Anatomy of the DIY Gift Wrap: Budget Edition

Is it just me, or do DIY crafts always seem to end up being more expensive than if you went and bought it pre-made at the store? I have such limited space in my home (my bath towels share a shelf with the tool set) that it's impossible for me to stockpile a useful stash of materials. As much as I'd like to, I really can't hold onto old sweaters in the hopes that one day I'll rip them up and use the fabric as decorative accent on gift wrap. Where would I keep them - in my crockpot? It's just not practical right now.

And let's not forget that all that pretty DIY takes a fair amount of time, which is not abundant in the life of a toddler mom/small business owner/wife/wannabe writer.  It takes even more time when you are not naturally design-y (not a word, I know) as well as an indecisive perfectionist. Translation: I'm very good at wasting time on unimportant details because I don't know what I am doing.

So when I get the urge to do something homemade -- fairly frequently, thanks to all the amazing, creative bloggers out there -- I usually end up with a diminished bank account and a discouraged spirit.

I promised that I wouldn't do that to myself this Christmas, despite being completely taken by Summer's luxurious monochromatic gift wrap and Sally's more modern, gilded take and wishing I could create something similar.

I reached into the the closet, pulled out the old, gaudy, drugstore bargain-bin rolls of wrapping paper and forgot about it.

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When we opened the three small boxes that store our Christmas decorations, out tumbled a few rolls of wide, shimmery gold metallic ribbon and some tiny, round, gold ornaments. They used to adorn my small, college-apartment Christmas tree, but have sat unused in the box since then.

It gave me a little idea. So I started scrounging deeper - in the Christmas boxes, in the kitchen, in my closet. Here's what I found:



White Yarn
Tiny Gold Ornaments
Wide Gold Ribbon
Skinny Gold + Silver Ribbon
Miscellaneous Buttons
Roll of White Paper

(FYI: The white paper is from my son's art easel that we bought at IKEA. It's the MALA paper, and I'm officially in love with it. Go get a roll. It's heavy and perfect for wrapping).

I decided to try to make some pretty packaging with those items, plus these things from the clearance aisle at Michaels & JoAnn Fabric:



Sheer Ivory Ribbon - .75 cents
1 Yard of Burlap - $3.00
Glitter Leaves - .49 cents
Glitter Gift Bag (to make tags)- $1.29

Total Cost: $5.53

Here's what I ended up with. 











Not bad for under six bucks, if you don't mind me saying so. I'm glad I didn't let my need for perfection stop me from at least trying. It feels simple, but special. Isn't that what do-it-yourself is all about, anyway?

petits riens

my recent accomplice + a sweet-smelling salve, two items that are always in my possession.

I don't speak french, but I read the phrase les petits riens de la vie in a book once, and it stuck with me. It means, the little nothings of life.

It's like jewelry, only for your life: not entirely necessary, but it brings the sparkle, the shine - that little something extra.

What is your favorite nothing?

"small pleasures" - christmas cards

Confession: I am a Christmas card fanatic. I love to give them and I especially love to get them.

I believe in Christmas cards in the same way that a four-year old believes in Santa Claus. I think they're magical, and I'm not ashamed to admit that I do a little dance in my kitchen when the envelopes start to appear in the mailbox.

Earlier this year, I had earmarked a gorgeous (and, unfortunately, expensive) set of letterpress cards that I wanted to buy to send as our first official family Christmas card. But our dual unemployment and diminished budget made me rethink.

I decided to go the handmade route, coming up with something very simple and revolving it around the theme of "small pleasures" -- which is sort of appropriate for us this year, anyway.

I hand-embroidered small cotton bags...



Handwrote a quote on cardstock + embellished with a little lace...



Tied the card + a family photo together with baker's twine...



And put it all together to make a cute little package!



I made 65 total (yes, it was a long project!) and was so happy with the way they turned out. I also did a version with green embroidery and green baker's twine.

Someone asked me why I would take all the time to do something so time-intensive when most people just throw away their Christmas cards. And while I suppose that's true, it wasn't about sending them something tangible to keep. It was about sending them a feeling...I hope that when my friends and family opened their small package, they felt a bit of the magic and excitement that I felt while making them. If so, then the time it took was totally worth it.

[Dear husband, thanks for taking all the pretty pictures! I appreciate you!]

brown paper packages tied up with string...

A couple years ago I used brown grocery bags and leftover bits of yarn for my Christmas gift wrap. I thought I'd post the picture in case anyone is looking for a cute, quick and ridiculously inexpensive way to wrap Christmas presents. [I used this yarn pom tutorial].

Every time I see that photo, it reminds me of the song and I start to hear Julie Andrews in my head. I hope you have a magical Christmas filled with your favorite things, and more importantly, your favorite people!

"may you stay forever young..."

While I'm on the subject of bibliomania, here are pictures of Isaac's birth announcements. They marry my love for all things related to books with my fondness for bits of nostalgic paper goods.



photos by suann of simplesong design

I hired Suann of simplesong design, one of my absolute favorite bloggers and letterpress designers, to create the old-school library card design. Her attention to detail was spot on, right down to the perfectly sized card holder and hand-stamped birth date. To finish them off, I used a little red paper clip to attach a small black-and-white photo of Isaac (not pictured).

I can't even tell you how much I ADORE them. Seriously.

Quote on the card is a line from Bob Dylan's song, Forever Young.