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Make your own Christmas wrapping

Why waste money on paper gift wrap this Christmas when you can create your own gorgeous personalised wrap.

Why waste money on paper gift wrap this Christmas when you can create your own gorgeous personalised wrap.

YOU WILL NEED: Unbleached linen or calico, contrasting fabric, scissors or pinking shears, block ink, fine paintbrush, letter stamps, dressmaker’s chalk or pencil.

Lay out your jar or gift item on the linen and experiment with wrapping it up. Cut fabric around the gift in a square shape, allowing yourself enough fabric for long “ears” at the top (to achieve raw edges, simply make a small cut with your scissors and rip fabric in a straight line before cutting off any loose threads, or use pinking shears for an un-frayed finish).

Once you have your square, pretend you’re wrapping the gift again and use pencil or chalk to roughly mark where the lettering should go. Paint block ink by hand onto the letter stamps (below), making sure to blot any excess ink from the sides.

Press stamp down hard on the linen, then remove. Repeat until you have completed the desired words (“joy”, “peace”, “love” and “noel” always make good Christmas sentiments), then put aside to dry.

Take your contrasting fabric and make a small incision with your scissors at the shorter edge. Rip apart for a long, straight ribbon strip and remove any loose, trailing threads from the ripped strip when you’re done. Wrap your gift and tie the ribbon around the top to display the lettering at the front.

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