Buying Christmas presents in Northern Virginia/South Carolina is the easy part.  Wrapping them, on the other hand, can be quite a chore.  Before you begin this part of the Christmas present tradition, here are a few tips for making the gift wrapping process easier.

Keep your all your holiday bows, ribbons, tape, tags, tissue paper, gift wrap, etc. in one place.  This helps you stay organized as well as easily find what you need when you need it.  You may want to consider purchasing a pair of scissors to keep with your supplies.

Hold all of your supplies in a good, sturdy container.  Crafts stores like Michaels and Jo-Ann's Fabrics as well as Wal-Mart and Target sell long, rectangular containers that will hold wrapping paper tubes with ease.  Other supplies will fit in there as well.  They also easily store underneath your bed, keeping them in one place but out of the way.

Avoid wasting wrapping paper by measuring around the object you want to wrap first.  Using a piece of string to wrap around the object can help you determine the amount of paper needed without pulling out the measuring tape.

If you're not a gift wrapping connoisseur, try a gift bag instead.  They come in a wide variety of sizes to fit just about anything.  For items that are too large for a gift bag, a little more creativity will be needed.  Tableclohts, blankets, sheets and even decorative garbage bags will cover most large items.  For things like bikes, go to your local appliance store and ask for a refrigerator, dishwasher or oven box.  Then, all you have to do is open up one end of the box, place it over the top of the bike and put a bow on it.  You're good to go.

Gift wrapping can sometimes be a daunting task.  Following these tips will help make your gift wrapping easy.  Happy holidays everyone!

Gene Mock, your Northern Virginia, South Carolina and Washington DC real estate specialist

Originally posted on my Northern Virginia Homes real estate blog here: http://northernvirginiahomes.net/2011/12/22/make-gift-wrapping-easy/.