It’s not just about the wrapping paper. Especially if you’ve got kids, you might have to write that off (who doesn’t like tearing up wrapping paper anyway?). Anything your gifts come wrapped in can be used as gift wrapping again, or possibly even around the house. Making the most of everything you get is a great and easy holiday tradition to start. Here are five fun ideas for making the most out of that stuff that normally goes right into recycling after the holidays.
DIY Gift Tags
Sure, you can settle for the sticker that says to and from on it, write some names on and it be done. But what if you could bring back the memory of last year’s gifts and still make a useful gift tag for this year’s gifts? You can either cut some strips of old wrapping paper and fold them over like a little book, or you can get a die cutting tool to cut the shape out and run some string through the hole. Pro tip: glue some blank card stock to the white side of your wrapping paper so that it holds up, wait for it to dry, and then die cut it.
DIY Ornaments
You can find all kinds of empty or blank ornaments, even at your local dollar store. You can use them to make your own snow globes, or photo ornaments, or – if you’ve got enough wrapping paper left over – use your most decorative wrapping paper to fill the empty ornaments for a nice reminder of what you saw under the tree last year. You can shred, tear, or crumple wrapping paper to your heart’s content for a fun, DIY holiday decoration.
Organizing
If any of your presents this year came in sturdy boxes – like shoes, especially – you can easily repurpose those for organization, and they’re especially helpful if you need to reinvigorate your decoration storage. Year after year of storage and handling makes the wear and tear on holiday decoration boxes pretty heavy, so any opportunity to fix them up is a good idea. You can also cut up other slightly smaller boxes into dividers to keep your decorations separate and safe.
From Wrapping to Decorations
If you’ve got the room to keep your wrapping paper and other gift wrap stored somewhere, you might have the makings of festive flags and hanging decorations. Simply hang them over some string and die cut them or cut them with scissors into fun designs, and you’ve got some great graphic design and colors to help add a little pop to your next celebration.
Twine and Ribbon
Twine and ribbon tend to stick around and remain strong, so they’re always good for next year’s gifts, but they’re also perfect for around the house and crafting purposes. They’re also great for looping and adding to your DIY gifts or decorations. Twine, especially, can add a great rustic look to whatever you’re putting up, and it’s strong, so it’ll stay up.