For the ultimate in eco-friendly holiday gift wrapping, look no further than these 27 creative Christmas wrapping ideas.

From using recycled paper to bringing in items from your garden, these ideas will add a special touch to your presents this year and help to save our environment, too.

December 3 is celebrated each year as Make a Gift Day. Nothing makes a gift more special that wrapping that is carefully thought out and executed. Read on for some tips for making your gift wrapping unique.

Any of these gift wrapping techniques would really stand out under a Christmas tree. Don’t forget to send your wishlists to Santa by writing to Santa’s address (or by calling Santa’s phone number)!

I love wrapping Christmas gifts almost as much as I love receiving them! I find it creative, relaxing and the process gives me a chance to get artistic and personal with my gifts.

If you look in the Christmas department of any store, it’s easy to think that a big wallet is needed to get great looking gift wrapping.

However, with a bit of creative thinking and lots of recycling of old materials, this does not have to be the case.

Many items can be reused to make beautiful and unique Christmas wrapping projects. With a bit of creativity, your creations will add a special touch to any gift.

Plus, recycling old items, and turning them into something new to spread Christmas cheer is a great way to get on Santa’s nice list!

This post may contain affiliate links. I earn a small commission, at no extra cost to you if you purchase through an affiliate link.

Note: Some of these projects use hot glue. Hot glue guns, and heated glue can burn. Please use extreme caution when using a hot glue gun. Learn to use your tool properly before you start any project.

Try one of these Christmas wrapping ideas for a creative gift wrapped Christmas!

Readers of my blog know that I like to recycle old items with new uses, and Christmas is the perfect season to put this into practice.

Why spend a lot of money on paper, ribbon and extra embellishments for your gifts when you can use up items that you may already have on hand? It just takes a bit of thinking outside of the (gift) box.

Gather some household items and recycle them to make one of these creative Christmas wrapping ideas for an eco-friendly gift. 🤶🎅⛄ Share on X

Re-purpose an inexpensive ornament

Metallic tree ornaments of all shapes and sizes in shiny colors use to be popular additions to a Christmas tree.

Their appeal may have faded as tastes have changed, but don’t throw out those shiny little treasures. Use them as gift attachments.

In this simple design, kitchen twine is tied in a simple bow around a gift wrapped in plain butcher paper.

Add a star ornament to finish the look. This effective and rustic Christmas wrap idea comes together in just a few minutes!

Save the ornament for another year to decorate presents again!

Burlap ribbon with a white lace center would also look great in this design.

Wire edged ribbon bows last for years!

This big fluffy bow is one of my favorite ideas for creative gift packaging. You can see how to make this type of bow here.

The beauty of wire edged ribbon is that once you have made them into bows, you can re-use them for many years.

Even shops like the Dollar Store carry this type of ribbon now, making this a very inexpensive wrapping idea!

The bows get squashed in storage, but the wire edge in the ribbon allows you to “puff them out” next year. The ones on these packages are at least 6 years old and look as though I made them today.

I make sure to leave a long end on the bow so that there is enough of the ribbon to wrap around the gift. Even the Dollar Store carries this type of ribbon now so this makes for a very inexpensive wrapping idea!

Use recycled garden items for Christmas gift wrap

Wandering around your garden this time of the year will give you lots of items that can be used in wrapping paper ideas.

This pretty design features eucalyptus leaves, a few seed pods and a piece of wood that has been polished and drilled. The garden items add a natural look to the plain white paper and Kraft recycled paper.

Tie it all together with a piece of jute twine to blend with the decorations and your Christmas gift wrapping creation is done.

You could also switch out the seed pods for a poinsettia sprig, which would celebrate not only Christmas, but National Poinsettia Day too!

Thumbprint Christmas lights creative gift wrapping

There’s something so magical about seeing Christmas lights in December, so why not turn that idea into creative gift wrapping.

What a fun idea this is for a present to grandparents! Wrap a package in brown butcher paper and dip your child’s thumb into craft paint haphazardly on the top of the package.

