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Wrapping Paper
by Stacey Agin Murray
Protecting your gift-wrap and supplies in a container saves money. The paper and bows won’t get ruined, so you won’t spend money on replacements.
Growing up in a small apartment, we didn’t have a lot of storage space. So when it came to gift wrap, Mom kept it all (including holiday wrap) in a large sweater box at the bottom of her closet. That seemed perfectly normal to me until I read an article reporting that Candy Spelling, the wife of multimillionaire TV producer Aaron Spelling, had a gift-wrap room in their home—a space dedicated entirely to wrapping presents.
 Since most of us don’t have such a luxury, we need to be creative about how we organize and store our supplies. Why worry about gift-wrap storage when there’s so much else to do for the holidays? Here are three reasons:
- Protecting your gift-wrap and supplies in a container
saves money. The paper and bows won’t get ruined,
so you won’t spend money on replacements.
- Storing holiday wrappings in a container separate
from allseason wrap will save you time. It’s quicker
to find Smiling Santa paper if it’s not mixed in
with rolls of “Happy Birthday” and “It’s a Boy!”
- By designating one area of your home as the go-to
place for holiday gift-wrap, you save your sanity.
Everything you need for prettying presents can be
stored in that location. Gift-wrap and accessories
will be easy to find, retrieve and put away throughout
the season so gift-wrapping will be less of a hassle.
It pays to organize your wrapping paper and supplies,
so here are a few free and low-cost ways to keep your
holiday wrap in order year round:
 Protecting your gift-wrap
and supplies in a container saves money. The paper and bows won’t get ruined,
so you won’t spend money on replacements.
SUITE HANGER + SHOPPING BAG = GIFT WRAP ORGANIZER
Take a hanger with clips, the type usually used for
pants or a skirt. Find a deep plastic bag from a
store you’ve recently shopped in and hang the bag,
open side up, from the clips. Place your gift-wrap
rolls inside and hang the kit in any closet. If you
have an excess of supplies, create several organizers
and divide your stockpile among them—gift bags in
one, rolls of wrap in another, ribbons, bows and
tags in a third.
WASTEBASKET AS WRAP ORGANIZER
And you thought it was just for garbage! A wastebasket
that is wide and tall enough to accommodate rolls
of paper and gift-wrapping tools can function as
a storage container.
RIBBON DISPENSER
Find a narrow shoe box and poke a hole two inches from
the top on the short side of the box. Make a corresponding
hole on the other side. Remove the long cardboard
piece from a drycleaner’s hanger, cut it to size
and push it through one of the holes. Thread your
spools of ribbon on the cardboard dowel and push
it through the second hole so it’s suspended across
the length of the box. Voila! An instant ribbon dispenser.
Do you have a few extra dollars in your pocket this
holiday season? Good for you! Consider investing in
these low-cost items to keep you organized for seasons
to come:
UNDER THE BED STORAGE BOX
Perfect for long rolls of wrapping paper, these boxes
have room for storing such items as tape, scissors
and a bow maker. typical cost: $9.99 and up
SOFT-SIDED CONTAINERS
Whether these light-weight, portable holders stand
in a corner or hang from the back of a door, your
wrapping paper and tools will be kept in one place
and protected from damage. typical cost: $12.99 and
up
PANTS HANGER
For those of you who have ribbons in different widths,
colors and styles, purchase a Swing Arm Slack hanger.
The five arms normally swing out to allow the easy
hanging of pants. Instead, thread spools of ribbon
onto to make a hanging ribbon organizer. typical
cost: $4.99 and up
THE BIG SPLURGE
If you’re willing to spend some extra money for storage,
try an over the door gift-wrap station. The cross
bars and plastic pockets neatly house rolls of paper,
ribbons, scissors, tags and wrapping accessories.
Hang the organizer on the back of any door (try the
laundry room, storage or craft room) and say goodbye
to wrapping supplies trailing throughout the house.
$24.99
Happy Wrapping!
Stacey Agin Murray
Stacey Agin Murray is a professional organizer residing in Fair Lawn, New Jersey. Visit her Web site at www.organizedartistry.com for more information.
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