iRelle

Pretty pencils to write “I Love You”… ?

There’s something so satisfying about gift wrap! I can spend quite a long time staring at rolls of paper and ribbons, but the real fun begins when the sticky tape and the scissors come out and the present sits right there, just waiting to be hidden away from inquisitive eyes so it can provoke someone’s imagination.

I’ve never really thought about the origins of gift wrapping before – I guess once upon a time every parcel was wrapped in paper when you purchased it, for protection and whatnot. Maybe it was only a step further to make the paper patterned or coloured and tie it up with a ribbon instead of plain ol’ twine. Or maybe the element of surprise played a bigger part – after all, the best part of getting a present is wondering what on earth could be inside it, right? However our gift wrapping traditions have evolved, though, I’m rather glad that they did!

I can remember when I was seven or eight Mum showing me how to fold the ends of a square parcel neatly, and how to fold the top layer of paper to make a lovely contrasting strip with nice, neat edges. After that, assembling a pile of presents and wrapping them at Christmas time became one of the best things about the holidays, and buying a birthday present for someone got a whole lot more exciting. I love choosing wrapping that reflects the occasion, the giftee and the giver and matching it up to the contents of the parcel and the card. It appeals to the same part of me that loves arranging ornaments on the top of a bookcase, or a basket of shells. And then the folding, the taping, snipping the ribbon just so, tying the perfect bow, until you have something that looks great and hopefully appeals to the recipient!

I usually pick a colour scheme at Christmas, and match all my presents up. This year was supposed to be blue (turquoise) and green (light, bright) with white or silver, but there were absolutely no green wrappings to be had, so I settled for blue, white and silver instead. It’s a little White Christmassy, but I’m quite pleased with my pile of parcels now! There’s nothing quite like a stockpile of pretty presents beneath the tree!

My only complaint is that everything should come in boxes! Squishy things are so difficult to wrap nicely.