Once the paint has dried, use a marker to turn the thumbprints into Christmas lights. This is a personalized gift that will be really treasured and it costs next to nothing. See the tutorial from Burlap and Blue.

Sewing pattern gift wrap

One of the most expensive part of the present is often the wrapping paper.

Don’t worry about the cost of paper. Use old sewing patterns instead. This idea from Sadie Seasongoods does just that. Check out her tutorial here.

Once the gifts are wrapped, add a fabric bow for a unique and an inexpensive gift wrapped present that your friends will love.

Less is more for Christmas wrapping ideas

Sometimes, the simplest of designs are the most effective types of Christmas wrap ideas.

This idea uses a plain wrapping paper and then ties it all up with a bow made from wide burlap ribbon. A simple snowflake gift tag adds the finishing touch.

These tags would probably be expensive since they are punched. However, you could achieve the same effect with burlap ribbon from the Dollar Store and a sheet of over-sized snowflake window clings placed onto card stock circles with a dab of glue.

More creative Christmas wrapping ideas

Still need some more inspiration for your holiday gifts? Check out these unique gift wrapping ideas

Wrapping an unusual sized gift

Small items and those with unusual sizes can be tucked into pieces of the recycled cardboard tube that the wrapping paper comes on.

Tuck the gift inside the roll the paper around it and attach holly and pieces of plaid ribbon to both sides of the tube. Finish the look by adding a personalized name sticker.

It will look like a Christmas cracker and is very effective for smaller gifts like jewelry or makeup.

Fir bough package decoration

Christmas greenery makes the perfect addition to holiday packages. It is inexpensive, rustic looking and so natural on a gift.

It is the ideal zero waste, eco-friendly product.

A pine cone and fir bough from your garden are the perfect match to this plain Kraft paper background and simple olive gray ribbon.

An inexpensive ornament ball adds a finishing touch!

The colors are very Christmasy and choosing the right fir bough can make this decoration look almost like a Christmas tree.

Candy cane stickers on Christmas gifts

Add some candy cane stickers all over a piece of brown craft paper for a fun and young looking gift that the kids will love.

Even very young children can help with this package decoration!

The look is rounded up by wrapping the whole thing with red and white butcher twine and adding a real candy cane to the top.

Garden round up

Adding pine cones to your gift is another natural looking way to use of garden greenery. In this look, two green pine cones and pieces of fresh pine branch tips are added to the top of some plain colored paper.

Tie the whole thing with kitchen twine and add a couple of bells for a delicate, rustic look.

Make your own Christmas messages for your packages

Make your own Christmas messages gift tags at home on your printer. They add a lovely personalized touch to any gift.

The color of the gift tags lends itself to red paper with soft white ribbon. Print the Christmas messages gift tags here.

If you want to say more than can fit on a gift tag, add a Christmas card to the package, tucked under the ribbon. Mailing Christmas cards has been a tradition for many decades, and they have their own national day – Christmas Card Day.

Burlap ribbon adds a nice touch to Christmas gift packages

Burlap ribbon is less expensive than holiday gift ribbons but still looks lovely on a package.

In this design, Kraft paper has a single row of red burlap ribbon and is tied with natural jute.

A three dimensional snowflake is captured in the wrapping for a simple but very effective look.

Christmas cookie gift wrapping

Who doesn’t love a Christmas cookie ornament? I hang them on my tree all the time. Why not use them on packages?

To copy this idea, wrap a band of butcher paper around plain black wrapping paper. Loop the package several times with yarn and attach a star shaped Christmas cookie.

You can have a snack and a gift at the same time with this fun idea.

Zero waste, eco-friendly gift wrap ideas

Christmas is often a time of excess, both in the gift and in the packaging. There is no need to waste when you are wrapping gifts.

