Years ago when my kids were young, I was frustrated at seeing them destroy the beautiful and expensive gift wrap paper I had purchased from their school fundraiser. Budget was tighter then but I managed to hit the after Christmas sale at a local craft store. I purchased that year and the next two years all I could afford in fabric after Christmas. All Christmas fabrics. I serged lots an lots of bags of all sizes for our Christmas presents. My thoughts were always to buy beautiful gold cord to tie around them...but that never happened. Instead my BH and I would wrap Christmas presents as we purchased them thru the year in these bags, label them and close them with large postal rubber bands and sale tags with string upon them. We reused the labels and rubber bands each year. Well many years have passed and we celebrate with less bags today, as in those days...but here is what I am in the process of doing.
A small group of 20 quilters exchanged blocks of different sized for over 2 years with each other. All these blocks are really beautiful and many of them appliqued. But I swapped for for two people which meant I would receive 40 blocks back. Now I am in the process of cutting up many of our Christmas sacks and adding the different 40 blocks to make my four grown children their own Christmas Quilts. Hope to have the project finished in 2011. If I do, I will post the four different quilts! And yes, I have quilted several quilts made from the exchanged blocks and they are very, very beautiful!

I am trying not to buy ANY gift wrap at all this year! I want to make some bags, because theycan be reused!

what my mom and I do is we go to costco and get the plain gold and silver paper there for the whole year and then wrap our gifts in that. and we get that really cool wire ribbon also. that adds the pop to the package. I have been thinking about just making gift wrap from Christmas fabric for the holidays for just our family. I like Quilter4hireandfun's idea of making bags for their Christmas presents. I am tired of spending all the money on the paper for Christmas. Will have to talk to my mom about this idea. it should be fun to do.

I like this idea (and it's easy to copy). This month's Quilter's World Magazine has an article USE YOUR STASH..Make Your Own Wrapping Scarves. They are just squares of fabric using one or two together tied at the top. I've got ideas for using my fabrics that aren't nice enough to put into a quilt for a year round supply of family gift wrappers. Next week I hope to make some bags.

I meant to include this in my reply.

Depends on the size of the gift but if there is enough money and enough time, I like to wrap a gift in a gift. I've given lots of things away tucked inside totebags, placemats, and pillowcases.

When I give something small and flat, like tickets to a play, or a gift card, they can be wrapped in photo albums, gloves, socks. I once gave cooking classes to a friend and wrapped the certificate in an oven mitt.

My husband has gotten into the habit as well. He gave me a pearl ring in a soup tureen and diamond stud earrings in a tea kettle.

Just make sure you are there when the person opens the gift so that they get ALL the gifts!

Great ideas! Thanks.

My son uses newspaper to wrap his gifts, if funnys are available he uses them.

My DD wrapped my Christmas gift in a FQ last year and I thought it was adorable. Also, she uses old maps. ETSY has some great ideas and she goes there often.

These are some great ideas.