I'm not sure that I've ever purchased new wrapping paper.
Growing up, my Mother always saved the wrapping paper from presents we received - and her hall cupboard is still a treasure trove of paper, gift bags and bows.
It's a habit that has stuck with me, and I always reuse what I have and get creative with other things I can forage around the house.
You may not feel like you're going to save the world by re-purposing your gift wrap, but CARE Australia found that in Australia alone, the wrapping paper used each Christmas could wrap around the Equator nearly four times - its a big deal!
Here's what I managed to rustle up for Christmas gift wrapping by using things I had at home or repurposing things from the op shop.
Floral vase: A simple sketch and some dried flowers from the garden. Check out the full tutorial here.
Magazine Pages: Flick through your old magazines or grab the property pages from your local newspaper for a super simple wrap.
Op Shop Lace: Inside out kids artwork + some stretchy lace from the op shop.
Draw: Grab a paper shopping bag and a sharpie and let your imagination go wild - or draw an uber simple Christmas tree like me.
Fabric: Maybe you have a stash of fabric off0cuts, or some old sheets, or hit up the haberdashery section at your op shop.
Baubles: Old magazines + paper shopping bag for the win. Thanks for the inspo from these guys.
Reused gift bag: This was a gift bag that I had stashed away - and I had some spare air dry clay decorations left over.
Magazine: Magazine pages + string + dried oranges and rosemary.
* I only use oranges destined for the compost, no-one wants to waste the good ones!
Rosemary: Another use for the humble brown paper shopping bag, add some foraged rosemary and voilà. Thanks for the inspo from these guys again.
The Reindeer: What can I say - it had to be done. Paper shopping bag + scrap of paper + sharpie.
Turns out there is a whole world of animal character wrapping inspiration our there.
I'm not sure I totally pulled it off, but it made my family laugh so I'm taking that as a win.
I was inspired to make this guy thanks to this wonderful creator
Try the Japanese art of Furoshiki using op-shopped scarves or bits of fabric.
Reusable gift bags are also becoming a lot more commonplace - make your own or source some from awesome organisations like this.
