Jessica Stein's Faux Leather Gift Wrap. Photo by Ricardo DeAratanha/Los Angeles Times

I’m always looking for new and artful ways to re-use household items for festive occasions. This holiday season, Jessica Stein, staff writer at the LA Times and author of Re-Bound: Creating Handmade Books From Recycled and Repurposed Materials has some great ideas. Her D-I-Y wrapping paper idea will bring new life to that stack of old magazines and brown paper grocery bags that you’ve stashed away. Plus, it’s a great activity for the kids too (even the older ones can help with the sewing machine portion of the project). With a little left over shoe polish, you can also transform an ordinary brown bag into a faux leather wrap that will give any gift a fresh decorative edge. Check out all her ideas on the LA Times website by clicking here.

Elizabeth Hubbell Studio

I am completely inspired by my dear friend, Elizabeth’s working studio. One can always expect a delightful array of color, something living and either ink and pen, or in this case, water color doodles on her desk. I am a firm believer that if one’s working environment is inspiring, uncluttered and containing things that fuel one’s passion, great things will come. Take a look at Elizabeth’s web site- http://www.elizabethhubbellstudio.com/

.

Paper Ornament Craft by Lisa at The Red Thread

I’m always on the lookout for creative ways to reuse left over materials. Lisa from The Red Thread featured a holiday tutorial on making ornaments out of paper scraps with your kids. It’s perfect for using up some of our never ending paper bits and pieces and spending some quality family time together making memories!

This year, I’ve partnered with The Peninsula Beverly Hills to give my fellow Angelenos a break from the all night gift-wrapping bender! I’m excited to announce that starting December 1st, The Peninsula Beverly Hills will launch its first holiday season gift-wrapping partnership with, yours truly, Soolip Paperie and Press. My troop of meticulous gift wrappers will be offering our signature couture gift-wrapping services on-site using distinctive one-of-a-kind papers, elegant ribbons and whimsical, nature-inspired gift-toppers like vintage silk flowers, feathered Chinese birds and fresh foliage such as red holiday berries, laurel and evergreen branches. Best of all, our basic gift wrap will feature our Soolip tree-free paper made in India of re-purposed cotton rags. Richly textured and exquisitely colored, our tree-free paper demonstrates the endless, beautiful possibilities in recycling materials.

If you’re not in the Los Angeles area this holiday season, or are looking for some budget and eco- friendly gift-wrapping ideas, then stay tuned! I’ll be sharing some of my favorite tips and tricks with you in the days to come.

Nature's Inspiration

The holidays are upon us and I naturally start thinking of gift wrapping.  I have forever been inspired by nature. Somehow, a touch of Mother Nature is all it takes for one to feel centered and at peace inside.  I encourage you to scour your immediate environment for uncommon wrapping materials – your closets, your kitchen cabinets, your stashes of fabric, your garden, your office supply room at work.  In this photo, I have used a green bark paper for the bottom gift, and a tea-stained piece of cheesecloth surrounds to gift at top.  A sprig from a peppercorn tree graces the top secured by multiple wraps of a skinny gold twine (available at beading or sewing shops).  Take a walk around your neighborhood and you are bound to find a great assortment of nature’s treasures.

For all you gift wrap lovers, stay tuned for my first book, The Art of Gift Wrapping, debuting April 2010, published and distributed by PotterCraft/Random House.  This book is a visually stunning and tantalizing, inspiring, resourceful how-to on the art of gift wrapping.  The photography was done by my dear friend Jules Bianchi, www.julesbianchi.com, and who also is available to shoot cool family portraits!

I welcome you to visit me at www.soolip.com and www.soolip.blogspot.com.

And remember ……. live each day with beauty and inspiration.