The Gift Wrap Extravaganza............Merry Red

Love the jolly theme from designer Tobi Fairley here. Makes me want to have a Santa party too. I have never met a designer yet who can't gift wrap beautifully. 

Clever is all around you when you have a sharp pair of scissors. Don't forget to recycle this years holiday cards for next years festive embellishments. Think ahead. 

Pick one festive gift wrap colour in a variety of patterns (if too many papers overwhem you) to give your tree gift collection a cordinated look. From google here.

This whimsical and easy way to dress up a store box was from a J. Crew newsletter last year. Those sharpies are good for more than marking freezer bags. 

Fresh greens, small strips of festive gift wrap, and buttons add classic status to simple brown bags. Effort is everything in gift presentation. Above and below From Country Home. 

Country Home

Tube Mailer wrapped in gold faux bois paper from Martha Stewart. Christmas logs that won't melt anything but your heart.

A small supply of fresh greens instantly do what we need a holiday gift package to do...........be festive. More Martha here

  French simplicity by Sharon of the elegant blog My French Country Home.

Photos linked at source.

The Gift Wrap Extravaganza............. the Brights

Those Aussie girls love their colour and use it so beautifully. Designer Anna Spiro of Absolutely Beautiful Things did what designers love to do when it comes to gift wrapping.........tie strips of fabric into beautful bows. You wouldn't miss these under the tree. 

The fabric BoBo Wraps  have been on my must-blog-about list for a bit and don't they make gift wrapping sense? Love the colours and the idea.............gift wrap that keeps on giving. They come complete with the tie-ups and in different sizes, patterns, and solid colours. May I mention that they are a stylish godsend to the gift wrapped impaired?

Those fun baubles to tie up the fabric wraps are called Bungees.

Better Homes & Gardens just goes to show how much fun gift wrapping can be when you take your time and play around with bits of this and that. 

Source found and it is the uber-talented ribbon master Nicholas Kniel from a Traditional Home feature.........but will be back to add the direct link. 

It would't be a bright Christmas without at least this popular gift wrapped image from Carolyne Roehm. Don't you miss her gift wrapped splendor? I do. 

here

The Gift Wrap Extravaganza

Click on title to view that category

Humble Kraft Paper

The Romantics

The Sweet Ones

The Subdued

The Brights

To view all of the Extravaganza styles quickly click here to view in Snapshot.

Photos linked at source

The Gift Wrap Extravaganza............. the Subdued

Subdued and elegant palette from Better Homes & Gardens. What a ribbon display! 

Artistic application in method and unique embellishments make for a striking presentation from Shimtokk. Love the sequined tulle in gold. 

This might not actually be holiday but it could but it sure works well with this elegant palette. Perhaps a sprig of mistletoe or a pretty fresh flower. BHG. 

More vintage lovely from Heather Bullard. 

The Gift Wrap Extravaganza

(just click on title to view)

 Humble Kraft Paper

 The Romantics

The Sweet Ones

 Subdued

Photos linked at source.

The Gift Wrap Extravaganza.............7 Days of Inspiration

One of the my holiday pleasures is the surge in gift wrapping creativity. It is the one time of year where I have lots of company so I thought this year I would being all this gift wrapping talent together in a 7-day extravaganza of style. Some of it is new, some older, some you may have seen before, but all of it is clever and will inspire you in the gift wrapping week ahead. I will be categorizing by theme or colour and will post each day. I will begin with kraft paper........a humble paper that is this season's favorite. You can refer back to these posts all week long as I will backtrack add any new ones I see along the way. Are your scissors ready? 

This one from Creature Comforts was ringing all my festive bells this holiday season, kraft paper, yarn, pom poms, torn fabric ribbon, and fashionable embellishments, all the things I talk about using in one great package. 

This charming package from The Blissfully Content Wife  also uses torn fabric strips as ribbon along with a sweet gift tag. Go over and see how she uses newspaper in a post she named Frugal Gift Wrapping.

Cosy Cottage Cute uses white ribbon, twine,  and  simple elements for a natural presentation. 

This package has been around the Internet for several years but I didn't want you to forget this personalized idea. If you have time and patience the tutorial is here. Simple but chic. 

I love how the blog Brunch at Saks used this new glitter ribbon and how simply it elevates humble kraft paper. 

This one is from designer Mary Drysdale and was in my photo file from last year and I love the calm and elegant seashore theme.

Such a sweet tweet, tweet embellishment from here. 

Can you draw? Recycled as in using Trader Vic's grocery bags.

Found here. 

How sweet, find the bow download and tutorial here. 

Gorgeous simplity from the beautiful blog My French Country Home. 

All photos linked directly.

Red Satin Ribbon and Gold Stripes

If you have beautiful red ribbon........you can gift wrap anything beautifully. Red ribbon is the classic of them all anytime of year, but it is during the holidays that it shows it's festive and vibrant power. The wider the better, be lavish with it and make great big bows. Red satin ribbon here and here, and plain white gift boxes here. 

I especially like red ribbon with this gilded stripe gift wrap paper for a classic and elegant Kate Spadish presentation. 

Isn't gift wrapping fun?

Photos via Tumblr

A favorite blogger...............wraps simply and beautifully

I have always loved how Gigi of The Magpie's Fancy  turns her words into something that gives me pause, how she sees everything around her at home in Portland, Maine.....the day-to-day wonder that can be just outside our door if we look closely as she does as she moves through her day. I knew that Gigi likes to gift wrap, she has often told me so as we comment back and forth, but I was charmed by her post yesterday on Simple Gifts. I thought her post captured the heart of gifting this holiday season, to give thoughtfully..............simply and beautifully. 












