The holidays are here, which means you have a lot of stuff to do.

How to wrap a gift

First things first: the fundamentals.

You should have enough paper on either side to come up about three-quarters of the height of the box.

Cut your paper, adding a three-inch margin past the edge of the box.

Trim the paper so you have the same margins all around.

Flip your box so its face-up.

Pull the other side over the top of the box and secure with tape.

On the ends, fold the paper into triangles on top and bottom, crease, and fold up.

Then pull the edge down and tape.

Repeat on the other end.

A cromulently wrapped gift (it’s possible for you to see it donehere).

Some of the folding isnt 100% necessary, but results in a neater-looking job.

Place the box on itsnarrowside,diagonallyacross the back of the paper.

Fold along the edge created and bring the flap of paper up flush with the box edge.

Repeat on the other three sides.

These classic approaches require a lot of tape, which means you will likely run out of tape.

Butyou dont actuallyneedtapeto wrap a gift:

Cut your paper so you have two-inch margins all around your box.

Turn the paper so its a diamond shape, place the box in the middle.

Fold the bottom point of the diamond up and tuck it under the box.

Fold in both sides and fold up along the top of the box.

Holding those ends in place (awkwardly with your wrist), fold the top down and over.

Tuck the point under the folded sides.

you might see it donehereno tape used at all!

Pro tip:Just as with any artistic endeavor, the key is in the finishing.

If you have leftover wallpaper from a renovation project, that can be used as well.

If you do need a small box, turning a cereal box inside-out can serve pretty well.

In a pinch, aluminum foil can make aglam wrapping paper.

What happens when youre trying to wrap something that isnt (and cant be) in a box?

Literal.You could also just wrap it in a straightforward way that does nothing to hide what the gift is.

This works best if the gift comes in several parts that can be wrapped individually and then placed together.

Alternatively,cinch the paperat the top and bottom with a ribbon to get a party favor look.

Then cut the shape out twice and sandwich the gift between like youre making a pie.

An appropriately sized gift bag of any kind.