The thing I hate during Christmas [modified]

[El Corazon]

Rama Krishna Vavilala wrote:

Any good tips regarding wrapping?

Hide the gift, wrap a clue-card, and lead a merry chase clue following to clue around the house. Then you only wrap one thing small and hide the real gift. This is especially good for any child that likes to shake or peek at his gift. Since his gift isn't really wrapped, there is satisfaction that you didn't put a huge effort into it. You can even chain the clues together, hide all gifts and have the first clue lead to the first gift, and that gift lead to the next one with notes attached to each. I don't normally do the latter, but I like to hide one or two. And no, I didn't steal the idea from National Treasure, I was doing it 12 years ago too. Not sure where I picked it up though.

_________________________ Asu no koto o ieba, tenjo de nezumi ga warau. Talk about things of tomorrow and the mice in the ceiling laugh. (Japanese Proverb)

[Gary R Wheeler]

Wrap early and often. Several years ago, I waited until Christmas Eve to start wrapping around 4:00 p.m. I finished at about 2:30 a.m. Christmas morning. My daughter woke up around 5:30 a.m. :sigh:

Software Zen: delete this;

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[Maximilien]

mine are finished! except the big one .. I put all the gifts inside a big box and wrap the big box and it's the only box I bring to the party Photo http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2039/2131418811_7b6fa06367_b.jpg[^] Now finishing the prep work for tonight's eve dinner. :-D

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modified on Monday, December 24, 2007 11:01:27 AM

[Marc Clifton]

martin_hughes wrote:

Yup... get the girl in the shop to do it for you.

Somehow I read that as "get the girl on top of the gift". :-D Marc

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[hlmechanic]

is the picture password protected? :(

[Jim Crafton]

Not a bad idea either, as long as it's not a gift for your wife/gf/etc :)

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[Marc Clifton]

Frankly (since the only kid in the house, age-wise, is 16), we've dispensed with Christmas wrapping. It's such a huge waste.

Rama Krishna Vavilala wrote:

BTW I always though that Merry was the right word before Christmas.

Well, I mostly here "Merry Christmas" and "Happy Hanukka". Marc

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[Paul Conrad]

Rama Krishna Vavilala wrote:

Gift Wrapping.

That is something I've done alot of and still very so-so at it.

"The clue train passed his station without stopping." - John Simmons / outlaw programmer

[Paul Conrad]

Marc Clifton wrote:

Somehow I read that as "get the girl on top of the gift".

:laugh:

"The clue train passed his station without stopping." - John Simmons / outlaw programmer

[Paul Conrad]

El Corazon wrote:

Hide the gift, wrap a clue-card, and lead a merry chase clue following to clue around the house.

Sounds like a great idea :-D

"The clue train passed his station without stopping." - John Simmons / outlaw programmer

[martin_hughes]

Also a good suggestion :)

"On one of my cards it said I had to find temperatures lower than -8. The numbers I uncovered were -6 and -7 so I thought I had won, and so did the woman in the shop. But when she scanned the card the machine said I hadn't. "I phoned Camelot and they fobbed me off with some story that -6 is higher - not lower - than -8 but I'm not having it." -Tina Farrell, a 23 year old thicky from Levenshulme, Manchester.

[Philip Laureano]

Rama Krishna Vavilala wrote:

Any good tips regarding wrapping?

Outsource it. :)

Do you know...LinFu?

[Paul Conrad]

Philip Laureano wrote:

Outsource it.

I'll have to remember that for next year :rolleyes:

"The clue train passed his station without stopping." - John Simmons / outlaw programmer

[Rama Krishna Vavilala]

The problem is most of my gifts go to my friends, not my family members. I will implement your idea next year when my daughter grows old and will be able to participate in the "gift hunt".

[El Corazon]

Rama Krishna Vavilala wrote:

The problem is most of my gifts go to my friends, not my family members.

