How is your Christmas gift wrapping going? Do you find it a chore that has to be done or a happy festive part of the fun? We have just started to wrap all our gifts and these days it is an easy joyful process. A few years ago we bought one pack of reusable Christmas gift bags and now, for many reasons, we love them! Since then we have bought a pack each year and now have plenty to meet all our Christmas wrapping needs for years to come!
Prior to purchasing the Christmas gift bags we had always bought rolls of wrapping paper, tape and needed scissors to hand and a lot of space. I was always Ok at gift wrapping presents so they looked pretty but my husband does not like doing it. My dad had a go but usually needed damage control after he had finished and my Mum struggled the last few years of her life with wrapping presents as she had bad arthritis in her hands. We all got a bit frustrated with all the sticky tape and scissors and endless rolls of paper all around.
We are also concerned about waste and the environment and although we have always tried to save wrapping paper to reuse where possible that was often difficult because it had been ripped or torn during gift opening time! So still a lot of it went into the bin. Although some could be recycled, a lot could not.
So when we saw these types of reusable gift bags we thought they would solve several problems.
1. Despite the initial issues of production of wrapping bags and materials, because they can be reused many times they are more environmentally friendly than buying paper and throwing it away after just one use. If we are going to use wrapping for our gifts make and buy it once, using it many times is better for the environment.
2. These gift bags make wrapping gifts so much easier and quicker! Even awkward-shaped gifts are so easy to wrap using these bags. I find them very time-saving. It takes me significantly less time now to wrap presents with these bags than it used to with wrapping paper. It is simply a case of opening the bag putting the gift inside and tieing up the top with the drawstring or a ribbon, add a tag and you are done!
3. If you have any issues with your hands such as arthritis or you just find trying to wrap gifts difficult these wrapping bags, especially those with drawstrings, are wonderful and relieve a lot of pressure and stress.
4. Christmas gift bags look beautiful and can be made up with ties, ribbons and bows to look gorgeous and very well presented even if you are not good at wrapping procedures. Some sets have integrated drawstrings which can be very useful or if not you can easily tie them up with a beautiful ribbon. They look wonderful and festive under the tree. The big ones look impressive sat under the Christmas tree. Small or light presents could even be hung on the tree or placed in a Christmas stocking.
5. They come in a wide variety of colours, pretty, festive and fun designs to suit every member of your family and friends. Some even come with tags and ribbons included.
6. The Christmas gift bags come in different sizes to meet your needs. You can get them for really large gifts in jumbo sizes or small and precious gifts and everything in between.
You can either put the gift straight into the bag or if you want to disguise it more put it inside a box or other container first.
There is such a huge variety of Christmas gift bags you can choose which sets suit your needs.
We have now had our original set for 4 years and it is as good as the first year.
It is important after opening the present to carefully gather up and fold the bags and then put them away safely but it is a small task. The gift bags are very easy to store. They generally lie flat and we store them along with the other Christmas decorations.
They are more environmentally friendly as long as you do reuse them. When you are giving gifts within your family or household it is easy to gather them up to use again.
If giving gifts outside your household you can mention that the bag is reusable and hopefully they will save it and use it again.
What a clever and cost-saving idea. Thanks so much for introducing me to these reusable Christmas gift bags, Raintree Annie. First I have ever known about them. I can definitely see how practical and environmentally friendly they are. A very practical product, for sure. Merry Christmas to you and your family.
ReplyDeleteWe use a combination of traditional gift wrap and reusable gift bags like these, which we love for hard-to-wrap gifts. I can see what a boon they would be for anyone who is “wrapping-challenged” for whatever reason or who simply doesn’t enjoy wrapping gifts. Thanks for this wonderful recommendation and timely review, Raintree Annie. Wishing you and yours a beautiful, joyful holiday!
ReplyDeleteWhat a great idea! Because we have so many family members in other states, we have collected several Amazon gift bags, but I have never purchase the pretty gift bags like you are using. I do love the reusable Amazon gift bags (which I use year-round), but the Christmas gift bags would be so much prettier around the tree. Thanks for the great recommendation!
ReplyDeleteGreat thinking Raintree Annie! We have been using re-useable cloth bags for years! They are easy to make and a great little "project" for anyone with a sewing machine. My sister and I used to buy Christmas themed fabric after the holiday (it was so cheap) and then spend an afternoon making all kinds of sacks! Big and small, we made them all! I think this is the first year in a long time when I actually threw one away. It just was not worth the time to fix the tears that happened (this is after using them for at least 10 years) Just think of the savings over paper products! Thanks for brining this idea up for others to try!
ReplyDeleteThis is such a good idea - I really need to consider this - I do reuse those Amazon gift bags, but I like the idea of these more decorative options - hmmm, you have me thinking about doing it differently now
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