Looking for inexpensive gift wrapping ideas that still look great? These cheap gift wrap hacks will save you money, but they still look beautiful. From how to top your Christmas gifts to how to wrap with fabric, these gift wrap ideas will help you create lovely wrapped presents this season.
What is a cheap way to wrap a gift?
For starters, you don't need to spend a ton of money on expensive wrapping paper. With a few creative DIY embellishments, you can make any cheap wrapping paper look amazing! I like to find my inexpensive wrapping paper at IKEA and Walmart. Opt for simple patterns like polka dots, stripes and stars so that your DIY embellishments can shine. Even plain kraft paper can look stunning with a DIY gift topper. Who doesn't love brown paper packages tied up with string?
DIY gift embellishment ideas
Think outside of the box and come up with interesting gift topper to put... on your box! For the gift above, I'm using a brass coloured ring from dollarama and tying some yarn through it for an interesting look. Place some faux greenery through the ring, add a gift tag attached with twine, and you have a beautiful gift for not much money at all! You can do a similar technique with a cookie cutter in place of the ring.
More easy DIY gift topper ideas:
- homemade cookies
- jewelry
- dollar store or thrift store ornaments
- stickers
- cookie cutters
Ribbon alternatives
Instead of pricey ribbon, consider using yarn scraps to wrap around your gift. You can even create a whimsical pom-pom out of leftover yarn to use as a gift topper instead of a traditional bow! I love to combine different thicknesses and colours of yarn scraps to create a fun look.
What can I use instead of a gift bag?
Rather than buying a gift bag, you can make one out of cheap wrapping paper! Cut a rectangle of wrapping paper that's about 4x as wide as your gift, and about 8" taller. Then, fold the paper so it meets in the middle and tape it. Fold up the bottom to create the bottom of your bag, and then you can even create an accordion style topper like above. This is a great technique for awkwardly shaped gifts like kids toys and stuffed animals.
Watch my video below to see this inexpensive gift wrapping idea tutorial:
How to make plain wrapping paper look expensive
I really like this pleated gift wrap technique if you have plain wrapping paper. The pleats give your gift an incredible look, and you can tuck things like faux greenery and a card inside of the pleats. Watch my video above to see how to use this pleated wrapping technique. You can also use a glue gun instead of tape to take your paper down.
Wrapping gifts with fabric
For an inexpensive gift wrapping idea that you can reuse year after year, wrap your present with fabric! You can use a tea towel, a napkin, or even a square of unhemmed scrap fabric. Tying fabric around a gift is called the Furoshiki method, and I think it's brilliant. Tuck some greenery and a gift tag into the tie of the fabric to complete your gift wrap.
Wrapping a wine bottle with fabric
Use a cloth napkin to wrap a wine bottle, and then tie it with some scrap yarn to keep it in place. Add a sprig of greenery and a DIY gift tag and this makes a beautifully wrapped hostess gift this holiday season!
5 more gift wrapping ideas
- use scraps of wrapping paper to add a contrasting band of paper around a wrapped gift
- use a variety of tissue papers to wrap a wine bottle
- make a festive design with washi tape on a simple kraft paper wrapped gift
- buy reusable gift boxes that you can use every year
- find images of old maps online, print them at a copy center, and use those to wrap gifts
- fill an ornament with hot cocoa mix, and tie it with paper straws to a gift
I hope you enjoyed these creative gift-wrapping ideas that don't cost much to do! Let me know in the comments which of these inexpensive gift wrapping ideas was your favourite, or if you have more inspiration for us!
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