Easy Holiday Decorating 101

No-Wrap Gift Boxes

Make paper, scissors, and frustration the ghosts of holidays past with these pretty wrapping solutions

No-Wrap Gift Boxes
Kana Okada
1 of 3 Next

The Gift You Pack
Gift: One you’re traveling with.
Box: To be sure your wrapping arrives uncrumpled, choose this retro-mod cutie, which comes flat (with a bow, tissue paper, and a tag) in an envelope that slips into a suitcase or a laptop case. It pops into shape with a few tucks and folds. In three sizes, from 6 by 3 by 4 1/2 inches to 11 by 4 by 7 inches (shown, far left).
To Buy: Holiday to Go, $4 to $6, www.containerstore.com.

The Disguised Gift
Gift: Anything you want the recipient to think is wine but isn’t.
Box: This 13-inch-tall cylinder (shown, second from left) has “bottle of wine” written all over it — so fill it instead with a rolled-up cashmere sweater, a canister of tennis balls, a snazzy travel umbrella, or a flask of balsamic vinegar or extra-virgin olive oil. Or, in a pinch, wine.
To Buy: Wine Holder, $5, www.homegoods.com for store locations.

The Party Favor
Gift: Something small to distribute to party guests, book-club members, classmates, or extended family.
Box: This pillow-shaped treasure box comes in 2 1/2-inch (shown, third from left) and 1 1/2-inch sizes. For ornaments with a bonus, thread ribbons or cords through the holes in the top tabs and hang the boxes for friends to pluck off your tree.
To Buy: Bayley’s Boxes Trinket Box, 70 cents or $1, www.bayleysboxes.com.

The Foodie Treat
Gift: Something for your favorite epicurean.
Box: Pop a mini kitchen gadget or two into this quart-size faux Chinese-food container (shown, second from right), along with a rolled or folded gift certificate to a hot restaurant, a food shop, or a wine merchant — takeout with a twist. (For an extra little wink, throw in a fortune cookie, too.)
To Buy: The Gift Wrap Company Printed Takeout Container, $6, www.plumparty.com.

The Multipart Gift
Gift: One for a niece who loves Snickers bars, J. D. Salinger, micro-minis, and Coldplay.
Box: This sturdy vinyl-coated cardboard valise (the kind used as a lunch box by kids in France and Belgium) has room for all your gifts and makes a colorful storage case post-holidays. In three sizes, from 8 by 6 by 3 1/2 inches to 12 by 8 1/5 by 3 1/2 inches (shown, far right).
To Buy: Child’s Valise, $8 to $12, Joseph Beth Booksellers, 800-396-8960.


1 of 3 Next

Related Solutions
Advertisement

On the Road Sweepstakes

Enter for a chance to win $5,000 to spend on the ultimate road trip

Real Simple Weddings

Our first ever weddings guide for a stress-free celebration