DIY

Taking a brief detour into the sometimes frightening and often low-brow world of DIY. This homemade wrapping paper may qualify as both, but in the event it saves you from a last minute trip to the drugstore before a birthday party or baby shower, sharing it may be worth the risk.

Buying wrapping paper is difficult for me. The dilemma is, I love wrapping gifts. I really like it. In fact, I often have to stop myself from adding just one more peacock feather or string of beads. But buying a roll of prefab paper only to be torn off by the recipient seems like a strange purchase. This, combined with a bit of cheesy craftiness held onto since grade school (and an obsession with gawking at Pinerest) turned into the perfect recipe for homemade gift wrap. Oh yes, and needing something spur-of-the-moment to wrap my godson's birthday gift helped execute the plan.

Why, ask you, am I featuring this nonsense on my food blog? Well, because the end result was food inspired of course, (and I am trying to keep the posting fresh). So, for you underground craft-heads, this is for you.

DIY Food Inspired Wrapping Paper:

Method:

Fillet a paper grocery bag and press flat. Place blank side up.

Slice an apple in half lengthwise.

Dip the apple half in paint of your choosing (tempera works well).

Use the dipped apple half as a stamp to decorate the paper.

Cut a section from remaining half of apple to resemble a apple stem, (a small triangle works well).

Pierce this piece of apple onto the tip of a fork. Dip in paint and stamp to create stem.

Allow to dry.

Wrap gift and tie with a ribbon.

The end.