Black Friday has come and gone. Now it’s time to wrap all of those gifts you bought.  Gift wrapping can be a big expense during the holiday season.   We want our gifts to look nice, but then throw it all away after all the gifts are open.  That sounds like a waste of money for pretty gifts.  There are several ways you can save on the gift wrapping so you don’t feel guilty for spending so much money on the wrapping. 

Make It Yourself

You can buy some cheap, quality paper like butcher paper and then you can create your own style for your gifts. Try using stamps or markers to decorate the paper.  You can also make your own stamps out of potatoes. Here are some instructions to get you started making the potato stamps.

Use Leftover Fabric

You can use leftover fabric scarps from your sewing projects and wrap your gifts in it.   This can make for some very elegant looking gifts.

Use Recyclable Shopping Bags

Last Christmas, my mother wrapped almost all of her gifts in the Walmart reusable bags.  I loved that because I got to reuse the bag and the bag became a gift too.  Many stores sell the reusable bags and some even make them look festive for the season.

Use Things You Have On-Hand

There are many things you probably already have in your house to wrap your gifts in.  One item is your newspaper.  Newspaper makes a great wrapping paper.  You could even use the comics section to wrap your child’s gifts.  Bows can also be easily made out of newspaper.  Here is a great tutorial on making the newspaper bowsAnother option is a map.  Maps make a perfect wrapping for things like globes or even tickets for a trip. Look around your house and see what kind of things you have that could be used to make wrapping paper.

Use Gift Bags

You can find gift bags at most Dollar Stores.  These bags are reasonably priced and can be reused for another wrapping at a later date.  These also make gift wrapping quick and easy.

Use Store Wrapping Programs

Many stores will wrap your gifts for free if you buy at the store.  You can save a lot of money using this service.  If you find that the store does not have free gift wrapping, ask for a box.  Many stores will give you a free box.

Buy at End of Season

This might not help you this year, but consider buying gift wrap when it goes on sale after the holidays, then you can get gift wrap for 50%-75% off.  This can really be a great savings.  Just make sure you remember where you store It, and store it somewhere safe where it won’t get bent or squashed.