Embroidered Gift Wrap and 24 Kraft Paper Wrapping Ideas

As many of you may know, this fall I launched Let's Wrap Stuff, a website devoted to all things gift wrap related. To celebrate its launch and its first Christmas, I challenged a select group of talented bloggers to come up with a creative gift wrap idea using plain kraft paper. Who doesn't love brown paper packages tied up with string? Of course, I had to take part too! Check out all 24 creative kraft paper gift wrap ideas below.

First, I'm going to share with you this fun embroidered gift wrap idea. Full disclosure: this gift wrap took a long time... somewhere between 30 minutes and an hour. And while this isn't very long for a fun craft project, it is a long time for wrapping a present. So what I ended out doing was wrapping up an empty box with the paper, and adding it to my Christmas decorations. There are a couple of things I also could have done differently to make it go a lot faster, but I'll get to that in a minute.

What you need:
1. Embroidery thread
2. A needle
3. A thumb tack
4. Tiny Wood Spools

5. Mod Podge (or glue)
6. Paint & paint brush
7. Tape
8. Pencil & eraser
9. Ribbon or fabric/paper tape measure

What you do:
1. Start by sketching your design lightly in pencil onto plain kraft paper gift wrap.

2. Take a thumb tack and start poking holes along your design. I alternated a larger gap for where the thread is over and a smaller gap for where the thread is under.

3. Erase the pencil marks.

4. Instead of tying a knot, it's easiest to just tape the end of your thread to the inside of the wrapping paper. Then start stitching your words. Be careful to not tear the paper. I used one very long piece of thread because I wanted to have enough at the end to ravel around the little spool. However, it took forever to stitch because there was so much thread. In retrospect, it would be a lot easier to use a smaller thread and to just tape the end and start a new one when it ran out.

5. When you've finished with the lettering, go ahead and wrap your present. Paint on any other words you want to include.

6. Now take the tiny spool, and cover the middle area with Mod Podge. Start wrapping the end of the thread around the spool, until it is all covered. When your spool is where you want it to be, attach it to the paper.

7. Finish wrapping your gift with ribbons, buttons, or even fabric measuring tape. This would be the perfect way to wrap a gift for someone who loves to sew. You could also use those free paper tape measures from IKEA as ribbon.

Now onto the BROWN PAPER PACKAGE challenge. Be sure to stop by and check out these great gift wrap ideas.

1. Pom Pom Ice Cream Cone Gift Wrap by Let's Wrap Stuff

2. Embroidered Wrapping Paper by Lines Across

3. Holiday Lights Gift Wrap by Burlap and Blue

4. Printable DIY Watercolor Gift Tags by Dawn Nicole

5. Chalkboard Painted Wrapping Paper by The Winthrop Chronicles

6. Let it Snow Neighbor Gift Printable by Ginger Snap Crafts

7. Upcycled Cardboard Gift Tags 3 Ways by Eat. Sleep. Make.

8. Kraft Paper Gift Card Envelope Printables by Delia Creates

9. Make Give Christmas Tree Gift Topper by Make and Tell

10. DIY Wrench Wrapping Paper by Maker Mama

11. DIY Stamped Trees Gift Wrap by Shaken Together Life

12. Brown Paper Packages by Delineate Your Dwelling

13. Yarn Tassel Gift Wrap 2 Ways by Hands Occupied

14. Holiday Writing with Washi Tape by Club Chica Circle

15. Glitter-Dipped Gift Tags by The Thinking Closet

16. Coffee Container Christmas Gift Tags by Simply Kelly Designs

17. Gift Wrapping Ideas by C.R.A.F.T.

18. Holiday Gift Wrap Ideas by Making Home Base

19. Sewn Brown Paper Gift Card Gift Giving by Dream a Little Bigger

20. Chalkboard Gift Tag & Ornament by Tried and True

21. Easy Holly Ornament Gift Tag by Rae Gun Ramblings

22. Printable Hand-Lettered Christmas Tags by Persia Lou

23. Christmas Gift Wrapping Ideas by Eighteen25

24. Washi Tape Christmas Tree Gift Card Box by That's What Che Said