When I was a teenager, we used to volunteer at the mall as gift wrappers to fundraise for local schools. I put in a lot of hours learning to wrap quickly, wrap odd shaped items, and also make the most of the thin red wrapping paper supplied for the event.
If you’ve never wrapped a gift before, it can be a little daunting and definitely takes some practice! You will need wrapping paper/material, scissors, and tape. You can certainly get creative outside of traditional wrapping material in terms of using paper grocery bags, newspaper, sheet music, or even fabric. For simplicity, in my example and instructions we will asssume you have a rectangular item or box.
1. Size Your Paper
The first thing you want to do is size out the amount of paper you will need to wrap your gift. You want to ensure you can wrap the paper all the way around your item without a gap. Sometimes turning your item 90 degrees or diagonally is the best way to make this work. If you’re wrapping smaller items, you might also want to cut up your paper so you can use a larger piece for multiple items. If you’re unsure something will fit and it’s not fragile, go ahead and just roll the box along the width or length of the paper to check if it will go all the way around.
2. Cut Your Paper
Once you’ve figured out how much paper you need, cut it from the roll or larger sheet to size. Many rolls of wrapping paper have a grid along the back to follow a straight edge. If you don’t have one, roll the paper up a bit so you can use the roll as your guideline. Try to use full size scissors for this as they are easier to glide through the paper than a smaller pair. With a good roll of wrapping paper you can push the scissors straight along the paper as though it glides. If your paper doesn’t do this and starts to tear or wrinkle, fully open and close the scissors to more carefully snip the entire sheet.
3. Center Your Gift and Make the First Folds
Lay your wrapping paper out with the printed side down. Carefully turn your gift upside down and center it on the backside of your wrapping paper. Fold one side of the paper up and over so it is taut along your gift. If needed, anchor the piece with some tape. Fold the opposite side up and over to completely surround your gift item in wrapping paper and secure with tape. If you have too much paper you can fold over or cut off the excess.
4. Mock Fold the Ends of the Gift
Next you’ll tackle the two open ends of your gift. You want those ends of paper to be no longer than the height of the box or space they need to cover. If you’re too afraid to cut them down right away, you can wait until later.
Rotate your gift item so an open end is facing you. Gently push the left and right sides down toward the sides of your gift so that the top and bottom start to move toward the center like envelope closures.
For your first open end, give it a very light fold like above. Do not crease it or tape it – we will come back to it so you can ensure it is taut. Turn your gift vertically with that section on the bottom so your gift is keeping it in place. It’s okay if it’s a little lumpy or messy at this point.
5. Fold the Open Top
Repeat that same folding motion on the now top-facing end of your gift item. As you push the left and right sides down, push the bottom of the paper down so it follows the natural folding motion. Crease the paper to flatten it. Repeat this in a downward motion with the top piece. If your paper is longer than the space you have, cut or fold it down. With the top piece neatly folded over the bottom, tape to secure.
6. Fix the Other Side
Flip your gift over and fold down the other end for real. This will ensure the wrapping paper is actually tight enough on both sides without extra space or air bubbles.
And there you have it! Look out for a few tips coming up to jazz up that gift with a bow or some ribbon!
Hayley at Large 