Wrap your gifts with cloth...

[GoddessOfGuinness]

Furoshiki is the Japanese art of wrapping gifts in cloth. Various techniques can be found here: http://furoshiki.com/techniques.php#basic_wrap
You can use the wrap again and again, and no trees are killed! :hi:

[GoddessOfGuinness]

1. kicking for trees

[NMDemDist2]

2. that's pretty darned cool! you need to cross post it in Frugal and the Crafts groups too n/t

[GoddessOfGuinness]

5. I need to check the groups again...

I didn't even realize they existed! Thanks! :hi:

[SallyMander]

3. So say, just hypothetically of course

that someone couldn't fold a fitted sheet to save their life... would they have any hope of doing this???

:rofl:

[GoddessOfGuinness]

9. Fitted sheets are tough!

These are just nice flat squares :hi:

[Chan790]

4. A question...

I'm looking on their site, but I can't find the dimensions of the cloths they are using for furoshiki...and I'm pretty sure that I can buy something at the fabric store for less than $25-$60.

Since you seem to know something about this, what size cloth square does one use typically for these techniques?

[GoddessOfGuinness]

10. You can find size info here:

http://furoshiki.com/about.php?section=sizes

And yes, there is no need to go bankrupt purchasing cloth. Remnant sales are wonderful things!

[Suich]

11. self-delete

Beat me to it!

[txwhitedove]

6. A great idea! You can find price reduced remnants, pieces,

or even bolts of cloth at $1.00/yard. Thanks.

:-)

[GoddessOfGuinness]

13. My pleasure!

Between holiday fabrics and kid's colorful materials, there's a fabric for every occasion. :)

[grannylib]

7. My mom has wrapped stuff in fabric for years (she's very green)

I love it, because I collect vintage fabrics and she'd wrap things in tablecloths or tea towels or whatever. Two gifts in one!
I've done that with things I think my daughters will like - a pretty dresser scarf, or a shawl, or something.
I'm going to check out that site; I bet they make some lovely designs! :-)

[GoddessOfGuinness]

14. In my spare time (when I have it!) I'm making holiday gift bags

with drawstrings. It'll be nice to toss them in the washer for use next year.

[XemaSab]

26. I posted below

I've made drawstring bags the last couple years. I haven't even found the need to wash them yet. :shrug:

[GoddessOfGuinness]

29. That's great!

We'd probably need to around here just because I've got an almost 10 yea old son and a cat who loves to lie on the clean laundry. ;-)

[grannylib]

28. What a great idea!

[GoddessOfGuinness]

30. Thanks!

:hi:

[flvegan]

8. My underwear is cotton.

I'm already there, baby.

[GoddessOfGuinness]

15. The gift that keeps on giving, eh?

:rofl:

[Robeson]

27. Yeah, but are you sure the recipients of your gifts want to see Sponge Bob...

...on them? :D

[Rabrrrrrr]

12. I use furoshikis a lot to carry things. They're wonderful!

And it's true - no one wraps stuff with anywhere near the perfection of the Japanese.

And, no one uses more wrapping paper wrapping up shit that doesn't need to be wrapped as the Japanese.

[GoddessOfGuinness]

16. I've never really been in to paper wrap...

though there have been occasions where I've used it because someone might be offended if I didn't.

Always seemed kind of senseless to me.

[dysfunctional press]

17. it's similar to the tinfoil swans for leftovers we used to make at the country club i waitered at.

we'd compete to see who could make the gawdiest bird, or the bird that most resembled the woman taking it home, or best animal that's not a bird(i did a scorpion that was pretty cool).

[GoddessOfGuinness]

18. I wonder who the woman was who resembled a scorpion...

:rofl:

[dysfunctional press]

19. different nights, different contests...

(but that probably would have been mrs. nichols)

[democracyindanger]

20. nevermind

[GoddessOfGuinness]

21. Well we all have to mind sometimes.

;-)

[democracyindanger]

22. Not this time.

Please, let me bear my posting-joke-somebody-else-already-made shame in private. :P

[Connonym]

23. empty grocery sacks turned inside out are also a good way to recycle

you can hand decorate with stamps or doodles or whatnot. Of course if you only use your own bags at the grocery store this won't work.

[GoddessOfGuinness]

24. Nice idea...

We've been known to wrap kids' packages with the Sunday comics.

[XemaSab]

25. The last couple years I've made cloth bags for Christmas

It's SUPER EASY...

Go to the fabric store, get some festive fabric on sale, and make a simple inside-out pillowcase. To finish it, take a longass stretch of red or green ribbon and make a pocket for it at the mouth of the "pillowcase." (Like making a curtain, only instead of a rod, it's a ribbon that goes through.). Be sure to sew the ribbon into the bag along the opposite seam so it doesn't come out!

They're totally practical, and after a few years I have a BUNCH hanging around. If I don't have one that fits the gift I want to give, it's easy to make another bag.