Simple Chic Holiday Gift Wrapping

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Christmas is just a little over a week away, friends, which means it’s time to think about wrapping up those gifts you’ve been buying! Speaking of gift wrapping, today is the big day when my “merry” gift tag hits select GAP stores as part of a Gap x DarbySmart gift wrap kit collaboration!

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You may remember me asking begging for votes about a month ago, and with your help, my tag was chosen as one of the ten featured in this limited edition kit. See it?

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I admit, I’m pretty excited about the fact that something I drew right here at the kitchen table of the Artsy House is a legit gift tag design for sale in a major retailer and that it’ll be showing up on packages across the country. I mean, come on, that’s just cool! But honestly? It’s not what I had really hoped it would be. I’ve struggled all day long with writing this post, friends, because my “job” today is to convince you all to go out and buy this kit and wrap your gifts with it. But I can’t.

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You see, you and I, we have a deal, don’t we? You give me precious minutes of your day stopping by the site and the Facebook page, and we share life together. I give you ideas that are quick, cheap, and easy, {and hopefully awesome too} and in exchange you show me what you’ve been working on and give me your feedback. A long time ago, I promised you that we play the “honestly” game around here, and that’s true. Every. Day. If you read something here, it’s because I honestly believe it. And I honestly don’t believe you should spend $24 on this kit. I am happy, though, to show you what’s inside and to show you a simple, chic wrapping idea that you can do whether you have this kit or not.

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Inside this kit, you will find a total of 10 paper gift tags {7 are winners from the contest like me, and 3 are designed by DarbySmart} along with a few wooden ones. You will also find a roll of baker’s twine, which is available just about anywhere, a silver metallic marker/pen that is actually quite nice, and a roll of very pretty sparkly washi tape that won’t stick to anything. Finally, the kit includes a 12″ x 7 ft roll of kraft paper. Here is the wrapping idea I came up with.

Step 1: Wrap your gift with kraft paper.
If you don’t have any, guess what you can use…a paper bag! This is a grocery bag turned inside out. Voila!

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Step 2: Create stripes using sparkly washi tape.
At this point, I got mad because the tape literally will not stick. I pressed and pushed, and you can see there on the side how it’s not actually stuck. You can secure it in the back with clear tape, though, or use a stickier version of sparkle tape.

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Step 3: Add a bow and a tag tied with twine.
Mixed metallics are SO on trend this year, so I used a gold bow to contrast with my silver sparkle tape. Of course, I chose the “merry” tag and tied it with some twine. I think it would look pretty cute with a hand lettered “wish” tag too! I know many of you have been playing with your lettering; this is a great opportunity to try it out!

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Step 4: {optional} Add some lettering to the kraft paper.
The silver pen is actually really cool, so I used it to add, “May your days be merry & bright” to the top and bottom of my gift. I thought it went nicely with the tag, but you could use any message or someone’s name too.

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There you have it, an easy and really fun looking package that’s a mixture of rustic and metallic. What do you think?

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I do want to thank you all so much for your votes and your kind words regarding my gift tag, and I truly am honored and excited that it was chosen for the Gap x DarbySmart Gift Wrap Kit. I just wish the kit contained a bit more or that the price point were lower so I could wholeheartedly recommend it. I’m sure sharing my honest thoughts isn’t making me any friends at GAP today, but as I struggled and considered what to do, I knew that I had to be authentic and true to the commitment I have with you, my readers and friends.

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I would love to hear what your favorite wrapping styles and techniques are, and I’d love to see any gift tags you’ve been hand lettering or creating in other ways. Stop by and share your ideas on the Facebook page or in our private One Artsy Mama Facebook group! See you there!

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6 Comments

  1. Thicker paper and lots of tape. I do try to coordinate my tags and paper, but that’s about as far as my creativity goes for wrapping. I do however try to put a lot of thought into my gifts.

  2. Oh I’m sooo glad I’m not the only one who could not figure out that washi tape. I spent a half hour trying to force it to stick and gave up. Beautiful job on the tag! It’s my favorite one in the set. 🙂

  3. Congratulations on your tag being chosen!! That’s totally awesome!! I love how you wrapped the package…beautiful!! I love wrapping gifts especially with ribbons and bows that I make. Thanks for continuing to be real and honest. Since I went back to work full-time two months ago, I’ve had to cut back on how many blogs I read, but yours is one of my favorites!!!! Merry Christmas!!

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