DIY Wrapping Paper

DIY Wrapping Paper

Hi Kid Lab, Sarah here. 

If you ask me about a favorite holiday tradition in my family I would tell you about the homemade wrapping paper we make every year. I love how creative, messy, and open ended wrapping paper is to make and I guarantee it will make your wrapped presents look extra special. You can check out other holiday ideas I have on Instagram @drawpaintprint. I use homemade wrapping paper for birthdays and other celebrations too, but we make a lot around the winter holiday season. 

You probably have some or all of the supplies in your home now or you can stop by a dollar store and get everything you need for $5!

Here is what you need to get started:

Paper: Brown craft paper is great for wrapping paper and can be found in a roll at the dollar store. I have also saved the brown paper that is sometimes used as packaging material from Amazon (free!). If you have a roll of white paper your kids use for drawing that works well too. I usually use white paper for birthdays because I always have a roll on our small easel.

Stamp materials: Cookie cutters from the dollar store are great for stamping. If you have a clean sponge you can cut that into a simple shape to make a stamp. I made a tree stamp and a holly leaf that I cut out of a dish sponge.  A cotton swab is great for making little snowflakes, swirling paint, or can be used like a small paintbrush. I also used a cotton swab to add red berries to the holly leaves. The tube from a paper towel roll is good for making stamps too. I shaped part of a tube into a star to add as a tree topper stamp.

Paint: I like to use tempera because it is easy to clean up and it can be found at the dollar store in small bottles. If you have finger paint or tempera at home either would work for stamping. If you want to make your own stamp pads or stamps check out my previous post. 

Drawing materials: If you have a child who is a young toddler and just beginning to make marks you can let them try out Do-A-Dot Paint Markers or Paint Sticks. Both will last a long time and are perfect for the youngest artists. The dollar store often sells bingo markers that are very similar to the Do-A-Dot Markers. 

Getting started!

I like to use my kitchen floor to spread out a large piece of craft paper for each of my children. I pour a small amount of paint onto a tray or plate and let them stamp all over their papers. Once the paint has dried, roll the paper back up until you are ready to wrap. 

When my children were younger I sometimes found it easier to wrap the present first in plain paper and then let them add marks to the box. I often do that for birthdays if I am only wrapping a few presents. Please tag us if you make some homemade wrapping paper!