It’s so fun to be collaborating with sustainable makers again. Earlier this year, Manvee Vaid of Chicago-based artisanal lifestyle brand TerraKlay reached out about her newly launched boutique. TerraKlay works with makers in India to produce handcrafted textiles, baskets, decor, and gifts for the sustainable yet elevated home. Manvee kindly sent over a few of their Shibori dyed napkins for an upcoming collab, and they’re even prettier in person. (Love that about handmade.) At the time, I was dreaming up eco friendly gift wrap ideas to share and unsurprisingly fabric gift wrap was on my list! So, I finally tried my hand at Furoshiki-style wrapping:
There are lots of places to buy modern fabric gift wrap, but I often wonder how reusable and giftable the wrap actually is. I mean, I could go to the thrift store and buy fun vintage fabric to wrap my gifts in, but I doubt my friends would reuse it. (Traditional Japanese Furoshiki wrap is more about replacing the need for bags or packaging when storing or bringing goods on the go and therefore is used over and over again, but the modern take mostly focuses on its use for gifting.)
I personally love the idea of the wrapping being part of the gift itself. If you’re gifting fashion accessories, why not wrap them in a bandana or scarf, for example. And homewares? How about wrapping them in reusable cloth napkins a la these Shibori dyed beauties?
I love that you could gift a set of napkins or linens, while wrapping them in a piece from the set. It’s like a little preview of the beautiful gift to come!
TerraKlay’s napkins come in multiple colorways, and I love how vibrant the blues and reds are for the holidays. We’ll share more about how these babies can be used for their *actual* purpose soon, but I just couldn’t resist turning them into the world’s loveliest fabric gift wrap.
How are you leveling up your holiday gifts this year? Find more sustainable gift ideas in our gift guide and sustainable directory.
your two cents