As many of you learned last year, I like to have a holiday gift wrap theme each year. Born out of necessity, I am extra excited to share this year’s look.

With a new baby in the house, gift wrap was not at the top of my list. One day, she was napping especially well and I found myself with some free time to get some wrapping done. One problem – I hadn’t planned anything or purchased any paper. Creative inspiration struck! I love the look of our Paper Bag wrapping paper, and decided to use the months of my Great Big Calendar as the base for this year’s gift wrap. Once I started, the ideas kept coming.

One month is the perfect size for a standard shirt box. For larger packages, I banded with a strip of calendar or used our Holiday Typography Paper, which matches perfectly (though this required my husband to make a quick run to our Evanston Store). So far, my favorite idea is this bow made out of the days of the week.

I hope this idea inspires you. For more inspiration, check out these wrapping tips for the season.

From our new family to yours – happy holidays!

–Ann
PS colors: pool, peacock & chocolate
Latest fave: 2012 Great Big Wall Calendar

Last year, Ann brought us together when she gleefully confessed that she is a Wrapaholic. Slowly, confessions trickled in from others who admitted their obsession with color, coordinated style and perfect corners. Her post was like a safe place for fellow Wrappers to disclose the amount of time spent preparing packages or share in the joy of present perfection.

This year, Ann revealed her secrets to perfect packages in our latest gift wrapping video. In it, Ann talks about five main components she credits for helping her stay cool, calm and coordinated.

Scissors
Ann recommends having two pair of scissors — one for paper and one for ribbon — but make sure you have at least one pair solely dedicated to gift wrapping, so they stay nice and sharp.

Tape
Always have a full roll of tape on your spool. If you’re a fellow Wrapper, we suggest using double-stick tape — it keeps your adhesive hidden and works really well with ribbon application.

Solid Gift Wrap
Select a few rolls of solid wrapping paper to have on hand. Mix up the colors, so you have a base for any occasion that might come up.

Ribbon
Store a few spools of ribbon, in various colors and sizes, so you can accent boxed packages and gift bags.

Patterned Gift Wrap
It is hard to choose just one, so Ann recommends having a wedding print, a gift wrap for kids, and a colorful polka dot gift wrap to cover events throughout the year. Read the rest of this entry »

I’m loving the pennant garlands I see online. Whether made from paper or fabric, strung inside or outside, and used for kids or adults, they are perfectly festive. And I especially love them when they are scaled down to a miniature version (take a look at the tiny birthday garland Annie made…adorable). For simple, yet incredibly festive gift wrap, I used our craft box and wrapped a strand of pennants around the box a few times.

I love using craft boxes as gift boxes…even plain, they are really interesting. For the banner, I cut lots of triangles and adhered two back to back with a small piece of tape with the string in between. What is great about this banner is that wrapping it haphazardly only enhances the look, so there is no need to be perfect. I think I’ll be using this technique again and again!

–Kristen
PS colors: peacock & chocolate
Latest fave: Craft Boxes

Last month I needed a graduation gift for a friend. Deciding what was going inside the box was easy. Deciding how to jazz up my packaging took a little more time. I was traveling on a flight with this, so sturdy packaging was a must. I found a gift box I had saved (thanks, Anthropologie) that fit everything inside and was the perfect blank canvas. To personalize it I designed a piece to mount to the lid of the box, which featured a series of words related to my friend’s graduation in a variety of fonts.

I love how this turned out. It is simple, clean packaging that is truly custom (I chose each word featured in the design), and it’s something I can do for another occasion.

P.S. Don’t think that you need any fancy design programs to do this – I created this in good old Microsoft Word with a series of text boxes.

–Kristen
PS colors: peacock & chocolate
Latest fave: Satin Ribbon

Not long ago I didn’t know what a box mailer was, let alone all you could do with them…and now, I’m smitten. Here are a few ways to put them to work.

Wedding Invitations
Wouldn’t you love to receive a perfect little box addressed to you with a wedding invitation inside? Simply stunning. It’s true, you can mail them! Our A7 box mailers are sized to fit our A7 envelopes and anything else you can fit inside. Check out these amazing Las Vegas wedding invitations and these classic wedding invitations, all mailed in our box mailers.

