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The Student’s Guide to Holiday Gifts – Part Four: Wrapping, Cards, and Presentation

You’ve bought the gifts. They’re sitting in the corner of your cramped room, or on a shelf, or maybe even on your desk now that you’ve triumphantly swept off your exam materials. Your calendar or planner is clearly marked, and you know exactly when all this thinking and theorizing and shopping will culminate as you present your gift at an upcoming party or exchange. The only problem is, it’s been sitting in plain view since you walked in and the surprise is ruined. Or maybe you’ve awkwardly wrapped it a few times around in some brown paper and the delight of receiving the gift is marred by its “authentic” aesthetic. Or maybe even you’ve wrapped the gift beautifully and left it in a conspicuous location, only to find its recipient has no idea who’s given it to them because you’ve omitted a card. These scenarios – and more – can be prevented if you take the time to consider these aspects to ensure proper premium presentation:

Gift Wrapping

Though it may seem like an old-fashioned redundancy to some, gift-wrapping can make your present that much more appealing and exciting. Wrapping should be reserved to six-sided gifts and presents that won’t look awkward covered in paper. For gifts of other shapes and sizes, try putting them at the bottom of a gift bag stuffed with tissue paper or in an appropriate-sized box that you can then wrap. Stores like Indigo!, Dollarama, and Shoppers Drug Mart sell a wide variety of solid-coloured and patterned wrappings, but there are plenty of cheaper or free options for us cash-strapped students:

• Newspaper – There are literally dozens of free newspapers circulated on campus, all of which can become free and nifty gift wrap. For UofT students, try using the official newspaper from your recipient’s college. Foreign-language newspapers are especially cool.
• Maps – Who uses maps when we have the internet? Exactly! Paper maps are things of the past, so people shouldn’t mind parting with them. Ask your friends if you don’t have any of your own.
• Comic books – For $2 you can pick up a comic book from a nearby retailer and surprise your friends and family by wrapping their gifts in comic book pages. Just gently remove the staples – no tearing – and you’ll have 16 sheets of bold-coloured, eye-catching, onomatopoeia-blaring wrapping paper. For smaller gifts only.
• Potato Chip Bag – Credit for this one goes to the brilliant minds at Martha Stewart Living. Buy one of those foil bags of potato chips, cut it open along the seem, clean it thoroughly with a damp cloth and dish soap, and wrap with the silver side down. Works with other food packaging as well. For smaller gifts only.

To learn the basics of gift-wrapping, check out this tutorial.

Cards

So you’ve got the perfect gift and it looks – if you’ll pardon my language – dope; now all you need is the adjoining card. Cards are a good way of letting your recipient know the gift is from you even if you’re not handing it to them in person, but they’re also a nice memento to keep even after the wrapping is torn and gone. The trick with writing a gift card is that simplicity is key; don’t get too mushy or poetic. Never buy a mass-produced drug store-type card – they’re tacky and impersonal, and even scrawling “Merry Christmas” in magic marker on printer paper is preferable. Special cards that are produced in limited quantity, however, such as those sold at Kelly Library made by St Michael’s College’s antique printers, can be a beautiful addition to your gift.

Etiquette

While many of the rituals considered within the realm of etiquette are no longer practised due to their apparent obsolescence, it’s okay to check the book every now and again to figure out exactly what the best way to go about something like this is. For me, that book is The Amy Vanderbilt Complete Book of Etiquette, the best-selling guide by American etiquette expert Amy Vanderbilt. The 1995 edition I picked up at a used book store has paid for itself time and again, such as when I hosted a dinner party with between 7 and 12 guest and only one maid, or when I had to give that toast at an engagement party in which most of the guests were on the bride’s side and I on the groom’s. In regards to gift-giving, Amy offers these wonderful tips:

1. Keep a record of every gift you’re given and every gift you give and by whom. This will allow you to take note of who gave you gifts last year, which will allow you to determine to whom you will give this years’.
2. Re-gifting is perfectly acceptable, so long as you completely rewrap the gift and remove any evidence it was intended for you, and give it someone the recipient does not know.
3. At a party, put the gifts you’ve brought with the others already there and do not present them to their recipients until everyone else does. If you find that you’re the only one who’s brought gifts, try to hide them as best as you can until you can discreetly give them away.
4. Giving a gift in person is always preferable to sending your assistant or valet [or friend].
5. It is presumptuous to assume that a gift to be used by more than one person (i.e.: tickets to an event) given by you to someone else will be shared with you. It is also rude to directly request this. If you would like to join your guest, ask with whom they were planning to share the present and mention how exciting it sounds.
6. Bringing up a gift someone’s given you in the past in conversation (i.e.: “oh, I was just reading that book you got me…”) is a good way to build a connection. However, mentioning a gift that someone else has given you can be alienating.