I used to make this beautiful gift wrap with my children when they were small. My husband was at University retraining as a teacher and we were living pretty close to the breadline so every cent counted.
We had a lovely garden filled with flowers so this wrapping paper was easy to make with barely any expense, and to the recipients of our gifts the wrapping was the best present of all!
You'll need a roll of waxed lunch wrap paper...
...and a bowl of flower petals. I have roses...
...plus an ironing board and a warm iron.
Cut a piece of the waxed paper about 20 inches long and lay it across your ironing board. Make sure that the waxed side is facing upward.
Scatter some petals across the paper...
Cut off a similar sized length of waxed paper and lay it down on top of the petals. Your petals should be sandwiched between the waxed sides of both sheets of paper...
With your iron set to warm, glide it across the paper quickly but firmly. This will melt the wax and fuse the petals between the paper.
You can make as many sheets as you like, and even add some soft small leaves. I tried a sheet with some hibiscus flowers and leaves that I had just plucked from the tree...
This worked, but the leaves were too fresh so some of the colour bled out later (barely noticeable but thought I should warn you - my rose petals were two days old and perfect).
I also had a play with a gift card. Isn't it sweet?
Before I finished I scattered the very last carnation onto a smaller sheet with a few remaining rose petals, perfect for a little gift...
I finished with 6 large sheets of petalled paper, and 1 small. The best way to store them until you need them is to wrap them around a cardboard roll (those from the centre of some lunch wrap would be perfect)...
....tie with a ribbon, and store in a postage tube.
If you make a pretty cover for the postage tube, this would be a beautiful and inexpensive gift to give for Christmas!
Be adventurous and use all sorts of flower petals. In the past we have used violets and petunias, daisies and poppies...all looked gorgeous wrapped around a simple gift! Just wrapping a small piece around some scented soap is incredibly special, don't you think?
Hugs
Jenny
xxx
PS: There are just 3 more days left in my 'buy 1 get 1 free' pattern sale on Etsy. You can visit my shop HERE.
What a lovely idea!Just sweet, thank you.
ReplyDeleteVery special... thnaks for the tutorial on how...
ReplyDeletehugs Dawn x x
Wow...thanks :)
ReplyDeleteLovely idea Jen and I have a few rose petals to play with :) hugs Vicki xx
ReplyDeleteThanks Jenny,another super idea.
ReplyDeleteGreat idea. I have SO many roses blooming at the moment I'm going to have to buy more waxed paper :)
ReplyDeleteThanks for this great idea. Hugs, Clara.
ReplyDeleteHi Jenny, I love the tutorial such a simple idea and it works beautifully. I hope Sam had a great birthday and the muffins looked great.
ReplyDeleteLove Jillx
Thank you sharing your great idea.
ReplyDeleteThank you for reminding me of this. I used to make it years ago too and had forgotten all about it.
ReplyDeleteIt's a wonderful idea. Thanks for the tutorial.
ReplyDeleteSabine
Thanks for reminding me about that clever trick - but the idea of making it into a gift itself is great! Thanks - again - Jenny
ReplyDeleteHermosa idea!!!!
ReplyDeleteGracias por el tutorial!!
Un beso!
What a fab idea! I've never heard of waxed lunch wrap so I'll have to have a look for some! thank for the tutorial.
ReplyDeleteJenny, you are so clever! I've done similar in the past with my daughter and with my students, but never thought to use it as gift wrap. And I have a birthday coming up this weekend!! Perfect, thank you! ~kaholly
ReplyDeleteWhat a sweet idea, can hardly wait for spring so I can try this one too! Thank you!
ReplyDeleteThis is a beautifully wonderful idea!
ReplyDeleteHi Jenny,
ReplyDeleteI love this idea!
Thank you for sharing, I'm off to buy some this morning and my mind is realing with ideas.
Have a fun, creative weekend,
Hugs,
Anna
Aren't you the clever crafter? And here I thought your talent was stitcheries. You go girl!
ReplyDeleteI remember doing this as a kid--but instead of flower petals, we took Mom's vegetable peeler and scraped it across some old crayons (psst, don't tell Mom! We made sure to scrub her peeler well afterwards LOL!)When ironed, the crayons melted together and we thought it looked like stained glass.
ReplyDeleteWhat a BEAUTIFUL idea - no flowers left around here though! I might try Rumi's idea of crayons, I have lots of those. I'll save the flower petals idea for next year - this is so pretty!!!
ReplyDeleteMany thanks for this wonderful idea. I love reading your blog and visit every time you post.
ReplyDeleteJenny from New Zealand
fantastic tutorial and a lovely idea.
ReplyDeleteGracias. Me gusto porque lo puedo hacer yo y es de bajo costo.
ReplyDeleteYasmin
What a great and original idea! Thank you for the tutorial!
ReplyDeleteBest wishes,
Tatyana
This is wonderful !
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing and giving a tutorial on the process!
I wished you could have heard all of my ooohs and aaahs as I was looking tut!!! ...........thank you for sharing them with us...:)))
ReplyDeletegreeting from croatia:))....
M....
Thanks again for such a simple but beautiful idea. My Journal covers will look just lovely wrapped in this.
ReplyDeleteLovely idea! I can't wait to make our 'Economy Christmas' beautiful!
ReplyDeleteOkay, that's my favorite idea. I have a flower dehydrator, but this is even easier. Thank you! Next spring, I have a feeling I'll be making quite a bit. Do you have an idea how long it will last?
ReplyDeleteThanx jenny! :) I am studying floristry and looking for ideas to wrap bouquets I will definetly be trying this....
ReplyDelete