Reusable wrapping paper - am I going too far now?

[KingLooieCatz]

Has anyone tried reusable wrapping paper? Would I be killing the joy? Or am I way behind and everyone else on here has been using it for years.

I've found three options:

www.happywrap.co.uk

www.wragwrap.com

www.lilywrap.com

I'm thinking this works best with the immediate family unit so you're not looking deranged gathering your wrapping "paper" back from people. My parents I reckon would use it back to us the following year.

Yes. Too far. We often use Christmas gift bags that are reused every year between the family.

Or you could use fabric?

I'm that person that saves all the gift wrap from other people's presents so I'm definitely on board.

I haven't tried it but I've heard you can get plantable wrapping paper with seeds embedded in it. Now that I think about it I might have a go at making some with the kids for next year. Though that might cause a mini environmental catastrophe when it gets recycled with paper instead of compost

I thought about getting cheap scarves from charity shops/ flea markets but it's not everyone you can give a second hand scarf to iykwim

When the kids were wee I used to put down long sheets of cheap paper under their art work to catch the splatters and clean their hands on by doing hand prints at the end. The grannies loved their "bespoke" wrapping paper.

Thank you Amy for making me feel less mad. I also thought about charity shop scarves, as you say not everyone will appreciate the sentiment, they are often quite thin so wouldn't disguise the contents, and they're not necessarily that cheap. Or not round my way anyway.

Similarly with fabric, my fear is if someone hasn't tailored/accessorized it towards suitability for wrapping, it will be a floppy mess. The things they are selling have drawstrings or similar so you don't end up with a floppy mess.

I think it's a nice idea for immediate family. I already reuse all the nice ribbons, wooden tags and bits I stick on the front.

I've always reused wrapping paper as much as possible. Rather enjoy trying to take the stickytape off carefully / folding it up afterwards (though intermittently it gets behind!). A challenge to go through the paper box and find the most suitable option. Also means a greater variety of wrapping at Christmas rather than everything in just a couple of designs as would probably happen with new rolls.

I always save gift wrap, if possible. I've built an impressive collection of second-hand ribbon and fancy tissue paper

I think the re-usable wrap is a great idea. I'd not ask for it back though, but make it part of the gift. The recipient can then re-use it.

You should look at Japanese fabric wrapping. It's very beautiful and reusable (Furoshiki I think it's called)

Ive used fabric before. It was an old pair of curtains in childrens fabric (blue with motorbikes on it) and I used it a couple of times to wrap birthday presents in for the DC. Just used sellotpae on it in the usual way and then some string.

I'm not sure I saved the planet in doing so though. And wrapping paper is so cheap in places like Home bargains that it was a bit of a waste of effort too.

That's actually a great idea. I'm a wrapping paper saver but DH is a tear it aparter and I hate giving him a gift and watching him tear apart the paper. If I wrap his in fabric he won't be able to. Yeah!

I buy cheap Christmas paper that probably wouldn't survive another go but it's only once a year! Gift bags however get passed between me and mum for years 😁 Also if we notice a nice piece of paper we'll hang on to it and reuse. We had some lovely purple holographic paper from my (more extravagant) sister on the go forever!

I don't know why you need to get specialist reusable wrapping paper. It sounds like an expensive green gimmick to me. It's perfectly possible to reuse all wrapping paper. My mum (now in her 70s) has spent years carefully folding paper at every birthday and Christmas, as her mother did before her. My dbro has taken up the paper saving mantel for my generation.

I have to say, I really can't be bothered to do the same. Sorry, planet Earth.

My mum always saved wrapping paper. My dbro is the same. Me, I just tear open the paper and shove it in the recycling bin.

Ignore my last line please. I was recycling my post and a bit got left at the end.

My mum used to re-use Christmas wrapping paper, ribbons, bows, all sorts. Even smaller bits can be used for tiny gifts.

You can reuse stick on bows by putting double sided tape on the base.

I find that paper gift bags are a bit tougher than paper wrap and can be reused a few times, just tie a different name tag onto the handle each time.

You can often find cheap Christmas stockings on markets and pound shops which could be decorated and used to present gifts.

Feel rude now, I stopped getting "someone has posted..." message and assumed this had dropped off the radar.

Will check out Japanese fabric wrapping. It hadn't occurred to me to use sellotape on fabric. Also like the idea of picking up stockings and things when bargains are seen. It feels like that could become a low faff family Christmas tradition, not an over priced joy killer.

With gift bags - don't people find they gape at the top and the item needs to be wrapped to maintain element of surprise?

My Dad is great at reusing paper. As a child we used to see the same scraps year after year used for stocking fillers. I find the paper is too creased and tapey and scruffy. Don't know how Dad does it.

I found any re-useable solutions tended to be a lot more expensive and less environmentally friendly in production and eventual waste than just using wrapping paper that can be easily recycled or composted (so no glitter, plasticised giftwrap, etc).

Also recently I've found Lidl does good stiff wrapping paper that folds easily and makes wrapping so much easier, mostly on an unbleached light brown background. Walking round the corner for an extra roll has got to be lower impact than ordering anything to be posted to me.

I figure do what you want for the look but alternatives to paper probably aren't an improvement enviro-wise.

My first thought when I saw your thread title was to wrap presents in tin foil - a la Gavin & Stacey. Added bonus of no sellotape and can be reused immediately for cooking the dinner!

With gift bags, I seal across the top with cellotape. Because most gift bags are shiny, the cellotape comes off afterwards with ripping the bag.

Thank you mmgirish. So simple. I've been doing gift bags wrong. To be fair everyone that gave me a gift bag was doing it wrong too.

Unforch Notcitrus there isn't a Lidl that close nor on my typical routes. If I find myself near one I'll look for this paper.

I might pilot some of these suggestions and see how they are received, and how well the materials stand up to repeated use. It won't involve a spreadsheet though. I'm not that bad.

As someone pointed out upthread, if I can pick up the necessary without having something posted out to me wrapped in plastic, that is a far better option.

If you buy plan tape then the sellotape comes off very easily and doesn't mark the gift bag at all. I'm not are whether its called something else irl. We use it in law firms for sticking property plans together.

Its the stuff that looks white on the roll but not when you pull a bit off.

I must say that I take the view that cheap paper is made from trees which have captured carbon in their lifetime and released oxygen so as long as it is disposed of appropriately should be fairly environmental. I will though make a tote bag to put a present in, but I see that as part of the present.