Holiday 09 Giftwrap

The holiday season is here, and the challenge of creating unique and lovely gift wrapping has us thinking about our tools - and how we can put them to good use along with our crafting supplies to create special packaging that is sure to be remembered - even re-used in future years. Four design team members share their hand crafted gift wrap with you today -

Designer: Kendra McCracken
Sometimes we have a gift to give that's extra special and it calls for an extra special presentation to go along with it. Creating a simple pintucked fabric slipcover for a gift box takes a little extra time, but the elegant appearance of the ruffled surface will leave the recipient awestruck at care you've taken to make their gift a special one.

Begin by cutting a length of fabric long enough to wrap around the whole box, adding in 1/4" for each pintuck you want to create and 1" for a seam allowance. The fabric should be the width of the box plus 1" for seam allowances.  Hem each long side 1/2" to finish the edges.

To create the pintucks, mark your length of fabric every 2 inches. Pinch the fabric together at these points and pin along the length of the tuck. Stitch along each fold line, 1/4" away from it. Next, fold the pintucks all in one direction and pin them in place. Starting 1 1/2" from one edge, stitch each pintuck down.  Remove the pins and fold the pintucks in the opposite direction.  Starting 1 1/2" from the stitches just made, stitch each pintuck again. Remove the pins and keep repeating folding the tucks in alternating directions and stitching them in place along each one.

Once the pintucks are completed, stitch the 2 ends of the length of fabric together using a 1/2" seam allowance.

Cover the box in patterned paper and slip the pintucked cover over the box. Add  pom-pom trim. Use the new Brackets and Journal Shape Template and The Ultra ShapeXpress to cut the base for the tag. Punch a circle with the Extra Large Round n Round Squeeze Punch.Add a punched tree using the new Pine for Me Squeeze Punch.  Add borders and stitching as desired and mount the tag on the wrapping using Fiskars Foam Dots. Top off your pretty little package with big pink fabric bow and you're ready to put a big smile on someone's face before they even open the package.

Designer: Susan Weinroth
I love to gift items in reusable “wrapping”.  So when I needed to create a fun gift wrap item for this article, I immediately thought of fabric drawstring bag.  And what better way to decorate it, then with Christmas themed ribbons. 

Create your own similar bag by starting with a 7x18 piece of red cotton fabric – use your Fiskars mat, acrylic ruler, and comfort grip rotary cutter to trim fabric to size.  Fold fabric in half (so that it measures 7x9) and iron to crease.  Unfold, lay ribbon strips on half, pin in place, then machine stitch across.  Trim ends using Fiskars microtip scissors.

Fold again at crease – this time with right sides (and now ribbon) facing inwards.  Pin edges and machine stitch.  This is the slightly tricky part:  stitch ALL the way up on one side, and on the other side, leave about an inch to two inches unstitched at the very top (to allow for your drawstring mechanism that you will now create).  Turn bag right side out and press if needed.

At the very top of bag, fold edge inwards and press to crease (this is the spot for the drawstring).  Machine stitch around the bottom edge of the flap you folded down.  Use a pipe cleaner (or similar tool) to push a length of ribbon through the drawstring opening.  Your bag is complete and ready to be filled with a gift!

Designer: Lisa Truesdell
This year, we’re aiming for a “less is more” holiday at our house.  Less stress, less time shopping, less money – more time together and more thought into the gifts.  I wanted my wrapping to reflect that. Instead of buying new ribbons and bows, I’ve come up with a way to recycle goods that we already have.  I’m planning on wrapping most of our gifts in paper bags and newspaper, and found a way to work my fabric scraps from past projects into a homespun “ribbon” to wrap around each box. A punched & stamped tag will add the finishing touch to each one.

I started this project by grabbing my Comfort Grip Rotary Trimmer and my basket of fabric scraps.   I love saving the little bits and pieces left over from sewing projects to use on my cards and scrapbook pages, so I had quite a stash!  I pulled out a few different colors and patterns and cut them into strips that were about ½ in wide using the rotary trimmer, and then cut them to different lengths.  I then took them to my sewing machine and stitched them into a long garland. 

This is a great place for your kids to help – it goes much faster when you have little elves handing you each new piece, rather than stopping the machine to grab one! If you’re lacking helping hands, I found that lining up a few pieces on my sewing machine made it go a little faster.  I went with a multi colored ribbon, but it would be cute to customize each person’s gifts with their favorite color.

After I wrapped the ribbon around my package, it needed a bit more.  I used a new limited edition winter squeeze punch – Pine For Me – at the bottom of a shipping tag. I then cut a scrap of fabric to fit behind it using my Pinking Sheers and stitched it into place. My Basic Font clear stamps were perfect for adding “to” and “from” to finish my tag. I added two buttons tied with string after I attached the tag to the package.

Designer: Katrina Simeck

One of my favorite parts of holiday gift-giving is the wrapping! It’s your chance to add an extra handspun touch to every gift that you give.

I started with a simple kraft paper giftbag & kraft giftwrap, then used Fiskars tools to add my own hand-crafted spin.

Fiskars 8”x8” stamp sets are perfect for creating your own gift wrap! I used the Tartan Plaid background stamp from the Tartan n’ Time set, and plain kraft giftwrap. After wrapping, I added a crumpled button embellishment that I created by layering punched shapes (Round n’ Round and Seal of Approval).

A simple kraft gift bag turns into something special with a few punched details. To create the ruffle at the bottom of the bag, I punched a strip of cardstock with the Fiskars Leave it to Weaver border punch. I then carefully trimmed along one side, and bent the cardstock slightly to create a ruffled look.

The wreath on this bag is created with layers of punched hearts using Fiskars That’s Amore squeeze punch. Last but not least, the special edition Cardinal’s Song punch provides this festive bird to perch on the wreath.

Why settle for store-bought gift wrap when it’s so easy to create your very own? Enjoy!

By Fiskars Design Team