Sustainable Gift Wrap

lovebytenz
Nov 7, 2025
2 min read

Updated: 4 days ago

There’s something extra special about unwrapping a gift when the outside is a heart-warming glimpse of the love that’s gone into it. You don’t need to spend a fortune on store-bought paper or ribbons, because with a little creativity, you can turn everyday items into beautiful, eco-friendly wraps.

Knotted tuille looks great even without wrapping.

Sustainable by design

Before you buy another roll of wrapping paper, take a quick look around your home, because you might be surprised by how many sustainable design possibilities are waiting to be discovered. Here are some of my favourite upcycled and sustainable gift-wrapping ideas to try.

Furoshiki style fabric wraps

An old scarf, fabric remnant, or even a new tea towel can be used as gift wrap, doing double duty as part of the gift. If you've ever had to wrap a gift on the way to an event, fabric wrap with a stylish knot looks great, and removes the need for tape and scissors, perfect for gift-giving on the fly.

Brown paper packages tied up with string

Paper grocery bags and brown packaging paper are items we generally have lying around, and a little off-cut looks great when folded into a miniature present and tied with string.

Magazines, maps & sheet music

Colourful magazine pages can look fabulous for wrapping small gifts and making a card to match. You can use any printed materials as gift wrap, such as old dress patterns, vintage wrapping paper, road maps, sheet music, newspaper, musty book pages, wallpaper offcuts, posters and children's artwork. These become extra special if they are relevant to the recipient.

Reusing and upcycling cards & packaging

Tissue paper from shoe boxes and deliveries are my go-to, but there are all sorts of interesting recycled, eco-friendly products that can be stylishly reused, and tied with raffia or string. Cut shapes from last year’s greeting cards to use as gift tags, and embellish with buttons, fabric trims, and bits and pieces from your household stash.

Natural embellishments

Instead of ribbons and bows, tuck in a sprig of rosemary, a bunch of daisies, or some dried flowers. Use natural twine or jute to enhance the eco-friendly vibe. Old items add charm and enhance the storytelling.

These images were generated with AI, so no actual plants or materials were harmed in the making :)

Creative containers & sustainable wrapping

The idea of re-purposing really appeals to me, as a way to extend the life of everyday items, and there is a huge movement towards finding creative and sustainable solutions for packaging and wrapping. Find lots of fabulous gift container ideas on Pinterest