Gift Boxes
Box mailers are like greeting cards – I keep a bunch on hand because I never know when I’ll need one (in the perfect color). I used them this past Christmas to package our letterpress calendar (everyone on my list got one). The boxes are so lovely they don’t even need wrapping paper – just tie with ribbon. They’re also great for packaging gift cards (just add some festive filler), which can be otherwise unimpressive to present.

Special Deliveries
Whether it’s an invitation, letter, or tiny treasure, packaging it in a box mailer makes it extra special. To mail it, seal the box closed with stickers and address and stamp right on the box, or wrap the box mailer in kraft paper or cellophane then address and stamp (this way the recipient can reuse the box). Snail mail never looked so good.

Handy Dandy Storage
Take a look in your desk drawer – aren’t you just dying to organize those paper clips, loose change, rubber bands, etc? Use one half of the box mailer as a catch-all inside drawers and on desk tops. And choose your favorite box mailer color, because even though no one will see it, it still makes you happy (like your favorite underwear).

Arts & Crafts
Claudia posted a while back on how she used a box mailer to create a lovely wall art piece – the box mailer becomes the back drop and frame. You can take this idea in a million directions…frame photographs, letters for a child’s room, or charming silhouettes as Claudia shows.

So, the next time you want to think outside the box, think inside a box mailer! And please, tell me how you’ve used box mailers in creative ways.

–Kristen
PS colors: peacock & chocolate
Latest fave: Satin Ribbon

Hi, my name is Ann and I’m a wrapaholic.

Each holiday season, I prepare two lists – one filled with gifts for my family and friends and one outlining my wrapping plans. I am a planner and perfectionist at heart, and I anxiously await the thrill I get from filling the tree skirt with perfectly-wrapped packages. Don’t think of the following list as a list of unrealistic expectations, but rather a look into the crazy confessions of this wrapper.

1. Start with a color story. Each year, I pick a theme. I carry it through from my holiday cards, to my tree (yes, I redo my tree annually) to my wrapping. I always incorporate at least one or two solid wraps and one or two prints. I love the look of banding a printed wrap or fine paper around solids. This year – my color story is pool, peacock, chocolate and touches of silver. Read the rest of this entry »

As a Paper Source employee, my friends and family expect the gifts I give to be wrapped in a creative, interesting way. Here, I did just that, taking some great new holiday 12×12 to make this whimsical bow.

The nice thing about 12×12 is that most of the sheets are double-sided (they are also very inexpensive), and this bow takes advantage of both sides. Read the rest of this entry »

Don’t forget to leave time between brunch and errands to visit your local Paper Source store tomorrow. Our stores will be hosting our annual holiday demos, which are certain to inspire the season and, perhaps, ignite your holiday shopping spirit.

Featured in the day’s events are some of our new Holiday Kits (both for kids and adults), along with loads of card making ideas, favor containers for festive gifting, and plenty of rubber stamping playtime towards the end of the day. For those organized souls, who have completed gift shopping and card making before Thanksgiving (We’re so jealous!), you will especially love our gift wrapping demos. See how small finishing touches will make your gifts extra special!

Stop by your local Paper Source from 11 a.m. – 3 p.m. (local time) to see what our experts are doing or visit our In-Store Demo Page to see what we have planned for our guests.

Happy Holidays from Paper Source!

I love gifting.

I enjoy the challenge of finding something that fits the recipient’s interests, something they would not expect you to know.

I revel in the surprise of giving something so perfectly them.

With this also comes an aversion to gift cards. But two of the most creative people I know are tying the knot [today] and The Mister and I wanted to give gifts they could personalize, forcing me to compromise on my stringent gifting rule.

With a little help from my stockpile of Paper Source goods (yes, I had all of this), I infused our usual thoughtful nature into the presentation, whipping up a gift which celebrates the couple’s worldly interests. If you’re going to give a gift card, at least consider some creative packaging!

– Liz
PS colors: night & curry
Latest fave: Cavallini Wrapping Paper

Materials used: Read the rest of this entry »