Make your own Eco-Friendly Christmas Gift Wrap with these Cardboard Printing Stamps

Fancy making your own eco-friendly wrapping paper for Christmas?
All you need is a roll of recycled paper & some old cardboard tubes.
This is a great recycling craft that all ages will love.


We've had lots of creative fun these past few days making our own gift wrap. After a little folding & experimenting with cardboard tubes, we came up with these Christmas-themed designs which are perfect for printing on paper.


We made a little robin shape by pinching & folding opposite sides of the tube, & then bending one side slightly higher than the other to make a tail shape. 


We used thick gold paint for our printing & then added details with a pen once the paint was dry.


To make the printing process easier & prevent the paint from dripping, we placed a sheet of kitchen paper over the paint which we had in a shallow dish. 

Our next design was a heart shaped stencil, which we made by flattening the tube, opening it up & pushing one of the folds in to make the rounded sections at the top of the heart.


The snowman made a super cute print & was the easiest to make!
To create the head, we took one tube & cut it length ways to overlap, making a slightly narrower tube. We secured it with tape & attached it to another tube to create our snowman.  (Tip: when you join the tubes together, make sure they're level so they create the complete print.)


Once our prints were dry we added details with coloured pens. 


For our last print, we made a Christmas star. We folded the tube in half one-way & then folded in half the other way to create this simple shape which produced a pretty design on the gift wrap. 


These upcycled printing stamps have been a big hit & we've created matching gift tags too! Simple, frugal fun which encourages creativity & design. And when you've finished with the tubes they can be recycled as can the wrapping paper when it's been used! 


Unique gift wrap that doesn't cost the earth; fun to make, eco-friendly,
& a perfect way to decorate any Christmas gift!