Not to buy new wrapping paper for SC?

I can't believe anyone ever has ever cared about wrapping paper.

Makes perfect sense. It’s a practical decision nothing else. Ignore your friend.

I get it - I also wrap my two kids presents in different paper so we can tell the difference (and don’t have to label them - I think it makes sense)
Sometimes I have paper left for next year and sometimes I don’t. I don’t spend a fortune on it (Home Bargains £1.49 for 12 metres) and I’ll reuse what’s left to wrap other presents not for kids the following year.
You said your husband does the wrapping - does he mind what paper is used?
So long as there is no difference being made to amount spent etc I wouldn’t worry. Equally, for £1.29 in Home Bargains you could get a nice roll of paper that you will also be happy to use the following year.

In my experience as a step mum if you’re right you’re wrong and if you’re wrong, you’re an evil witch so of all the things the OP will be sidelined, marginalised and blamed for over the course of being a step mum, wrapping paper is without shadow of a doubt the proverbial needle in a huge haystack.

“won’t anyone think of the poor children opening their gifts at their fathers house on Boxing Day” I mean seriously Mumsnet?

ignore them OP, it’s lovely of you to consider if it’s an issue but it’s really not

OP, I do the same as you in regard how you buy and use the paper, but without the step child issue, so fully understand how this makes life much easier, I also do the same for my husband!

I do think you are treating them differently however and for the sake of a few quid, why would you not do the same for them, whether or not they know, you know and that should be enough!

Presume OP has answered, but I do the same, minus the SC issue, and reuse what’s left the following year on other people who are not my immediate family! What was then point of your post!

Presumably because she’d then be throwing away loads of unused wrapping paper.

Im a step child on both sides and I honestly would never have given a shit about this.

This is fine.
Child A gets blue paper, child B gets red paper. Then anything for SC is wrapped in red/blue/gold from last year.
SC opens presents on 27th and is delighted to get a wrapped present.

The outrage seems excessive

I thought you were going to say you wrapped them in used paper. Not that it was new paper, and they just didn't have their own exclusive colour/pattern.

Does anyone notice the wrapping, they're usually busy ripping it off surely?

All my wrapping is with a random assortment of paper as I personally like the variety

If you’re not seeing them Christmas Day i wouldn’t buy new paper. If they were all together opening their presents then of course you’d should buy them their own Christmas paper. Ignore your friend they’re making a mountain out of a mole hill

But that's just because of the way you've put it. You could equally say one child gets a range of different Christmas wrapping paper while the other two get just one type so they can be differentiated from their sibling. Why have you decided that one wrapping paper is automatically better than a range of papers? Why would anyone even care? Especially as they aren't even opened on the same day so there is no side by side comparison to make SC feel different.

I do think it would be different if the paper was unsuitable for SC though e.g. Peppa pig for a much older SC left over from younger child's presents last year but OP hasn't suggested this is the case.

If you can't see the problem, then I have no words!

But it’s the dad doing it so you’re not making any additional effort at all anyway.

🚩🚩 your attitude towards your SC stinks. Why not get a third roll for them?

It's a strange approach, just use gift tags.

I think people are seeing the 'new' paper as some sort of special treat/tradition rather than a practical choice. I think you'd have been better off saying - I have 2 children with me on Christmas day so I wrap their presents in 2 different papers so I don't have to faff with labels. A 3rd child is with me on boxing day. As it's just them opening presents that day I wrap them in a range of papers including some that I bought in previous years, is this ok?

And yes it's obviously fine

Exactly!

But all the things you’ve listed WOULD be unfair to a stepchild! I don’t think many people would disagree with that.
Here we are talking about wrapping paper. That the child won’t even see .

Are the papers for your children chosen with their interests/tastes in mind, or are they genuinely fairly generic? I think this matters.

Are people missing the fact that the kid isn’t there Xmas day? They’ll never know about the new paper thing so they won’t care.

I don’t see why it matters- you buy the new paper so that everyone has their own and can distinguish their presents from each others. If SC doesn’t need to do that then any paper is fine, it’ll be lovely as you’ll have chosen nice papers for them all anyway!

I think if you have nice wrapping paper that is all coordinated and individual for each child, and then you have one child who gets something cobbled together out of leftovers every year then yes that smacks of less effort. Why couldn't dsc get the nice wrapping paper and one of her dc get the cobbled together wrapping? Because there's a noticeable difference that the kids might feel. Op is prioritising her kids and creating a (small in the grand scheme of things) difference between them.

I'm surprised at those saying this is an issue. It's just a logistical thing and common sense.