1. It's all in the scent

Scents can do wonders and lift one’s mood at a whiff! Unless your intended receiver has fragrance sensitivity or allergies, consider adding a finishing touch by giving a spritz of your favourite perfume on the gift wrappers before you send it off.

2. Top it with some dried flowers

Next time you receive a bouquet or walk around any of SG’s parks, save some of the fallen flowers or interesting leaves, then press and dry them (or just pick up an inexpensive pack from Daiso or Spotlight).

To use them as gift toppers: Glue the pressed flowers to a handmade card or tuck them under your gift’s string or ribbon. They’ll instantly make your present pretty as a picture. Tip: You can even get away with using plain wrapping papers!

3. Give it a stamp of approval

Ditch the adhesive tape and put a wax seal onto your gift or card – and immediately transform it into something grand and vintage-glam.

There’re plenty of wax stamp sets with wax sticks of various colours that you can purchase from the internet, not to mention simple D.I.Y. instructions for you to achieve the perfect stamp that your loved ones will swoon over.

Try online retailers such as Shopee, Qoo10 or Lazada. For tutorials, go here and here.

4. Say it with typography

Add a bit of festive cheer to your Christmas cards and gifts with some original typography! The beauty of typography is that there are tons of styles for you to experiment with. Think of a quirky message and do it calligraphy-style. Or do it the old-school cut-and-paste way and stick the letters of the alphabet onto your gift to customise it.

Although it requires a little more effort, the smiles on the recipient’s faces are worth it. Plus, there are many tutorials online to help you get started, like here. (Want to outsource the effort? Check out SG’s top calligraphers here.)

5. D.I.Y. a gift box

Go green this Christmas (pun not intended) and recycle old mooncake boxes or shoeboxes for your Christmas gifts. It’s time to get your creative juices flowing because there’re plenty of exciting things you can do!

Try painting the boxes with a matte mint green hue and sprinkle on some D.I.Y. paper confetti (use a hole punch) for some extra sass. Or, wrap twine around it and glue on some pieces of burlap sack to give it a rustic feel. Otherwise, paste cute stickers to make your boxes look like Santa or Frosty.

There are plenty of ways to turn the old into something sparkly and new this year!

6. Up the ante by sealing it up washi tape instead

Instead of using boring old tape, opt for colourful and patterned washi tape instead! They don’t cost a bomb and they make your gift look like you spent a little extra love on it.

You can find washi tape on online retailers such as Shopee, Qoo10 or Lazada, or even your local book or arts-n-craft stores!

7. Make your own 3D cutout cards

Forget Hallmark cards, cutout cards are not only fun to make, but they’re also fun to receive as well! 

From simple designs like cutout paper hearts to intricately designed ones that pop out when you open them, these are sure to add the needed oomph to your gift. Check out this tutorial here!

ALSO READ: Master the art of gifting this Christmas

This article was first published in The Finder.