6 Easy (and Pretty) Ways To Gift Wrap Books
The Manner Of Giving Is Worth More Than The Gift
I just love receiving gifts, and I love giving them as much as I love getting them. In fact, I love the whole gift giving experience, from choosing the perfect present to wrapping the gift. Opening a parcel is always so much fun, especially if you can’t tell what the gift is when you look at the stunning wrapping.
One of my favorite gifts to give has always been books.
“Books Are A Uniquely Portable Magic.” - Stephen King
Books are a wonderful gift to give - you can find a book for almost every occasion and don’t forget one of the most fun types of books – coloring books, you can get them for all ages now. However, you don't usually find books wrapped in a very exciting way, and if you are looking for an unpredictable gift, you can't really surprise the receiver when you give them a book (especially if it comes in a Barnes & Noble bag). This is where the fun comes into it, you can either wrap the book in a way that will keep the receiver guessing, or you can "upgrade" the gift a little. I usually like to put some sort of embellishment on my gifts, especially the type that can be kept or even used for something else, or something that is just beautiful to look at.
There are some of the ideas I’ve used for wrapping books:
- Surprise them – wrap the book so that the receiver can't guess that the gift is a book. Put it in a box (preferably of an irregular shape) before wrapping it or wrap it in layers of fabric, wool, or bubble wrap.
- Embellish – add an embellishment related to the topic of the book (though I wouldn't try this if the book is a murder story). For instance, you could stick a small origami flower on a book about origami, three tea bags on the book "Three Cups of Tea", or a decorative spoon on a recipe book. You can also embellish with objects that can be used for a completely different purpose, such as fridge magnets or an attractive piece of jewelry.
- Basket case - gift baskets are always fun to receive. It doesn't take much to make a lovely gift basket. Take a pretty basket, you may even have one lying around the house already, fill it with straw, paper, or raffia, place the book in it with a nice big mug and some hot chocolate mix or some specialty chocolates. Wrap the basket in cellophane with a nice big bow, and hey presto, you have a fantastic gift basket.
- Go natural – exchange the classic gift wrap bow for something pretty and natural, for example, a cinnamon stick with a raffia bow, some dry flowers or leaves, a small pinecone, recycled paper tags, or decorative stones.
- Mark it – make a personalized bookmark card and find a cute way to keep it on the gift. You could use lots of string, or some ribbon…
- Boxing – today you can find all sorts of gorgeous gift boxes, and if you can’t find one that you like there are many free printable sites on the Internet with lots of stencils for printable gift boxes (this will work for smaller books). Just print out stencils with designs already on them or stamp them or even draw your own designs.
Whatever way you decide to wrap your gift – have fun! Let your imagination run wild, there are so many fun ways to wrap a gift, you can use my ideas as they are, use them as a base for something a little different or use your own ideas. The only thing that’s important is that you put all your love into wrapping the book - because it will show!
Either buy something new to put on your wrap or get your craft supplies out – I’m sure you’ve got something in there that you can use to make your gift look special. Some beads, lots and lots of washi tape (because nobody can only use a little), an old seashell, left over string or ribbon. Seriously, the sky’s the limit when it comes to decorating gift wrap.
With just a little bit of extra thought and care your gift recipient will feel incredibly appreciated. And, you’ll make it a gift experience they’ll remember.
Do you have any unusual book gift wrap ideas to share with us?