How to present a bike without having wrap it?

[ChloeHandbag]

Tbh it's not really christmas, but my dd's birthday at the weekend and we've bought her a bike. Don't have enough wrapping paper to wrap the bike, but I'd like to make it look like we made some effort. She's 8, so it's quite big.

Dh says someone on here will know .

What about a big ribbon?

Florists will make you one I would have thought, at least they used to when I was one 10years ago.

Lots of ribbons attached to various bits of it, tied in bows. Tinsel wrapped round bits of it. . Couple of balloons tied to the handle bars?

Those are all "and and and" not "or or or" by the way!

ds's are getting bikes for christmas and i'm not wrapping them.

they'll have a giant tag on them and some ribbon or something.

I would have a nice sized box, all tied up with ribbons, filled with tissue paper and put a picture of the bike inside!

Drape s bed sheet or blanket over it and then jazz up with bows - florists will make big bows for little cost.

Why not get a couple of huge paper tableclothes and wrap it that way? I have done this with a bubble car and trampoline for DS1 a few years ago, and looks great.

I like Meg's idea a lot.

hide it behind a clothes airer.

no no you have to leave it unwrapped and in full view.

her face when she comes down and sees her bike with a big ribbon on will be fabulous! it doesn't need wrapping

i do believe that toys r us sell gift bags for bikes. someone at playgroup was telling me a couple of weeks ago. might be worth a look?

our pound shop does the huge bags esp for wrapping bikes

tag attached to big long ribbon that leads out to the bike in the garden - treasure hunt come easy wrapping soln!

DD had a bike for her birthday last year and we just put it in the middle of the living room and decorated it with sparkly streamers and balloons.

Hide it behind a big floor-length curtain that you just happen to have covering your window/patio doors.

I did not get that idea from Usborne Farmyard Tales Christmas at Apple Tree Farm, honest...

I like the ribbon idea best.

We gave DS their small presents stacked under the tree and then sent them to go and find their big presents hidden somewhere in the house.

They were so excited and eventually found their new bikes in the garage under some sheets.

We are going to do the same with a full sized table tennis table this year.

blow up lots of balloons and cover bike totally in baloons so she has to pop her way to bike.

OR

fill balloons, one ballon with first clue ( all the other balloons have duds (blank peices of paper in) .. blow up and hang from ceiling .. hide bike and make a treasure trail of it all.

Love the idea about following a piece of ribbon to the bike - am going to nick that idea!

Mine had to follow some string to the bike - my mum and dad had hidden in her bedroom - very heavy!

When I was little and got my first big bike my parents did the following:

We had a sack of presents that we opened sitting in Mum and Dad's bed (actually a pillowcase but you get the idea). In the bottom of mine was a small ball of wool, which disappeared out of the sack through a hole in the bottom. There was a message saying to follow the wool.

The wool led downstairs and wound around the house - I followed it around and about until it led me to my bike hidden behind the patio curtain.

It was so exciting and I had no idea what would be at the end.

we put DD's bike in the downstairs toilet and then put wrapping paper all over the door, so she had to rip it all off to open the door and find the bike!

Wrap up a bell?

Then tell her she'll need somewhere to put it...

These are great ideas! I almost wish we were getting DD (18 months) a huge big bike just so we could do some of these ideas!

I had the same as pip robin -follow the string to the bike - it was the best present I ever had.

Thanks everyone, I think I'll go for a combination of pip robins wool and the streamers/bows/ribbon.

We knew you'd know.