All of us dream of the perfect Christmas setting: a tree laden with gifts that have each been wrapped with professional precision.
Often the reality is quite different though, especially if the gift shape is awkward or there are a mountain of presents to get through and you’ve run out of time, patience or egg nog.
Gift guru Vivienne Anthon for Australian TK Maxx, who has clocked up 10,000 hours perfecting the art of gift wrapping, is a firm believer in maintaining the mystery – for as long as possible.
Here, FEMAIL reveals some of Vivienne’s clever tips, tricks and pro hacks for parceling up Christmas presents that will not only wow, but will keep the family guessing until the big day.
Gift wrapping guru Vivienne Anthon (pictured) has clocked up 10,000 hours perfecting the art of present wrapping
While it might be tempting to splash a lot of cash on gifts for family and friends, what’s often as important is searching out something the person you’re buying for will love, said Vivienne.
The expert outlined how she not only takes a little time to track down presents that reflect who she’s buying for; but she keeps budget firmly front and centre.
Instead she explained, through the process of becoming a professional gift wrapper, she’s developed a few techniques for parceling up presents that are just as much fun to unwrap as they are to receive.
‘Gift wrapping to disguise the gift so the mystery remains does make for a more exciting gift,’ she said.
The expert shared her techniques for parceling up presents that are as exciting to unwrap as they are to receive
Vivienne said one of her favourite ways of achieving this is by wrapping presents in such a way the recipient has absolutely no idea what’s inside.
She outlined one of her tricks, especially useful smaller or awkward-shaped gifts, is to place it inside a round takeaway container, cover this in a length of calico to make it look like everyone’s favourite: a Christmas pudding.
‘I throw in a few bells, to make sure when they shake the gift, they are thrown off the scent!,’ she laughed.
‘Plus keeps it festive,’ she added. ‘From the outside, they would have no clue what was inside!’
Vivienne uses a round takeaway container to store odd shaped gifts which she then disguises as Christmas pudding
If you are more of a traditionalist when it comes to wrapping presents, the professional said there is a way to create perfect-looking presents that reflect current trends or themes.
‘Like everything, gift wrapping has trends and this year is no exception. If you look at the beautiful homewares at TK Maxx you will see lots of metallics particularly rose gold, and this has also followed through to gift wrapping,’ she said.
‘Traditional Christmas colours such as red, green and gold will always have a place, and there’s always an on trend pop of colour that makes an appearance and this year it is a lovely, aqua-minty green.’
‘Traditional Christmas colours such as red, green and gold will always have a place, and there’s always an on trend pop of colour that makes an appearance,’ the gift wrapping guru said
All of us – at one point or another – have been confronted by awkward shaped gifts, the sort that defy all efforts to look nicely wrapped and as often end up a a terrible tangle of paper, sellotape and ribbon.
This is where Vivienne proves her mettle as a master wrapper, revealing that while she’s had her share of challenges, no shape has proven too difficult.
One of the most challenging gifts she’s had to wrap, she shared, was a glass jewellery box – shaped like a pergola.
‘The look was amazing but the shape was a stretch.
I covered it in cardboard to take away many of the edges then wrapped to the larger planes of the gift and finished it off with a gorgeous big bow.’
A simple but effective trick: Sneak a gift inside a water bottle or circular tubing then wrap to look like a Christmas cracker
Vivienne said over the years she’d come across all sorts of strange shapes including skateboards, suitcases, musical instruments and even kayaks.
‘They can be challenging to wrap but if you think about disguising them by taking away the obvious shape and adding in some sounds, structure or scent embellishment, it actually becomes easier.’
The wrapping guru also offered a few tried and tested tricks for those struggling with the basics.
‘The most common mistake people make by far is using too much wrapping paper – probably for fear they will cut too little,’ Vivienne said
‘The most common mistake people make by far is using too much wrapping paper – probably for fear they will cut too little,’ she said.
‘Bulk is the enemy of good gift wrapping because too much paper scrunched under or in will never sit well.’
The expert said it’s better to take a little time to think about how you want to wrap a gift
The gift wrapping guru also made the more uncommon suggestion of doing a trial run a for tricky shape first with newspaper or butcher’s paper to see how the wrap sits.
While Vivienne said this isn’t something she’d always do, it’s a hack she said can save both paper, and sanity.
She also outlined the suggestion of making sure paper was pulled tightly enough – if it’s not, she said, the wrap will look ‘saggy and it will pucker if a ribbon is tied around it.’
Finally Vivienne urges those who want to create maximum impact to avoid rushing.
‘Many people rush to wrap a difficult shape. Take your time and think about how you could reposition it or add in some cardboard or otherwise disguise it.’