How to wrap perfect presents
As traditions go, gift giving has to be the best, but going that little extra and wrapping a present well could be the icing on the cake for the recipient.
The Japanese, for example, traditionally view wrapping a gift as ‘wrapping the heart’, and apply extravagance to the practice, with the unwrapping similarly steeped in ceremony and ritual.
So practice the following and you’ll soon become a bona fide wrap star – after all, with a tantalisingly well-wrapped gift, the pleasure begins even before it’s revealed.
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- Presents in boxes are easier to wrap. Not finding a box for footballs, rugby balls, bottles of booze etc. will simply ruin the surprise
- Tool-up with some paper, blunt scissors, and sticky tape, then find a flat, clean surface (no, a beanbag won’t do!). You may also want additional items such as bows, ribbon, tags or glitter
- Remove the price tag from the gift – a particularly important tip for tightwads, after all, it’s better to be thought of as one than known as one
- Place the box on enough wrapping paper to cover the gift plus a 5cm overlap in all directions then cut the paper to size
- Place the box top down in the dead centre of the unprinted side (duh!)
- Fold one side of the paper up and over so that it covers just over half the width of the top of the box. Secure with tape
- Do the same with the opposite side of the paper so that it just overlaps your first fold. Secure with tape. You now have a rectangular, open-ended tube
- Flip the semi-wrapped box over
- Next, close the ends. Face an open end towards you and fold the right and left corners of the top overhang inwards to form a 45-degree angle fold. Tuck the whole overhang downwards with a sharp crease and secure to the box with tape
- Do the same for the bottom overhang, being careful to tuck the sides in smoothly, and then repeat for the opposite side of the box
- Neatly tape all folds to the box and along the seam of the wrapping paper
- Next, take some ribbon and wrap it around the box lengthwise. Twist the ribbon where they cross over and wrap it around the box width-wise. Where the ends of the ribbon meet, tie a pretty bow (directions on how to tie a pretty bow will appear in a future edition)
- Tie a card or gift tag to the ribbon on the topside of the box and don’t forget to write a nice message. If you’re in a creative mood, why not write the recipients name in non-toxic glue, sprinkle with glitter and shake off the surplus
Voila! Assuming you haven’t had too much sherry you should now have a perfectly wrapped Christmas gift.
Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.
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