Items to Salvage while Unwrapping Gifts

Our ribbons collected from gifts.

While you are busy unwrapping gifts over the next week, be sure to save some of the scraps. You can keep some of the nicer pieces for future gifts. Some of the other items, you can use in projects throughout the year. Here are a few things to hold onto:

• Ribbons and ties: We keep a box full of these. You would not believe how many we use throughout the year! You can even use them to wrap your own gifts or maybe to hand up Christmas cards next year.
• Envelopes: Be sure to keep envelopes that have not be written on. You can use these to mail letters throughout the year, etc. You can also use ones that have been written on to make shopping lists or to hold coupons, etc. Recycle the ones you don't need!

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Uses for Holiday Scrap Paper

I hate wasting paper.  Between wrapping gifts and art projects, we have plenty of scrap paper around the house.  Here are some ways that I plan on using our construction paper, wrapping paper and tissue paper scraps:

What to do with all of this colorful paper?

• Shred some scraps to use as holiday packing.  (Why use perfectly good tissue paper when you don't have to!)
• Shred some bright colored scraps to decorate one of my holiday tables like confetti.
• Have my daughter make mini mosaics to use as holiday thank you cards.
• Supply my daughter with some to make a holiday picture. (She loves holiday-themed are projects!)
• Use some of the excess wrapping paper as backgrounds in picture frames.
• Make a mod podge gift box. (See our idea.) 
• Use tissue paper for future gifts.
• Use the over-used tissue paper to wrap ornaments and other items for storage.

So far, I have already been able to use some for holiday packing.  See below:

**Updated December 20, 2013.

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