you as well because you can get the same info in a condensed version. The biggest difference is that I’m using subtitles in lieu of verbal instructions. I know how tired I get of hearing my own voice, so perhaps this will be a blessing for you too! I will see how this new system works and may continue to produce full versions as an option for those who like the additional tips I typically add in throughout my videos.

‘Tis the SEASON

‘Tis the SEASON is the name of my holiday video tutorial playlist. It will contain any videos that I produce in full version with verbal instructions.

READY, SET, WRAP!

READY, SET, WRAP! is the name of my holiday video tutorial playlist in a condensed version with my voice removed and replaced with subtitles. Much of the video will be in “fast forward” mode to move along at a much quicker pace. This is a great way to watch the video in its entirety without it taking so long to get through. Obviously, if you watch the condensed version and want more information, you can always view the full version on my ‘Tis the SEASON playlist.I

In today’s tutorial, you will learn how to use old Scrabble tiles as Christmas greetings on a gift. I often pick-up old Scrabble games when out thrifting. You can purchased them for a buck or two and the possibilities are really endless. I also demonstrate how to create your own custom paper ribbon. This is both a cost effective and easy option for customizing your gift. This particular video combines white paper ribbon, cord and the Scrabble tile greeting on a brown paper surface. Simple, yet eye catching!

Check out my first video from my new READY, SET, WRAP! Christmas Playlist.

I would really appreciate some feedback on how you like the new tutorial format. Feel free to comment below.

Don’t forget to LIKE, SHARE and SUBSCRIBE!

Gift Wrapping Hack: Inside Out Box

Have you ever needed a box for a gift (or other purpose), found the perfect size, but hated the fact that it was covered with print/graphics that identified its original use. I love reusing boxes, but always feel like the print on the outside of a box takes away from the beautiful wrapping. Although this hack won’t work every time, I’ve pulled it off many times in the past. Simply take the box apart and reassemble it inside out!

Check out my latest video to see how simply it can be done! Now you don’t have to feel so bad about using that old tampon box to wrap that special gift…Ha! Ha!

Don’t forget to LIKE and SHARE! Subscribe to my channel BOWhemian WRAPsody for more great gift wrapping tips.

Shabby Chic Gift Wrap: Burlap & Doilies

In my latest gift wrapping tutorial, I combine brown packaging paper, burlap and doilies to create a simple Shabby Chic look. In the video, I share how the elements can be combined in different ways to create various different looks. Paper doilies are readily available at most dollar and craft stores, but you can step it up a notch by watching for cloth/lace doilies while out thrift shopping…just be sure to check for stains. You can often pick them up for under a dollar and they definitely can help make the difference when going for a Shabby Chic look!
Check out my latest video, but be sure to watch to the end to see the featured designs!

If you like the video, you can help me out by clicking LIKE, SHARING the video and subscribing to my channel. Thanks for visiting!

Gift Wrapping Ideas: DIY Pillow Box

Have you ever been faced with the problem of wrapping an awkwardly shaped gift? We’ve all been there…it won’t fit inside any boxes you have on hand, you end up with this weird shape and if you’re like me, the gift always ends up getting bumped and torn because of how the paper is sitting. I hate that! Well, I may have a great solution to your problem….a DIY custom made pillow box.

What is a Pillow Box?

A pillow box is generally oblong with curved ends and a shape that resembles a pillow. They are relatively easy to make and you can even find templates online. However, if you really want to make a pillow box work for you, the key is to learn how to customize the size to accommodate the size of your gift.

Kinderarten Challenge:

In this tutorial you get a bonus tip: find out one of the most important skills I teach my kinders and see if you pass the test and employ this strategy!

DIY Custom Pillow Box Tutorial

Today’s video tutorial is a bit longer in length, but it takes you through the steps involved in creating your own customized pillow box. I offer a specific demonstration for creating a small pillow box using a standard 8 1/2″ X 11″ card stock so that the size is a bit more camera friendly to work with. This is followed by instructions on how to enlarge the scale of the design to create a full bristol board sized box.

Not only is a pillow box a great option for those difficult to wrap gifts, but it is also a simple way to change up the same old. Perhaps a long, narrow pillow box might be a great alternative to the standard gift bags used for wine and other bottled gifts.

Of course, you’ll be limited by the colours of bristol board available, but don’t let that stop you …..they rarely run out of black and white and to me those are the two best options anyway.

I hope you find this video helpful! Please remember to LIKE, SHARE and SUBSCRIBE to my channel: BOWhemian WRAPsody for more great gift wrapping ideas.

Gift Wrapping Ideas: Make it Masculine 2!

I never like to pigeon hole my gift wrapping creations by saying they are more suited to a male than a female, but I do feel that some, feature elements that are combined to create a simpler look that may be considered more appropriate for a male than pretty flowers, lace and doilies! My purpose for making the designation is simply that when wrapping for a male, one sometimes wishes to create a more “manly” vibe and I think I have some ideas to help make that happen.

This design relies on geometric paper shapes and a simple square-topped brad. I love the black and white elements coupled with a hint of silver. One of my favourite additions to this gift is the use of washi tape in lieu of ribbon. Check out the video to see how several different looks are created with the embellishments mentioned above. In addition, find out what my suggestions are with regards to purchasing washi tape. Washi tape makes a great alternative to ribbon, but be mindful when purchasing so that you don’t end up with a collection of tape that never gets used.

I also highlight one of my favourite paper punches. In this video, I use my double square punch from Creative Memories….one of those “can’t live without” tools that I purchased several years ago. (I noticed that it is no longer available through their site, but perhaps it or something similar can be found on eBay or through Amazon).

I hope you enjoyed the video! Don’t forget to LIKE, SHARE and SUBSCRIBE to my channel: BOWhemian WRAPsody for more great gift wrapping tutorials.

Gift Wrapping Ideas: Braided Belt Ribbon

This quick gift wrapping tip highlights a recent thrift store find. I love how this simple braided belt serves as both the ribbon and the bow for this gift. The braided suede-like belt offers interest and creates a very natural look. I love how the buckle serves as the focal point. This is a quick watch and the concept of using a belt might spark many other ideas for creative gift wrapping projects.

If you like this gift wrapping idea, be sure to check out my other wrapping tutorials for more great ideas. Don’t forget to LIKE, SHARE and SUBSCRIBE to my blog and Youtube channel: BOWhemian WRAPsody.

Gift Wrapping Ideas: Make it Masculine!

In today’s gift wrapping tutorial, I used a new medium that I found at Dollarama to create what I believe to be a bit more of a masculine gift wrapping design. Don’t get me wrong, these designs would be perfect for anyone on your list. The only reason I deem them more masculine is because the designs are perhaps less “pretty” and more streamlined, contemporary and overall less fussy. The basis for this look is a super cool black metal ribbon mounted on matt black paper. The metal itself gives a “male” vibe and I love the black on black to keep things very sophisticated. To finish off each creation, I change up the ribbon/focal point.

Check out my latest gift wrapping tutorial to see how I incorporated metal ribbon into this design and how it serves as the perfect element for creating a more masculine gift wrapping design.

For more great gift wrapping tutorials…subscribe to both my blog and my youtube channel: BOWhemian WRAPsody. Don’t forget to LIKE and SHARE if you enjoy the tutorial.