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You’ve got the perfect gift... now for great wrapping! You’ve combed the stores for the perfect gifts for everyone on your list. Now you’re face to face with bags and boxes that all need to be wrapped before the big day. It may seem like an insurmountable task, especially for last-minute shoppers. However, with a little know-how and the right materials, wrapping can be creative fun. TRADITIONAL WRAPPING As you may have guessed, square or rectangular boxes are easier to wrap than other shapes. Therefore, where possible, place irregularly shaped packages in a rectangular box to make your wrapping go that much faster. Here are some surefire wrapping steps from eHow.com: 1. Gather all your materials and place them on a flat surface. Don’t forget to remove the price tag. 2. Place the box along the length of wrapping paper and unroll enough paper to wrap it around the box, leaving at least a 2-inch overlap. There should be enough wrapping paper at each end of the box to cover the ends completely when they are folded over. 3. Mark where this overlap ends. Cut the wrapping paper in a straight line at this point. 4. Eyeball the wrapping paper at the ends of the box. Trim any extra paper so that the remaining flaps are long enough to cover the box, but short enough to fold over smoothly into flaps. 5. Open the paper you’ve just cut and lay the box in the center of the unprinted side, top down. 6. Bring one lengthwise edge of the wrapping paper to the center of the box and secure it with tape. Turn the opposite end over approximately one inch and fold and tape to the center of the box. 7. Turn the box to face one short side. Grasp the left and right edges of the wrapping paper and push the sides to form top and bottom flaps. Make sure the edges are pushed in as far as they will go without ripping the paper. Tape the edges to the box. 8. Bring the upper flap down against the side of the box, making sure the flap is sharply creased at its folds. Tape in place. Do the same for the lower flap. 9. Repeat for the opposite side of the box. 10. Turn box over, wrap a ribbon around it and place a bow on top of your nowwrapped gift. ALTERNATIVE WRAPPING Most people stock up on wrapping paper, ribbons and bows for holiday wrapping duty. However, there are many other lesstraditional items that can make your gifts stand out from the stack. Here are some ideas: Wrap awkwardly shaped items in soft, flexible materials, like scarves, decorative towels or lace, rather than struggling with creasing wrapping paper. Gift bags are invaluable tools. Simply place your gift inside and top with decorative tissue paper. Tie handles together with ribbon. Or make a homemade gift bag by applying a rubber stamp with a seasonal design to a plain paper bag. Use tins, flower pots, glass jars or canisters for unusual gift holders. Recipients can use the container as well as the gift itself. Don’t overlook newsprint, postal paper, architectural drawings or maps as wrapping paper substitutes. Hollow out an old book, glue the pages together, and use for a clever presentation package for a small treasure.
Use your imagination! You can probably come up with scores of wrapping ideas just by scouring your home.
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