It’s cold and wet outside and the last thing anyone feels like doing is venturing outdoors. So why not pick up that bag of crumpled Christmas wrapping paper and get going on some of these brilliant ideas and projects that I’ve discovered on the web.
I am always amazed by the ingenuity and creativity of other people and some of these ideas are fantastic. The one that I love is from Martha Stewart. Here you take that pile of leftover gift wrap and push it through your shredder to create sparkly strands of wrapping spaghetti that will cushion future fragile gifties perfectly.
I would suggest only doing this if you have an automatic shredder because, and I can swear to this fact, it is hard and tedious work doing it with a hand-powered one. I was shattered and I was only a quarter of the way through the bag. Anyway, it is a brilliant way of re-using the old Christmas paper that cannot be recycled for presents next year and it can be used all year round.
If creating a bag full of strips of wrapping paper fills you with dread and horror, then why not sharpen your origami skills instead? There is a site called Origami Funwhich has step-by-step instructions and advice on how to create your very own wrapping paper origami. While you can’t necessarily use up all the Christmas wrap, it’s one way of keeping everyone entertained and learning a new skill at the same time.
The Origami Fun Christmas wrap ideas that really, really struck a chord with me include the Pandora’s Box and the Lucky Stars. These are gorgeous!
Also from Martha Stewart is the idea of taking some of the less gauche and sparkly wrap and using it to line a drinks tray. It won’t necessarily last you forever, but it does look fantastic when you serve drinks or as a standalone display in the centre of your table. It doesn’t even need to be put away when the Christmas decorations go either. There are full instructions on how to make this drink tray liner here.
Take your leftover wrapping paper, get your kids to tear or cut them into weird and funky shapes. Unleash them on the paper and gather up all of their artwork when they are done. Now get card paper – you can buy this for next to nothing at WH Smith – and fold it into card shapes. The next step is to get the kids to glue their bits of paper onto the front of these cards in any pattern they like.
You can even be prescriptive and have them stick strips of paper into specific shapes you have already drawn onto the cards. Once those are dried and done you have handmade cards that can be used for upcoming birthdays and special occasions and that other family members will really appreciate because of all the hard work you’ve put into making them.
The Instructables have directions for making absolutely awesome paper dolls. These are genius and can also be used on cards when you are done. You can make some awesome outfits using the Christmas gift wrap and I have to agree with the lady who created these – there is something very rewarding about making your own free paper dolls using the tools and equipment you have to hand right now.
Another idea that I adore and have seen over a couple of places on the web is to buy your own clear, cheap Christmas tree baubles and then fill these with the shredded Christmas wrapping paper you now have thanks to the first idea above. Or you can scrunch the paper up into balls and have them bobble about inside. It looks amazing and I take my hat off to the lady who created them.
Finally you can follow the Instructable to make paper beadsout of your leftover Christmas wrapping paper and amaze your friends with your total crafty awesomeness.
And there you have it, some awesome things to do with your Christmas wrapping paper that you might never have thought of before. Have fun and have a fantastic holiday!
Comments