Wrapping Wall

Published July 20, 2012

Although not exactly a brand new idea in home renovations, they are becoming increasingly popular in the new home building arena.

When you think about it, we tend do a lot of Birthday, Anniversary, and Holiday wrapping during the year. Perhaps having a designated spot to make this easier isn’t such a bad idea.  It would be nice to take advantage of wrapping paper sales during the year when you have somewhere to store it and remember where it is.

The time involved in sourcing the paper, tape and scissors is usually more than the wrapping itself. You can make things easier by transforming an area in your spare room or sewing room into a well-organized wrapping space all year round.

If you are planning to set up a wrapping room or area, you may want to keep the following considerations in mind.

Firstly, clean out all the clutter in the room before you start designing the area. It’s always a good idea to take inventory of items you haven’t used in over a year. A good rule of thumb is to toss anything that you haven’t had a need for in the last 12 months.

Pick an area in a room that has a wide wall space to hang rolls of paper and a large work surface to wrap on. Drawers are also very useful along with empty closet space.

Attach your rolls of wrapping paper with wall brackets and wooden dowels. Be sure to properly drill the brackets into the studs in the wall to secure the weight of the rolls of paper.

Hang the rolls of paper 6-8” apart on the wall so that the wrapping paper can be pulled easily off the dowel and cut across the work surface.

On an adjacent wall, or below the rolls of paper, attach another wooden dowel on brackets for the rolls of ribbon. Having your ribbon on rolls is handy and keeps the ribbon from scattering everywhere.

Be sure to purchase a counter tape dispenser and have a container available for scissors and pens, and a large garbage dispenser near by.

It’s also a good idea to have a few boxes designated to tissue paper, stamps, ribbons and buttons.

Corkboards are another good idea. Use them for attaching note cards, labels and bows.

I’ve always believed that gift-wrapping should be a fun experience and not a laborious one. Perhaps with a little organization yours will be too.