Friday, December 23, 2011

Wrapping Presents

Like me, you’re probably all busily wrapping presents.  Hopefully, unlike me, you don’t feel yourself at the beginning of a cold, or (gasp) the flu.  At any rate, I’m not cooking much this week, but wrapping presents, so today I’m going to provide you with a holiday rerun in this post about wrapping pretty gifts the easy and inexpensive way.

Press on everyone!  You’re going to make it!
A wrapped gift employing the use of florals, a glue gun, and a recycled bow.
 
I made quite a score at Michael's the other day when they put their florals on sale for half off and THEN had a coupon to get an additional 15% off of an entire order including sale items.  Can you say, giddy with excitement?

Just a fraction of the items I got ON SALE at Michael's.

Looking at all of the beautiful winter flowers and greenery gave me an idea (helped, no doubt, by being stuck in a long and slow-moving line next to a rack of glue guns).  Why not skip the ribbons and bows on wrapped packages this year in favor of flowers and greenery? And wouldn't using a glue gun be so much faster?

Do you know what? It is!  And not only faster, but the packages are prettier and it looks like you've spent hours on them when essentially you've just spent minutes (plus the time it takes to you  heat up the glue gun and try to remember where you put the wire cutters).

In order to expedite things, it helps to snip all of the leaves and flowers from their stems using wire cutters, or a sharp and powerful pair of kitchen shears (The kind that cuts through a chicken carcass with ease works particularly well.).  Discard the stems, and divide into "leaf" piles and "flower" piles, then sort by color.

Warm up your glue gun while wrapping gifts so you'll be ready.  Then, assembly-line style, hot glue flowers securely in place with dabs of glue in the center and on about half of the outside petals.  Then put a dot of glue underneath the base of the leaves and place them where desired beneath the flower, pressing down until the glue takes hold. Voila!  A beautifully-wrapped, professional-looking package in no time and on a budget.
I used a bit of sparkly gold curling ribbon on this package to bring out the gold on the flower.

After a while you'll develop both a rhythm and a real eye for design.  If you need some inspiration, I recommend Carolyne Roehm's book, Presentations: A Passion for Gift Wrapping.

4 comments:

~~louise~~ said...

Oh No Pattie, not a cold! Better up that Vitamin C:) I'm just terrible at wrapping presents, always have been. I must admit though, the glue gun sounds like something I could do. I LOVE my glue gun!!! And your gifts look so festive. You really did get some goodies to put to good use.

My eye is still on the mend and Marion has only alloted me an hour today to blog visit. It feels wonderful to be "patch less" even if only for an hour. In case I don't make it back, I wanted to wish you and yours a Very Merry Christmas. I know this year has had its down falls for you and your family but thankfully it sounds like it's getting more normal in your neck of the woods. Enjoy:)

So funny word verification Patish

Babs said...

Sorry you're trying to catch a "bug" but your gift wrapping isn't "suffering". Sorry about that pun.
The gifts are gorgeous! I love how you added the faux plant material instead of just plopping a ready made bow on them. Well done, and hope your Christmas is the best ever.
Babs
Get well soon!

Anonymous said...

Feel better soon! I love the poinsettia on the package. Pat

SavoringTime in the Kitchen said...

Unfortunately, like you, I have come down with a really bad cold or flu! We've had to cancel our plans for tonight and I just hope to feel better tomorrow.

Beautiful presents. Hope you feel better tomorrow too!