We hate waste (and we know you do too), so in this blog we talk a bit about how to reuse our Wrapping Paper products creatively.

Christmas is a time for festive treats, the feeling of goodwill in the air, and the anticipation of gift giving. But after Christmas day has been and gone, we all have one thing in common: a mountain of used Wrapping Paper! If you’re like us, and you’re committed to helping the environment, ditching it in a bin just isn’t a conceivable option.

So what on earth to do with it? How can you recycle Wrapping Paper creatively? We’ve got the answers right here. 

Wrapping Paper

Some food for thought…

• Great Britain bins 227,000 miles of Christmas Wrapping Paper every year. This in turn means that the average household will get through four rolls of wrapping paper each
• Wrapping Paper also creates a need for a lot of sticky tape, meaning we use a whopping 40 million rolls of Sellotape
• The Royal Mail estimates that it delivers 150 million cards during the Christmas period

*Source: GWP

Despite these facts, there are a number of ways you can make more sustainable choices for your business. Check out our blog where we’ve pulled together some of our top sustainable printing myth-busters and best practices.

Can you recycle Wrapping Paper?

Luckily for you our Wrapping Paper is recyclable. But it’s not as easy as popping it in the recycle bin, because gift wrap often contains much more than simply paper. If your Wrapping Paper is covered in sellotape, ribbons, glitter or includes Foil or White Ink, it won’t be recyclable.

You can only recycle it if it’s 100% pure paper. It will say so on the label when you buy it, but if you don’t have that to hand anymore, there are ways to check: Try to scrunch up the paper into a ball. If it scrunches, and stays scrunched, it can probably be recycled.

One more thing to note is that some councils will let you put it into the recycling collection. Whereas others insist you bring it along to a recycling centre. You’ll need to check with your local authority. Click here for England and Northern Ireland, here for Wales and here for Scotland.

If after all that you’ve still got piles of disused Wrapping Paper lying around, we’ve got a few ideas of how you can use it to make some truly creative and practical DIY’s.

Create gift bag filler

Image Credit: GM Lifestyle

Use a paper shredder to protect next year’s decorations or to make gift bag filler. Use the shredded Wrapping Paper to ensure that delicate gifts will be snug and secure in their gift box or use it to pack away your Christmas ornaments. Your baubles are precious cargo!

Frame your designs

Image Credit: Blush & Letters co

If you’ve designed some of your own Wrapping Paper, or received a design that you want to keep – why not fill a hole in your gallery wall? With an abundance of small businesses selling such exquisite designs, it’s always going to be painful ripping through it. So when the Wrapping Paper is too beautiful to be used for its original purpose, make it into wall art!

Top tip: no matter how big or exciting the gift, open it delicately.

Start a scrapbook

Image Credit: Root & Branch Paper co

Scrapbooks are a great gift for friends, family and loved ones – and one of the great things about a scrapbook is that anything goes. To recycle Wrapping Paper for scrapbooks, just save your offcuts and pop them in a box.

Make DIY decorations

Francois et Mois: Make bunting!

It might seem strange to be making decorations for next year already, but with the abundance of cards and paper you have lying around, now’s the perfect time to get ahead. Grab the kids, friends and family and host a creative session. You could even use your old cardboard packaging from your festive feasts too.

If you use any of our ideas, or have your own ideas about how to recycle Wrapping Paper, why not tag us in your printed creations using the #ProudlyPrinted hashtag.

#ProudlyPrinted