Items from your home and garden can be used as package decorations over recycled paper and natural jute. Some ideas for natural decorations that will help save our environment are:

star anise pods
cinnamon sticks
dried orange slices
salt dough ornaments
garden greenery
pine cones
rosemary sprigs

Combine any of these with recycled eco-friendly Kraft bio-degradable paper and you’ll have an almost zero waste package.

Furoshiki Christmas gift wrapping.

Another eco-friendly alternative to normal Christmas gift wrapping is covering presents in clothing, towels, or tea towels and tied it with natural items like those listed above.

This is called furoshiki and is a Japanese tradition. The perfect no waste gift!

Square items are the ideal gift to wrap this way. Some ideas are:

cookbooks wrapped in tea towels
jigsaw puzzles wrapped in tee shirts
best selling books wrapped in pretty scarves
CDs or DVDs wrapped in PJs or nightgowns

Brainstorm a bit – it’s easy to pair the item with an article of clothing that coordinates with the gift!

More recycled DIY Christmas gift wrapping ideas

The ideas above are just a few of the easy Christmas gift wrap ideas that you can try out this year. If you want even more inspiration, check out these DIY recycled gift wrapping ideas.

Christmas stars made of red and white straws.
17 Holiday Gift Wrap Ideas
Make your own photo wrapping paper.
Use yarn to embellish Christmas gifts.
Make your own unique Christmas wrapping with Washi tape.
Finish off a brown paper bag with these cute DIY wreath labels.
Add some dimension to a gift with these water color holly leaves.
For the music lover. Make sheet music gift wrap.
Add a unique look with these felt gift toppers.
Decorate a package with these creative paper feathers.
These wax paper bows are inexpensive but still cute.
Use duct tape to make big, bold bows for your packages.

Pin these gift wrapping ideas for Christmas

Would you like a reminder of this post for these recycled Christmas wrapping Ideas? Just pin this image to one of your Christmas boards on Pinterest so that you can easily find it later.

Admin note: This post for recycled Christmas gift wrap ideas first appeared on the blog in December of 2018. I have updated the post to add new images, more ideas, a printable project card and a video for you to enjoy.

Yield: Creative looking Christmas Gifts

Christmas Gift Wrap Ideas and Tips for the Perfect Present

Round up some of these supplies to use to decorate your Christmas gifts this year. Recycle and Reuse!

Active Time 10 minutes

Total Time 10 minutes

Difficulty easy

Estimated Cost $5

Materials

Old Vintage Patterns
Wire Edged Ribbon
Garden Items
Butcher Paper
Craft Paint
Old Christmas Ornaments
Snowflake window clings
Burlap Ribbon
Pine boughs and pine cones
Red White Butcher Twine
Candy Cane Stickers
PIne cones, garden greenery
Christmas message gift tags (link below)
Cardboard tubes and name stickers
Clothing or tea towels
Star Christmas cookies

Tools

Scissors, and tape

Instructions

Ways to use the items above:

Vintage sewing patterns make great, inexpensive wrapping papers substitutes.
Turn wire edged ribbon into bows that can be re-used from one season to the next.
Garden items will decorate presents for a natural looking gift presentation.
Use butcher paper as the base for rustic gift wrapping.
Turn craft paints into Christmas lights with the addition of your child's thumb.
Old wooden ornaments that have seen their better days can do double duty as Christmas gift attachments.
Attach snowflake window clings with a dab of glue onto card stock circles for decorative gift tags.
Team burlap ribbon with plain wrapping paper for a unique and simple look.
Add a pine bow and red ribbon to turn a plain white wrapped present into a Christmas tree look.
Add candy cane stickers to butcher paper and tie it all up with red and white butcher twine.
Add pine cones with garden greenery and jute for a natural look.
Add a personalized touch to fits with Christmas messages gift tags.
Place small items in pieces of cardboard tube and turn them into Christmas cracker type gifts.
14. Wrap presents in clothing or tea towels for eco friendly, no waste packaging.
Add Christmas cookies to packages for an inexpensive decoration.