Presenting...

PRESENTS!

I don't know if it's cause I have my birthday on the brain (less than a month away, people! woo!) or what, but today I was inspired to share how I store giftwrapping supplies in my tiny condo. Now, if you have ever been a family member or close friend of mine, you would know that I love to wrap gifts. When I was 15 I volunteered wrapping presents at an Indigo bookstore for the MS Society of Canada. While there, I learned many fancy techniques (of which I only remember one now) and from then on I was hooked on wrapping. I think the presentation of a gift shows how much I care about giving you a gift. I probably put MORE thought into my wrapping paper than I do my presents. hahaha

While one day I will share the "after" photos of the cute gifts I put together, today I will focus on storage. You may have noticed some of my wrapping supplies peeking out in this picture:

Hmmm....what's that in the corner?

 My paper!! I actually do not like Christmas wrapping paper. I don't find it as "pretty" and frankly, you can really only use it at Christmas and then you have to store it out of sight for the other 11 months of the year. But if you buy ultra-gorgeous paper like moi, you will have suitable paper for all occasions AND can leave it out in plain sight! And yes, you may get pink polka-dotted paper on your Christmas gift, but that just helps my present stand out against the reds and greens. :)

To keep this paper all corralled, I use the following high-tech technique:

A magazine holder! Be warned that this will really only work if the paper can lean against the wall too. However I love this because the paper stays neat (doesn't unroll) and it is easy to select a roll and then replace it when I am done.

We both know that gift wrapping involves more than paper. What about scissors and tape? They are always impossible to find when you need to wrap. And what if you are gifting something awkward that can't be wrapped in paper? Well look no further than on top of my armoire:

Hmmm, a mysterious, yet beautiful box? What could be inside?

My supplies! Yup, I keep everything neatly stored in this box and I just pull it down whenever I need it. This is actually a boot box from Ikea. (I think this one is the most similar that they have in stock now). I like it because it is relatively shallow but big, so I don't have to dig for anything.

I keep the essentials in this box
- double sided tape (for clean edges)
- back up tape (because you ALWAYS run out at the last minute)
- scissors
- gift bags
- tissue paper
- gift tags
- the odd card
- ribbon and bows
- a wine box

Yup! That is all in there!

And yes, some of my gift bags ARE Christmas, because I always use so many over the holidays and end up buying too many. You can also see the red wine box there too! It fits in the box great.

And I keep my ribbons in it :)

As for where I buy my supplies, basically all the gift bags, tissue paper, and ribbon come from the Dollar store because they have amazing selection and prices. For my wrapping paper, however, I tend to go more high quality. I think almost all of mine came from Hallmark, because they often have buy one, get one 50% sales and their rolls are HUGE and last for years. I also enjoy the fact that some of mine are double sided (twice the choices!) and I even have some self-adhesive gift wrap, which I find IS easier to work with, as long as your present is a simple box.

I hope you enjoyed these ideas and I look forward to all the beautifully wrapped gifts you will send for my birthday *hint hint*. hahaha, I'm just kidding. I prefer cash :P