Gift wrapping ideas from the pros
How to make small gift seem special? Start with elegant wrap. Midori’s Twelve Days paper spells out the lyrics to “The Twelve Days of Christmas” in black and gold (or red text on green). Here, an $8 candle holder is centered on the wrapping. The paper is pulled up and pleated to conform to the round shape, with the loose ends gathered at the top. To jazz it up: A 2-inch wide striped Promenade ribbon. (Ricardo DeAratanha / Los Angeles Times)
In the race to the holiday finish line, wrapping presents often ends up last on our lists. For Aya Sumika and Trevor John, owners of Los Angeles-based Midori Ribbon, however, gift bags and adhesive bows just don’t cut it. Some basic and complex tips...
What if your wrap of choice comes in cut sheets instead of a long roll? Even an oversize gift, such as a giant coffee table book, is no problem. Here, the Midori team used two sheets of a design called Weekend Parade, silhouettes of children in a procession through a wintry forest — a hip alternative to the usual snowflakes and tannenbaums of the season. (Ricardo DeAratanha / Los Angeles Times)
To achieve the pleated top, start by taping two sheets of wrap together and laying the book in the center. Pull the longer sides of the paper toward the center of the book and tape. (The sides should overlap.) Then, starting at one corner, fold small sections of paper and gently pull toward the center of the book, creating a gathered effect. Make sure each fold is even in length. Use the same process on both sides of the gift, and secure the folded edges with tape. A wide, wire-edged ribbon — the Holly Berry ribbon here is 5 inches — can help to hide taped spots, if necessary. (Ricardo DeAratanha / Los Angeles Times)
Action figures and other playthings often come in plastic blister packs — probably named for what you get when you try to pry them apart. The pro’s advice: Lay down the package on the wrapping paper, so the shortest, flatest surface is facing you as you sit at the table. Leave lots of paper at top but only enough paper below to cover half of the bottom of the package. (Anne Cusack / Los Angeles Times)
Pull the left side of the paper to define one edge of the package and tape it down. Repeat on the right side, folding and tucking any excess paper so that it’s plumb with the left edge of the package. The package now sits in a paper tube. Working at the base, push the sides of the paper inward, then fold in the top and bottom edges and tape. (Anne Cusack / Los Angeles Times)
Stand the package up. Working on the top of the package, pinch, pleat and gather the paper together... (Anne Cusack / Los Angeles Times)
...and tie it together with a ribbon. (Anne Cusack / Los Angeles Times)
To help your effort stand out, try a nontraditional print — here, a Midori leopard print in cream and a festive 3¾-inch Promenade ribbon. (Anne Cusack / Los Angeles Times)
Instead of finding a rectangular box for a round package like a cookie tin, try the fashion trick of pleating. Warning to the easily flustered: This takes practice. For a round cookie tin, Sumika used Cream & Red Roses on Black gift wrap, a striking and elegant alternative to traditional reds and greens.
VIDEO: Wrapping round presents
She cut a piece as wide as the circumference of the circle (plus a half-inch extra) and as long as the diameter of the lid plus one-half the height of the container. (We told you, it’s a little tricky.) Place the container on its rounded edge in the center of the paper. Using double-sided tape around the round sides of the container, wrap the tin so it is sitting in the middle of a paper tube, with top and bottom exposed.
On the bottom of the tin, tape the loose edge of the paper to the center of the container. Moving clockwise, bend and fold the paper at a 45-degree angle, connecting the pleat to the same center point. Continue until all the paper is folded into center, creating even pleats. Tape the circle closed. Repeat the process for the tin’s top. (Anne Cusack / Los Angeles Times)
Run out of ribbon? Here’s a crafty way to make Midori’s Floppy Bow out of gift wrap. Cut two sets of 1-inch-wide paper strips at the following lengths: 24 inches, 17 inches, 131/2 inches, 101/2 inches, 6 inches and 3 inches. Tape each strip into the shape of a circle. Pinch the top and bottom together to form two equal loops. (Leave the 3-inch strips as a circle; do not pinch.) (Anne Cusack / Los Angeles Times)
Tape the two largest loops to the top of the box in the shape of an X. Continue crisscrossing the strips, working from longest to shortest. Place the smallest circle in center of the bow. (Anne Cusack / Los Angeles Times)
Seamless wrapping is not for the faint of heart: the traditional Japanese method requires some patience and a steady hand. For the advanced students who want to move to the head of the (gift wrapping) class, this video explains how it’s done. (Anne Cusack / Los Angeles Times)
Here, the clean edges can be seen as Sumika ties on a ribbon. (Anne Cusack / Los Angeles Times)
It’s the thought -- and the effort -- that will count.
You can read our related article on Midori Ribbon owners Aya Sumika and Trevor John’s West Hollywood condo. (Anne Cusack / Los Angeles Times)