My in-laws gave us beautifully wrapped baby gifts when they showed up for the arrival of their first grand baby. Curly, pink ribbon swayed and bounced off the packages.
Guess what I did with that ribbon?
1. I used the same ribbon to wrap a package for his brother’s new baby. Unfortunately the post master cut most of it off because he said it would get tangled in the machines. I found this most disappointing, though I understood.
2. (But it was this second idea I pride myself on):
This is the second batch of ribbons I’ve been through. (Those gifts had A LOT o’ ribbon.) The first ones eventually splintered and wore out. This is the last of the ribbon. Once it wears thin, I like the look so much with the pink against the white, I think I’ll swing by a fabric store and buy some real, pink ribbon made of lace or something filmy and transparent.
Thanks for the great idea, Grandma and Grandpap!
Tell me your idea of something you reused or upcycled. I’d love to hear!
Articles about gift wrap:
- Gift-Bags Are Lazy … Wrap A Box! (stylingmyeveryday.com)
- Unwrapping Gift Wrap (business2community.com)
- wrap that gift (busylittlehome.wordpress.com)
- Wrapping: the Start (itsawrapgifts.wordpress.com)
- “Broken” In (reusethematerialgirl.wordpress.com)
Attempting zero waste lifestyle in a military household 
Oh, yes, I save every bit of wrapping that comes our way, as long as it’s not too frayed or creased. I never buy new wrapping paper/bags/tissue paper/ribbon. Sometimes, though, I do buy fabric that’s on sale for $2 or so a yard. I love wrapping gifts in fabric because it will take a LONG time to wear out, it’s gorgeous (the array of fabrics definitely beats the array of gift wrap in the beauty department), and people love the novelty of it. I also love showing people that the ribbon or twine around a package can still be a functional part of the wrapping! Cheers!
Yep I unwrapped a gift and promptly (ie during the party) stashed the sheets of paper in my wrapping shelf!! I love reusing ribbons too, though I’m running low on ad hoc ribbons (but still HEAPS of ribbons from wedding flowers of a friends, who’s marriage has sadly ended :() I love adding ribbon to gifts, cause I usually just wrap in brown paper. I can do those funky florist bows, so that helps too!
I save ribbon and gift wrap/bags/tissue paper too – they get reused and I never have to buy it. 🙂
I like to use old magazines to make really neat, scalloped plant stands. It’s so easy to do and a lot of fun. 😊
Hey Jennifer! Something I did quite often in the past was make mailing envelopes from pictures in magazines. Like a beautiful photo of a garden, or a model wearing a beautiful dress, a scene, whatever. Just take a regular sized envelope and open it, trace around on the page, cut, fold in the appropriate places, and glue. I would write the address in a light, ‘clear’ part of the picture, or use a stick on white label. I don’t do this much anymore, because we don’t mail much anymore–we do e-mail or pay bills on line. If I happen to write a personal letter, I might make my own envelope. Scrapbook paper is good for this too. It’s a really unique way to impress the recipient–and perhaps make the postman take a second look! You’re little daughter is a cutie!