4 unique ideas for your next gift-wrapping project

A short look around your house will reveal a host of different materials you can wrap your presents with, all of which will look great while saving you money.
The next time you have a gift -wrapping project, skip the traditional wrapping paper. Show off your creativity with these four unique ideas for gift wrapping.

This works especially well with gifts for small children. Rather than spend more money on a bow that's just going to get thrown away, give a bonus gift. Buy a smaller novelty gift and attach it, unwrapped, to the top of the larger gift using ribbon. They'll get a bonus gift that doubles as decoration. Depending on the recipient, good ideas include:

• A bar of chocolate;
• A lipstick;
• A novelty necklace;
• A miniature stuffed animal.

For a child's gift, wrapping it in the funnies from the newspaper adds a bit more fun to the gift itself. Be sure to use the Sunday comics, if they're available, as they are usually printed in full colour. For an extra special touch, cut out magazine images of the child's favourite cartoon characters and tape them in a few places on top of the comics.

Measure your gift box and purchase enough fabric to wrap it. If your gift recipient is the crafty type, she will appreciate being able to use the fabric later to sew something nice for herself. To make it extra special, use a fine fabric such as silk or linen.

Instead of using tape to secure the package, use fabric ribbon from the craft store to tie it up. Consider including a sewing pattern inside the gift for a handmade pillow or pillowcase using the fabric you've given.

It's fun to open gifts, and when you make a gift tree, you can extend the fun. First, buy an assortment of at least four gifts, all in various sizes. Once you have them boxed up and wrapped in colourful paper, build a tree by putting the largest box on the bottom, the next smallest on top of that, and so on. Don't worry that all the gifts have to be expensive.For this project, the joy is in the unwrapping.

Your main gift can be the bottom one, and the smaller boxes can be less expensive items. Once you have them all stacked, tie a large ribbon around the whole stack on two sides, so the tree won't topple over. Finish it off with a big decorative bow or even a round tree ornament.

Using these unique ideas and come of your on creativity, you might have more fun wrapping your next present than the person who gets to unwrap it!