a very hobo christmas

This Christmas I made a goal for myself to wrap all my presents without using wrapping paper. It was tough. I never realized how handy wrapping paper was until I banned it from any gift I was giving.

However, I'm pretty proud of what I came up with.. I'm just sad I don't have more photos to show.

Here's a gift for my dad that IS wrapped in paper, but seeds are embedded in the paper and you can plant the entire sheet and have some nice little flowers in the springtime!

The bow is made from scraps of 100% recycled aluminum foil. This was my first attempt at making a bow from aluminum foil and I'm pleased with how it turned out, I must say.

Here's another gift I wrapped with the same aluminum foil then I hand painted some stars on it and added another bow. I thought it was a nice touch.

I waited too long to take the photo and it did get a little crinkly. It only gives it character, though.

As proud as I was to not use any wrapping paper, when my gifts were all sitting together they all looked like they were wrapped by a hobo. (no offense to any hobo's reading..) Things wrapped in fabric and dishtowels don't really make for the prettiest gifts, but at least there's very little to throw away afterward.