Elmer’s Holiday #GluenGlitter {Gift Wrapping}
One of my most favorite things about the holidays is wrapping gifts. I know to some it may seem like onerous task, and you all may pay the five-bucks to have the department store do it… but it’s not that bad if you have a few tricks up your sleeve. And by tricks, I mean Elmer’s products to make your life easier and your gifts prettier.
I write a lot about Elmer’s products on my blog, and it’s mostly because the products are awesome, affordable and versatile. Also, I hated driving 1+ hours to my nearest craft store and I’d always forget my 40% off coupon, and it was just no fun to spend so much money, time and gas on driving to the city to find craft supplies. With the Elmer’s line at Walmart, my problem is solved. And boy is their line HUGE. I feature a ton of their products and my thoughts/ideas on them over in my Google+ album.
And as you can see, some items are sold out. That may or may not be my fault… don’t judge.
Two products I’ve always looked at and loved are the shape templates and the adhesive spot stamper. So I finally caved and bought both because I know I will put them to good use for Christmas gift tags and gift wrapping.
You may be wondering, “Monica, how exactly can I use Elmer’s products to wrap gifts?” I am going to show you how right now.
First, you need spiffy gift tags. As you and I know, store bought tags can either be pricey or cheesy or both. No fun. So, let’s make some.
Gift Tag Supplies:
Painters Calligraphy Marker(s)
Ribbon
Basic Hole Punch
Cardstock (each 8.5x11 sheet makes about 10-12 tags)
Printer
And because I love you all so much, here are the exact same tags I made for YOU to print out at home for free (but feel free to use/create your own design):
Step 1: Print out your designs on the cardstock of your choice. I used pearlescent silver and gold cardstock I bought for cheap a few years ago.
Step 2: Grab your X-ACTO Craft Swivel Knife + your X-ACTO template of your choice. Carefully cut out your desired shape in the size you want. I cut 6 circles and 6 gift tags for a total of 1-dozen. My best advice for using the craft swivel knife is to apply consistent, even pressure and use a slow dragging motion. There is a slight learning curve with the stuff, but after 1 or 2 tags, you’ll get the hang of it. Took me about 45-seconds per tag to cut it out. Now, this is truly great for those of you who don’t have a craft/die cutter like the Cricut for basic things like this. $8 vs. $200? It’s a no-brainer. Yes, more work, but more savings, too.
Step 3: Use your basic hole punch to punch holes in tags (if you’d like). I tried using the circle in the template, and I had a bit of a rough time. :-/
Step 4: Use your Painters Marker to write on your tags. I chose the gold metallic calligraphy pen.
Step 5: Attach a ribbon/bow, if desired and use your Elmer’s Adhesive Spot Stamper on the back of the tag to adhere to your gift.
Step 6: Attach to gift/package and marvel at your beautiful, chic gift tags.
Now, we have our tags done, but we also need to wrap the presents don’t we.
Gift Wrapping Supplies:
Elmer’s Flexible Dual Tip Glue Pen (works on paper & fabric…and really well I might add)
Elmer’s Craftbond Scrapbooking Tape Permanent (Double-Sided)
Elmer’s Adhesive Spot Stamper (to adhere gift tags)
Wrapping Paper of your choice
Gift in a box/sturdy container
Gift Tags (see tutorial above)
Step 1: Get your gift into a box of some sort. Use Elmer’s double-sided tape to top/bottom of box together (this creates nicer/crisper edges=nicer gift wrapping outcome) I love that I can place the strip of double-sided tape down and peel off the other side when I am ready. And this means I don’t end up with double-sided tape sticking to me, which is annoying.
Step 2: Cut your wrapping paper to the appropriate size. Use double sided tape to keep edge in place, remove white paper backing and fold over opposite edge. Gently use fingers to make sure paper is in place flat/straight.
Step 3: Use your Elmer’s Dual Glue Pen (the fine side) to draw a straight line to entirely close up the seam.
Step 4: Repeat steps 2 & 3 on the edges. What you end up with is a gift wrapped with no visible tape. This makes Monica happy.
Step 5: Repeat on all your gifts until you’re done!
I wanted to add in a bonus little tip for you all…
When tying a ribbon and wishing you had a 3rd hand or a helper to keep the center taut/in place, use your adhesive spot stamper to hold it in place:
It works really well and will save your sanity.
Best of all? Gift wrapping doesn’t require a ton of each of these materials, so you’ll have plenty leftover for crafting, scrapbooking, office stuff, etc. I use my Elmer’s products all the time. I also love they’re compact and fit well into my desk tray/apothecary jars.
So before you run out to buy special tape and gadgets to wrap holiday gifts, take a look at your Elmer’s craft stash and I bet you can wrap gifts beautifully just like I did above. Also? All the products I featured can make attaching ribbon/bows to packages a lot easier—especially when creating bows from scratch. Wherever you’d use hot glue, use some Elmer’s glue spots or Elmer’s double-sided tape instead.
Now tell me, have you wrapped all your gifts yet? Do you wait until the last minute or do you wrap weeks in advance?
Want more information on Elmer’s products? Connect with them on Facebook & Twitter:
www.facebook.com/elmers
http://twitter.com/elmers
www.facebook.com/xacto
Want to chat with other Elmer’s fanatics/crafty peeps? Join us for a twitter party this Wednesday!
On December 14th at 1 pm, we'll have an awesome twitter party and we'd love for you to join to share your holiday projects! Make sure you RSVP here http://bit.ly/sKZwev and use the #GlueNGlitter hashtag when you post your projects during the party! Hope to see you there. :-)
This project has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for #ElmersHoliday #gluenglitter #collectivebias #CBias
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