How to Create a Killer Holiday Gift Wrapping Station

With the holiday season comes presents, and with presents comes wrapping paper, bows, tape, and scissors, all competing for space on your dining room table. While you’re getting out holiday plates and Yuletide decorations, there’s one more area you may want to set up this season: a dedicated gift-wrapping station.

I used to keep all of my wrapping supplies tucked in a closet, bringing them out every few days during the holidays for marathon wrapping sessions. A few years ago, I began setting up a seasonal wrapping station from late October through the end of December in my basement. It was much more convenient to have all the supplies at hand whenever we needed them during the holidays. Whether you have space to dedicate to a permanent wrapping station, or you set up a temporary spot like I do each winter, here are some must-have items for your own wrap station.

_{Prices are accurate as of November 21, 2024. Subject to change.}

Best Choice Products Folding Table

If, like me, you don’t have space for a dedicated wrapping area all year long, you’ll want a portable table. I set mine up in the fall and leave my wrap station stocked until the week after Christmas. Don’t overthink the table you choose. This basic folding table is long enough to hold supplies, plus most presents while you wrap. It’s sturdy, wipes clean easily, and folds in half with a handy carrying handle. You’ll likely end up using it throughout the year too when you need an extra surface.

𝗬𝘂𝗺𝗸𝗳𝗼𝗶 Wrapping Paper Storage Cart

This little cart packs a wide variety of supplies in a small space, letting you keep everything close at hand year-round. Wrapping paper slots on the back hold up to 16 rolls, spool and tool hooks keep scissors, gift bags, and ribbons organized, and drawers and shelves provide space for other supplies. The cart is on wheels, so it’s easy to move as well.

Whitmor Clear Wrapping Paper Storage Bag

Those of us who store gift-wrapping supplies in a closet or under the bed for most of the year will appreciate this zippered wrapping paper storage bag. It holds up to 25 standard-sized rolls and it’s see-through, so you know what you have at a glance. It also has helpful carrying handles on the top and sides for convenient lifting.

Juxyes 2-Tier Storage Box

Keep bows, tags, and other delicate items from being crushed or lost with these sturdy, transparent storage boxes. They come in sets of two and are stackable, so you can clip them together or store them side-by-side.

GoMaihe Gift Bag Organizer

These dividers are the perfect spot to store gift bags of varying heights and widths while still easily seeing what you have on hand. If you need more room, just connect several units together.

Aneco 150-Pack Kraft Paper Cutout Gift Tags

Along with items to keep your wrap station organized, you’ll want to keep it well-stocked! Understated and elegant, these gift tags feature cutouts of reindeer, snowflakes, and Christmas trees. The tags are blank, allowing you plenty of room to write a short message to your recipient. Unlike shiny, sticker-style gift tags, kraft paper is slightly absorbent, making it a good surface for writing with gel pens or fine-tipped markers if you like to get fancy.

Mjokoj 24-Pack Holiday Gift Bags

These holiday gift bags fit kids’ clothing, video games, books, or other medium-sized gifts. The pack includes six designs made from kraft paper, so they’ll coordinate well with the gift tags mentioned above.

Blisstime 120-Sheet Tissue Paper Pack

Now that you have your gift bags, you need tissue paper to go in them and you’ll be well-stocked with this 120-sheet package. The papers come in solid white, red, and green, plus red-striped and holiday tree patterns. They’re convenient for filling out gift bags, or for using as wrapping paper on their own.

Paper Mate Flair Felt Tip Pens

Although it’s fun to use a variety of colors of gel pens and markers, plain black ink is the easiest to read. These fine-tipped pens write elegantly if you’d like to try your hand at calligraphy or other fancy writing. They’ll glide easily across the kraft paper gift tags, too.

Amazon Basics Tape and Non-Skid Dispenser

This is one of those purchases that seems insignificant, but will change your gift-wrapping life! Having your tape weighted down in a dispenser means you only need one hand to grab a piece so you can hold the wrapping paper in place with the other. I wrestled for years with small, plastic tape dispensers that often broke and were easily lost. This simple little dispenser changed everything.

Amazon Basics Office Scissors

A good pair of scissors can mean the difference between beautifully wrapped gifts and gifts that look like they were ripped by feral animals. If you have scissors already, make sure they’re sharpened so they won’t catch and will cut sharply and neatly. If you need new scissors, this basic Amazon pair stays sharp for a long time, has a comfortable grip, and can be used by right- or left-handed people.

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