Well, then I just learned shortcuts. I tape the paper to the box whenever possible, pull it tight makes it easier at each step. You can do almost any shape by rolling it in paper on the longest dimension, make sure you have more than half the end covered by extra paper on each side. Fold top down on each side, tape. Fold bottom up on each side, tape. Fold sides in and tape. You can go pretty fast once you get the hange of it. I put in a LOT of effort in only one wrapping this Christmas. My wife's gift matched so closely you couldn't find where the seams were visually because the dark paper hides the seams, and the pattern was deliberately and exactly matched. It took twice as long as any other wrapping, probably closer to three times. But she was shocked at how well I matched the pattern in wrapping, she almost didn't want to tear the paper. That compliment alone was worth losing the paper to being torn. I worked a boy-scout wrapping fund-raising for several years. Although this method uses more tape than I can when I put in some real effort, it is fast, and easy to teach to kids, and generally comes out pretty good. I tried googling for fast gift-wrapping tips, but came up with mostly unusual wrapping methods which allows you to add unique touches. I may do this for one gift a year, but otherwise I wrap rapidly. The hidden gifts are also wrapped, but wrapped fast so that you don't mind they will be torn off fast too. The hunt stretches out the gifts a bit more to get a little more excitement to the giver in exchange for the 2 second rip and cheer holiday gift unwapping methods. :laugh:

_________________________ Asu no koto o ieba, tenjo de nezumi ga warau. Talk about things of tomorrow and the mice in the ceiling laugh. (Japanese Proverb)

[ied]

Tape. Lots of tape. Tape is your friend. Bwa ha ha ha... -- Ian

[Paul Conrad]

ied wrote:

Tape is your friend. Bwa ha ha ha...

Yep. Just used up the last of it :rolleyes:

"The clue train passed his station without stopping." - John Simmons / outlaw programmer

[peterchen]

It's a skill that can be trained. I loathed wrapping gifts, too - until I froced myself to simply WRAP THAT STUFF NO MATTER WHAT - and I have quite short, stumpy fingers, so it isn't easy. I jsut do a standard cross wrap, nothing fancy. Pick the right gift paper: the easiest is actually the metallic-surface style, as it looks quite posh, doesn't mind a few wrinkles, and is easy enough to cut. Get some different colors of standard gift ribbon - if you are just giving away CD's, the ribbon color can tell you which is which :) Get the stuff that, when you pull it over a sharp edge, rolls itself up. The is one "break in side", usualyl less shiny - identify this side before. For standard semi-cubic gifts: Stack the stuff to wrap so it is quite stable. Get an eye for the size of gift paper you need for it - can't give hints with that, except: a bit to much hurts much less than slightly not enough. Estimate the ribbon needed, and cut it (2 x width + 2 x breadth + 4 x height + some extra for knot, ends and estimation errors - again, with the self-curling ribbon, a bit to much doesn't hurt. put the paper with the "nice side" down on the table (you NEED a CLEAN table with some space...), stack the stuff upside down, wrap the paper around, hiding the "ends" at the bottom. you can fold the rims to hide rigged ends and the papers inside looking out. Fold is ok if you can keep the paper around the stuff wiht slightly pressing with one finger to the bottom center. Push the ribbon under the gift and pull it up on the sides. When they meet at the bottom (which is still at top :rolleyes: ), twist the two ends around each other by 90° or 270° (the latter giving a bit more initial hold). Rotate the package upright. Now the package should hold itself together pretty well, pulling the ribbon ends slightly. slide thewm under the ribbon already going over the top already before making two simple knots on top of each other. Packed, but not pretty. Get your scissors, pull othe ribbon ends over it (again, that's a skill that needs to be learned - I gave up to do it as quick as the girls at the flower shop...), if you got the right side, it will curl. (if not, just cut off over the knot, and add some additional curling ribbon). You can decorate with some seasonal adhesive stickers, or glue on some "dust catchers". (I usually use small rolls of adhesive tape with the adhesive side outside, as this is least destructive) It's nor hard really. Which doesn#t mean it is much more fun than ironing. Having said that,