The Art of Giving

Now, don’t get me wrong, this isn’t an article telling you what to buy for your 333rd neofriend or something like that, because I’m sure you already know what you’re going to give. (Or at least I hope you do.) In any case, I’m here to guide you a bit on the stuff beyond the gifts, and I’ll have to admit this guide is more of a how-to on fanciful wrapping and focusing on those itty-bitty little details that are so pleasing to the eye. It’s the thought that counts, they always say.

The most important thing of all is to remember that it is your thought that is supposed to count, so feel free to do it any way you want. This is merely a guide to nudge you along the creative art of giving, and there’s a reason as to why it’s called ‘art’. Just remember to put your touch on it, and I’m sure your 333rd neofriend will be very happy.

The Art of Packaging

First of all we have the art of packaging, which, as you might’ve figured, includes wrapping a gift and choosing a pretty ribbon to go along with it. Sure, you can just go with the old traditional boring wrapping supplies and tie a ribbon, but here are some suggestions to spice it up a bit.

The Non-New Newspaper Package – Just look at the name! (I’ll bet you know what’s coming…) Well, you start by taking a lot of old Neopian Times Issue 3s and spread them out from cover to cover. Then you separate the sheets from each other, and use them as normal wrapping paper (only it isn’t so fancy). Try to use transparent tape; it gives the best effect. For that Christmas-y touch, use red ribbons or thin strings (if you’re really cheap) to tie around with. The result will be a simple and clean-cut packaged gift, which really goes along with the saying “You shouldn’t judge a book by its cover”. If you’re giving this to a NT author, why not only use their stories and articles to wrap with, and place some nice comics on top of the package?

The Sensational Cellophane Package – Cellophane is a shiny, transparent kind of wrapping that can easily be scrunched and shaped as you like. This wrapping has a really lovely sound when rustled and is rather malleable. It works best for jars of candies and other glittery, delicious things as you can actually see through it (and preferably not drool on it). It has this certain glamorous feel to it, but if you don’t like revealing your secrets too quickly, why not put cellophane around an already wrapped package instead?

The Cylindrical Candy Package – This package is perfect if you want to hand out cylindrical-shaped things, like a bottle of perfume. Cut out a piece of wrapping that is about twice the length or longer of the cylindrical item and a bit wider than its circumference. Roll the wrapping around and secure it with a piece of (transparent) tape. Get out your favorite ribbons (preferably matching the covering in color) and tie it around the top and the bottom of your cylinder, so the item won’t fall out on either end. It’s that simple to make a candy package, but if you want to make it even more fancy, get out the scissors again and cut long strips on the parts that stick out, to give it more volume. Now that’s quite an eye candy, isn’t it?

The Stupendous Sock Package… err… Thing – Okay, you got me since it’s not really a package, but it isn’t that bad of an idea. Just pop your gift into a sock and hang it on the Christmas tree instead of that boring old fireplace with your receiver’s name on it. That’ll definitely be a delightful surprise for them and you don’t even have to waste NP on ribbons of the seven rainbow colors or anything else fancy. Just keep in mind that you don’t want to put anything too heavy or flammable (Burn, Christmas tree, burn!) in the sock. Why not make it extra spiff by giving the other sock away too, so the receiver will get both your gift and a pair of (smelly) socks.

The Art of Attaching

Now that I’ve given you some ideas, I’m sure you can come up with more clever ones that may suit your taste better or work from those I’ve put down. But wrapping the package wasn’t all of it; there’s also the art of attaching! By attaching, I mean gift tags and various other cute items to put on the packages. Not just the boring “To You From Me”, but maybe something else…

Rhymes – This is a rather splendid little nicety to add to the gift tag, especially if you’re a good poet. Why not make a rhyming poem about the contents of the package and have your lovely 333rd neofriend try to figure out what’s inside? A second verse could replace the ‘From (insert your name here)’ and leave your friend wondering who gave it to him or her. If you can’t make good rhymes by yourself, try contacting the salespeople. If you’re really desperate, don’t resort to anything like begging famous poets to write for you, because then it won’t be your thought, wouldn’t it? (Instead, just invent some weird, never-before-seen words to go along with it.)

Hand-Made Gift Tags – Well, well… Why not make your own gift tag? Get out the glitter, glue and gel pens and return to your childhood (if you are already there, consider yourself lucky). This is the perfect, personalized gift tag for people who really dislike those boring, bland store-bought tags. Just use your artistic skills, there’s no right or wrong here. If you’re like me and your artsy skills are similar to nil, just glue some glitter and try your best. It’s the thought that counts, isn’t it?

Ribbons and Strings – Okay, okay, they were a kind of covered in the Art of Packaging, but this is just a mini-guide on how to make it extra fancy. If you happen to have a really long piece of ribbon, place one end to the blade of a scissor (note that you should not let your pet do this, especially if they only have claws, like a Jubjub for example). Pull the short end and soon you’ll have lovely curly-cues on your piece of string. Stuff all those bouncing locks-look-a-likes under the main strings that tied the package together and arrange it to look like a nice-looking flower. If you want extreme elegance, take a two or so of those strings and attach them to the bulbous center of the package. Slice their ends and split them into thinner strings, creating a party-ish effect as the thin strings will stand out and really make it three-dimensional.

The Art of Giving Away

Now that you’ve got your lovely it’s-the-thoughts-that-counts package, it’s time to give it away! There’s an art to this too, not just putting it under the Christmas tree and have them thank you next morning. Here are two more creative, artsy ideas.

The Clever Clues Chase – This form of giving is really recommended for those of your friends who happen to be obsessed with detectives or have read any stories like that, so they know what to expect. Make mysterious notes, riddles and numerous clues, hide them in different places and make your friend work for the gift. Take them on a trip from the Space Station into the deep heart of the Haunted Woods with clues; it’ll just make the reward so much sweeter. Note that you really shouldn’t do this with extremely busy or easily irritated people, but with those with a sense of adventure.

The Santa Fishing Game – Remember the fishing game in the Underwater Cavern? Why not create it at your place, with the fireplace as the cavern? Hide some gifts among the ashes and have your friends fishing up the packages. What a delightful surprise that’d be! Just remember that you should have someone behind the scenes to fasten the package to the hooks or your 333 neofriends might end up with gifts not meant for them or simply ashes.

Well, that’s about all I had to offer, but I’m sure you can at least pick out one or two ideas from these and make them your own. Do it a bit differently and watch the results (which may be astonishing, who knows?). Just take some time to get into the Christmas spirit, take time to perfect these little details and use your own hands to give that special touch to your gifts. With that, I hope your friends and family will see the great amount of effort you put into it and appreciate that. After all, Christmas is the season of giving and what’s better than giving a piece of joy that warms the heart?

Merry Christmas, everyone!

Author’s Note: I’d like to thank all those gift stores in town for inspiring me to write this article and the two kind ladies who gave me a practice job and taught me how to wrap things with a delightful little touch. Also, I’d like to thank my friends (you know who you are) for making my days bright and joyful, and of course you, the reader, for reading this article. Any comments or questions? Just neomail me, I’d like to know if this article was of any help to you. Again, Merry Christmas, Neopia! ^^