Photo by Gigi Thibodeau of The Magpie's Fancy

Getting ready...............for Holiday Gift Wrapping

Remember the recent post when I told you about my talented blogger friend Lala from My Castle in Spain here? We share a love of presentation and when I saw her sweet home made gift cards I thought it fit in well where I am heading with my holiday wrapping this season. As you will see in the weeks heading towards our biggest gift wrapping day of them all, I will be mostly using natural kraft paper and black gloss gift wrap. Keeping the paper base simpler and more economical but more personal with easy and fabulous embellishments. Today's post is just a glimpse of the ideas I will share in the weeks ahead. 

I love my bows as you know. Any size, any fabric, anyway at all and I think I could actually use these to wrap a large gift or knit little mini ones. But what I am really liking this year is a neutral gift wrap palette and I am going to experiment with embellishments and bows of a different nature as well. Two years ago I tried mini ornaments strung into a ribbon nest and will look to expand that idea this year into a more vibrant direction.

Aren't these the sweetest felt bows? Let's see how I can fashion these for the girls and women and a bow tie version for the men this year. We can all do this and I will show you how to make this humble bow a gift wrap favorite. 

There will be an affordable abundance of glittery and sparkly baubles for the holidays so this is the time to start stocking up. When used with strips of torn silk which is a truly glamorous way to wrap a gift. I have rolls and rolls of it from my designer days and love the wider "tear' for a voluminous and elegant bow. You can often find a few yards of silk fabric marked down at your fabric store. Grab a few yards now if you like this idea. My drapery seamstress is going to refresh me on how to "tear' fabric into yards of gorgeous ribbon and I will pass it along.

Here is the same idea with a narrower version of torn fabric. Pick a silk fabric colour of your choice and go with it. I will show you many ways in the coming weeks to glorify simple gift wrap with lots of style and sparkle. I did say sparkle didn't I? I will be using a bit of glue and metallic glitter this year too so I can embellish my neutral papers with some artsy flair. One of the best ways to de-stress the gift wrapping part of the holidays is being prepared.................let's get ready. I have lots of gift wrap ideas this year. From the looks of it, a holiday gift wrap party and you are all invited to wrap along with me.

Next week will be busy here at A Gift Wrapped Life. I will have some wonderful news to share and will also be introducing the first contributor in the new Gifted Giving series. She is talented, gorgeous, and stylish and I love her "favorite gift" and it's personal meaning to her. I think you will too. 

A warm and thankful welcome to new followers. 

Photo 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 via Pinterest

Let the holiday wrapping begin.......

I feel like a Christmas elf early this year...................wrapping, wrapping, and more wrapping. 

Gone to get my scissors sharpened and our Christmas tree.

Our son will be home on Friday....................let the holidays begin. 

Photos by Sande Chase ~ A Gift Wrapped Life

Green leaves............ fun chat and Rue-ing on a rainy day

I have been waiting months to post this autumn photo and even though it is the last part of November I am still seeing a few trees of brilliant colour in this unseasonably warm autumn. Don't you just love that green colour on the door? I had to do a little searching to remember where I borrowed this brilliant photo and that was a fine way to spend the morning on my one day off this week. It's raining outside and though I should be doing Christmas errands and buying groceries so my husband can have a meal tonight I was really in the mood to spend a few hours catching up on blogs and looking around. The POP UP store is going very well, but it does mean long days, lots of fun chat, and little time for anything else. But I had the most lovely visit when Julie, a reader from Pittsburgh showed up along with her Denver sister at my shop on Sunday. While her patient family strolled around and waited, we talked up a fast storm, laughed, and took a few pics which I hope she will send me. I like to think she just flew in to see me but you know how small this world is, she has family that lives just minutes from me and was in town for an annual visit.  Just goes to show you how cool blogging can be, Julie and her sister were a lively duo and they certainly made my day.

Anyways, back to blogs and who writes a really good one is Simply Seleta where I found both photos and there is that green tone again which seems to be capturing my attention these days. Though I should be talking about that most gorgeous chandelier and I know a warm and cosy Thanksgiving table is exactly what my American friends want to see this week. When I browsed through the new issue of RUE Magazine this morning................there was a variation of that green tone again. 

This colour and the second edition of Rue (online) is making me swoon with envy. I adore this colour and the soft glamour in this ultra feminine bedroom. I could look at this all day and actually I have been so thought you might like to see it too. 

This is only the second online issue of Rue but they are coming out strong and fabulous. Lots of blogger interiors and entertaining features on some of the blogger heavyweights like Sea of Shoes and The Adventures of Tartanscot. I just started following Scot Meacham Wood, the Tartanscot and nothing but fun in plaid. Talent too. Want a stylish holiday party theme? Go see his tartan party, nice tuxes and no socks allowed (you will see what I mean).

Rue even has some gorgeous, gorgeous holiday gift wrapping. Look at the combination of green tones, exquisite combination isn't it? Perfect for those special girlfriend gifts. I am off to find that ribbon colour. 

Rue is also offering some great gift tag downloads. They have a calligraphy one created by Hello Handmade which I think is perfect for every holiday gift. The photo wouldn't download(but you must go see it for yourself) and I am off again to go watch a few episodes of In Treatment, that HBO series that has me so intrigued. I am quite absorbed with the character Frances, an aging, semi-narcissistic actresses played by Debra Winger, yes she is back and looking quite good I might add. 

Top 2 photos from Simply Seleta/ Bottom 4 photos via Rue