Getting there

I almost (sort of, kinda) feel ready for Christmas this year.  I’m not done with decorating, cooking, shopping, wrapping and let’s not forget general merriment; but I feel like I might get done by Christmas day and not kill myself getting there.

My latest project to help me feel on top of things?  My very first wrapping paper station.  These are all over the place in blogland (and if you want to see an incredible one, visit Erin at Sunny Side Up) and mine is ridiculously low scale and simple.  I am almost embarrassed to show it to you except that it is where I will be spending the majority of my time these next few days so I thought it was only fair that you have a visual:

Yes, that is our garage.  Will has kindly relocated his tiny Honda to our driveway in the spirit of the season and because he is thrilled that I am doing all of the wrapping this year.

And because I know you are all dying to see what is on the table...

Gift bags and boxes:

I am a big believer in reusing bags and boxes as long as they don’t look overly-worn.  If you have received a gift from me in the last 10 years, chances are it was lovingly placed in a recycled gift bag.

Gift tags, pens, tape, scissors, and premade ribbons:

I must caption this picture with a theory.  I have found there are two kinds of people in this world—1) those that use the premade sticky ribbons; and, 2) my mother, who insists on making her own incredible ribbons and then tying them as tight as any human can to your package (in fact, it’s an annual rite of passage in my family to break the skin somewhere on your hand trying to open one of my mother’s presents).  I would love to wrap each gift with a homemade bow and maybe one day I’ll get there; but this year I am a premade bow girl.

Tissue paper and accessories (again, much of it is recycled - I can’t help myself.):

Wrapping paper and trashcan (hopefully I won't mistake one for the other):

And most importantly M&Ms – necessary sustainable energy for any wrapper:

I put these on the opposite side of the garage in hopes that would keep me from eating too much.  Nope.  Maybe I at least will get a little exercise walking back and forth between handfuls.  And as if it needs saying, I am going to need a major sugar detox after this holiday season.  During an average (non-holiday) week I consume a  fair amount of sweets—but couple Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas with my new stay-at-home status and you have a recipe for disaster.

As silly as it sounds, I really love my little wrapping station.  In the world of chaos that is Christmas, it feels great to have something functional, quiet and ready-to-go whenever I am.  These past years we have always wrapped presents in our dining room – a less than ideal place.  I never wanted to get out too many things at once because I still wanted it to ‘look’ like a dining room (as uncluttered as possible), but that meant I could never find anything when I needed it (and what is more annoying at that moment than losing the Scotch tape right when you've stretched the wrapping paper as tight as you can over your gift?)  But the real catalyst for the change is that our dining room has been turned into Frances and George’s playroom; definitely not the place to be wielding the scissors.  Necessity (and other clever bloggers) is the mother of all invention.

The only flaw in my plan is that the table is located in the garage, which is about 5 degrees warmer than the outside temperature – or 39 degrees.  I’ve convinced myself this is just extra motivation to wrap faster.  Or to take more M&M breaks.

Happy Tuesday, everyone!