What to do with mum's vintage Christmas paper

[Wren77]

Mum died a couple of years ago this month and when clearing out her bedroom I found these 3 sheets of unused wrapping paper. Couldn't even imagine chucking them out but it seems a shame to have them rolled up on my wardrobe gathering dust all year. Any ideas of how to incorporate them into Christmas without destroying them? I mean yes there is an element of naffness about them 😆 but also they take me right back to my childhood Christmases 40+ years ago. Any ideas??

They are lovely!

I would photograph them and add them to my digital photo frame and then just use them to wrap presents

They are lovely and what a nice thing to find. I’d be tempted to buy an aperture frame and put the paper in the frame as you would a photo. Then the rest of the free spaces I would put some pics of you and your mum/family in.

Frame them as pics that only come out at Xmas?

We wrap photo/picture frames to look like presents with ribbon and bows and hang them back on the wall for Christmas.

We usually wrap the ones that are on the wall and recycle the paper but you could have permanently wrapped ones and swap them out at Christmas?

You could make some decorations out of them that you can get out every year? Something like these trees...

I was just going to say frame them as Christmas decorations when pp beat me to it!
A friend keeps photos of childhood Christmases in frames that she brings out at Christmas, I'm going to copy her some year. Looks brilliant and is particularly lovely to feel you are still including people who have gone.

Do you have children? Could you make a Christmas Eve box and wrap it with this, so that every year when you get it out it’s a nice little part of your mum x

Wow thanks! So many lovely ideas 🥰 I love the idea of framing them and having them as part of the Christmas decor but also Christmas Eve boxes would be lovely as she was so kind and very good at making magic so that would be very fitting !!

Will have a look at the decoration ideas too! I am a bit scared of chopping them up but would definitely rather they were on display in some way 🤔

Or wrap some fake presents for under the tree?

How lovely! They take me right back to my childhood Christmas' too.
So great ideas on here already. If I found that paper in a cupboard I'd wrap presents in the paper this year and have one year of joy out of the paper and then recycle it. Keep the memories, not the physical paper. Appreciate that's a bit Marie Kondo and not very long lasting!

Ooh fake presents - love that idea! I am a little afraid of turning them into real presents - I just couldn't bear to chuck the paper away 😬😆

Definitely do something that forms a keepsake. My Nan had some curtains which my mum used to reupholster her dining chairs and also my bedroom chair - which itself had been a gift from my Nan when I bought my first house. It’s a lovely reminder of her. I might be tempted to decoupage something with some of the paper you have, so that it would be preserved on an item pretty much forever.

I’ve bought some of this kind of paper for a decent amount on eBay - it’s very popular at the mo. Not that I’m suggesting that, I’m just saying as I plan to wrap special family gifts in it (hope they all recognise it) and maybe wrap some boxes to keep or like someone suggested, frame some for display (might fold some down rather than cut it)

Frame!!

I have some origami Christmas tree decorations which are lovely.

How lovely to have 😊

I'd frame the big Santa one to bring out as a decoration each year.

I'd cover Christmas Eve/gift boxes or boxes that you store decorations in with the other two & varnish/lacquer them (test on a small piece first)

These ideas are wonderful thanks so much! I have never decoupaged anything in my life but could learn - and if they are also a decoration then I could make a few and give to my older brother and sister 💕 But first I need to go and look on eBay and see what the going rate is 😆

Could you use some at home and then donate the rest to a dementia charity or care home? They could wrap some empty boxes up for under their tree as a memory jogger for people with dementia maybe.

Definitely something invoking decoupage so they are preserved. They’re lovely 🎄

*involving!!

Some good ideas here! I'd have probably just used it, but I don't wrap many presents so it would last forever. Wrapping boxes or framing them appeal to me.

Oh how lovely, they remind me of those magical Christmas times as a child too. No new ideas, just nice to see them.

tiny fake presents for tree wrapped in the paper.

I would iron them, then use them to cover some small- medium cardboard gift boxes to put under your tree. You can then put gifts in them and reuse them every year. Better for the environment too.