Time to start wrapping those gifts for the holidays! Here we’re going to show you how to upcycle all of those super cute brown paper bags (and other bags too) to use them as gift wrap. This is a great way to recycle; and depending on where you shop, you can get a great variety of different shapes, colors, and styles for bags to use in this DIY. Try to keep them in tact and as neat as possible until you’re ready to do this DIY project
Gather your ribbon, twine, buttons and tags to finish off the package. We kept our decorating minimal to keep the style from becoming to gaudy. The brown paper packaging calls for a natural simplicity, so we like to emphasize the rawness of the material by using rope twine and baker’s twine. In the image below, we used a thin paper bag from Grey Moggie Press and made our gift tag using a torn page from a novel.
For packages with bold designs, be sure to boast those features that make it unique. For instance, the bag above has creative lettering and mixed type. You don’t have to turn this bag inside out. Instead, show off the recognizable design. Trust me, your friends and family are sure to love it.
When folding your bags, you’ll find that some may be more malleable than others. For those bags that are a bit more challenging to fold, you may want to use hot glue or crazy glue to hold your folds in place. Also, try to find unique ways to fold the packaging. You may find that a less conventional way of packaging looks better and is easier to wrap.
And you don’t necessarily have to wrap a specific gift with the corresponding store bag. For instance, we wrapped a book of poetry in a store makeup bag. This will ensure that your gift is a real surprise! Or you can simply wrap the gift inside the bag it came in, like we did with the bag from one of our favorite clothing stores.
We love the crazy design and text on this restaurant bag below. It’s great for masculine-inspired gift wrap!
Use rubber stamping to enhance your design. Also, try wrapping using different shapes instead of the traditional square and rectangular packaging.
We love this DIY because it’s super creative and you’re also reusing bags that otherwise may have been thrown in the trash! Have fun with it and share this post with your friends! Happy DIY from Spark and Chemistry!
