This year, think outside of the box!
It’s in the presentation.
Giving a gift in a creative way is part of the event of gift-giving.
Here are techniques I found – some of which apply to jewelry, others apply to other small gifts.
But this year, literally and figuratively, think outside of the box!
1. Find several boxes of different sizes and place the item in its original box. Place it in a larger box, and then place that box in a slightly larger box. Continue this progression for as long as you like. You can let this gift get larger and larger as long as you can keep finding boxes. This trick is a great way to disguise the size of your gift, and it is fun to unwrap.
2. A very small gift, like a ring, necklace or earrings, can be placed inside of a clean empty wine or champagne bottle. Attach a ribbon to the jewelry, and lower it into the bottle, securing the ribbon on the outside of the bottle. Wrap the bottle with shiny paper and festive ribbons and watch the recipient glow when they see that the gift isn’t what it appeared to be.
3. Another interesting idea for a small-sized gift, such as an engagement ring, is to place the item (unwrapped of course) inside food. Cake or pudding can work or you can balance the ring atop a mound of whipped cream. Of course, make sure he or she doesn’t eat the item, perhaps leave the diamond clearly visible in the icing. This is a tried and true romantic way to pop the question.
4. If you have a small gift that goes with a much larger gift, such as car keys for a new car, this gift can be attached to some sort of car accessory item, like an ice scraper. Simply wrap the scraper and watch your recipient’s eyes light up when they see the keys attached to the scraper.
5. If you are giving someone tickets to an event, these can be placed between the pages of a book, preferably one that has something to do with the event. For sporting events, you can tape the tickets to the inside of a baseball glove or around a basketball, and then wrap the item.
6. Another idea for a small gift item is to place the item inside an empty paper towel holder. Wrap the gift, and insert it in the holder. Then place confetti inside, so that when the recipient looks for the gift, confetti will fly.
7. Extraordinary gifts can also be placed inside ordinary household items to add a little fun. You can insert precious jewelry inside a box of cereal, or place a CD inside a bag of chips, place a bracelet atop a can of peanuts, or tape a ring inside a bottle cap.
8. One clever way to wrap a small gift is to insert the item into the pocket of a piece of clothing. After you insert the item into the pocket, be sure to attach a little ribbon to clue the recipient in as to where to find the real gift.
9. Let’s face it, half the fun of gift-giving is surprising the recipient. This idea will cleverly disguise what’s inside, while making them curious about its strange shape. First, you need to construct a box in an unusual shape. You can do this by simply cutting away some cardboard and adding it to just about any sized box. The box can be made into a triangular, octagonal, or star shape, or just about any shape you can come up with. Although it may be just a bit difficult to wrap this self-styled box, it will keep the recipient guessing as to what’s inside.
10. If you want to wrap a men’s ring or cufflinks, one idea is to wrap it in fancy paper, and put it inside a tightly-coiled belt. Wrap the belt and enjoy the expression on his face as he uncoils the belt and sees the “real” gift.
11. A gift card can be inserted just about anywhere. You can insert it into the wrapper of a candy bar or put it into a box of chocolates. Be sure to insist the recipient open the box for a taste of candy to discover the card.
12. Of course, money can be disguised almost anywhere. It can be cleverly rolled around cigars or inserted into a small purse. Perhaps the cleverest way I’ve ever seen money given is by replacing the designer tag on an expensive piece of clothing with several bills (or a check).
13. Putting a small gift inside a bouquet of flowers is a romantic way to give. Simply wrap the gift and tape it to one of the roses and watch her eyes sparkle when she smells the flowers.
14. If you want to bake up a surprise for your loved one, get a fancy box, fill it up with fresh baked cookies, and place your gift on top of the cookies.
15. Finally, bubble wrap can add both size and texture to your gift. You can make the gift larger and wider to really keep them guessing as to what’s actually inside.