I’m just going to come out and say it - it’s time to start prepping for the festive season.
I know it feels early and we’ve not got past Halloween or Bonfire Night yet, BUT there’s certain things that if you start on them now your December self will adore you. And I mean won’t-stop-talking-about-how-fabulous-you-are level of adoration.
Most of these apply to whether you’re a small business or a home crafter - it’s just the numbers involved that may be different.
First up just a reminder that as always with stamping it’s best to dab the ink on to the stamp, rather than press the stamp in to the ink. This reduces the chance of getting ink around the edges of the stamp block but also means you can use multiple colours too.
So let’s start with the smallest, and possibly the easiest to do GIFT TAGS. Not only are they practical but also:
- They’re a great way to add some personality and a personal touch to plainer packaging
- They don’t take up too much space so you can prep and stash away easily.
- You can reuse old christmas cards to add some colour and stamp on the reverse ready to label
- Depending on the stamp you choose you can coordinate with other handmade wrapping elements.
Left to Right - To-From Gift Tag Stamp - Star Bauble Stamp - Personalised Christmas Message Stamp
Gift tags are the perfect item for a little production chain - get them lined up, and by the time you’ve got to the end of your chain you can probably go back to the start for either the next stamp or add a ribbon etc.
But it’s not just a decoration you can stamp on a gift tag - these personalised message stamps can speed up the wrapping process too leaving you with just a name to write on. And of course they can be used inside cards too! Which is great if you’ve a lot to write or are perhaps helping someone who can’t write many to still be able to send card. (If the latter is the case you might find these personalised signature stamps a great help, and they’re not just for Christmas.)
Once your gift tags are stamped then maybe consider prepping some WAX SEALS to help you attach them to the gifts. Not everyone realises that wax seals can be done in advance, and actually when there’s lots to do it’s something I highly recommend as it’s not a process that can necessarily be rushed but does really elevate whatever they’re added to. Once your seals have been prepared you just need to add some double sided sticky tape to the back (again check in advance that your tape works with the wax as sometimes they can be temperamental)
Left to right - Stocking Seal - Example image of Snowflake attaching a gift tag - White Snowflake
If wax seals are something that you want to give a go to I’ve got a blog post here with all the tips!
Stamping your own wrap is a brilliant way of personalising your presents’s wrapping. There’s of course a few different approaches you can take, but again if you’ve got quite a few to do I’d definitely go for a production line with a few sheets at once, especially if you’re mixing a few different stamps together at once.
An all over random pattern always works well and can be a bit quicker than a more intense linear style, but both are brilliantly effective, and can be multicoloured too. If you’re a business do consider placement on the paper for what you might be wrapping most often e.g. if you know what size you need for inside postal boxes, or if you may want to cut a larger sheet down.
You can find all these Christmas stamp motifs here.
My biggest tip is to make sure you give your ink a really decent amount of time to dry - more than just touch dry - before you roll or fold it up to store as it could still be slightly tacky and stick to other sheets when they’re all put together.
One final element that is great to prep in advance is envelopes. Whilst lots of people love making cards (and quite rightly, they’re so much fun!), envelopes can also be a lovely touch and are something else that are production-line friendly!
If you’re a small business they can be a lovely additional touch to your wrapping which is a cost effective way a small business can really elevate their product and the customer experience. And if you’re not a small business let’s face it a fun envelope is wonderful to receive and makes you smile before you’ve even seen what’s inside!
There are of course practical stamps you may want to use, such as Fragile or return address details.
But there are fun ones too!
How about a postmark stamp from the north pole? A fun alternative to a postage stamp (Happy holidays stamp) or something to make sure they know what’s inside is awesome? And you can use a stamp on the back of an envelope to look like a seal too, and in fact this Merry Christmas Stocking stamp is perfect for that!
Left to Right - Happy Holidays Stamp - Made in Santa's Workshop Stamp - Merry Christmas & Happy New Year Stocking
The main thing though, whether you're being very prepared or not, is that you enjoy the doing as it'll really show in the cards and gifts that you'll give and be appreciated by those who receive them!
And of course, don't forget there's lots of supplies in the shop to help you on your way:
Christmas Stamps and Wax seals from Mint Maker Studio
Stampables - paper, cards and gift tags
Ink pads, Different coloured waxes.
