Today we’re bringing you a genuinely original idea. This isn’t the first time we’ve thought about how to make a gift even more special through its wrapping, as we did in the post about Furoshiki. This time, we won’t be using fabric, but t-shirt yarn. You already know that t-shirt yarn is currently one of the stars of the DIY world because of its versatility, wide range of colors, and how easy it is to work with. It has also changed the fate of all those old T-shirts whose sad destiny was to become rags for cleaning windows. You can make it yourself from them or buy it in skeins of whatever color you like (multicolored ones are available too, and they’re truly beautiful!).
Laura, our tutorial expert, documented the entire process with photos to make it even easier for you. Do you have your gift ready? Then get prepared, because we’re starting to wrap gifts with t-shirt yarn.
Steps for wrapping gifts with t-shirt yarn:
You’ll need:
– T-shirt yarn in one or two colors (it will look prettier with two). It’s best to use skeins because we need really long strips. If you use “homemade” t-shirt yarn, it will be much more work because you’ll have to join lots of short strips or tie lots of knots as you cover the box.
– Scissors.
– A little tape (not essential).
Step 1: Cover the side of the box.
The first thing we’re going to do is cover the side of the box with the t-shirt yarn you’re going to use as your base color. We chose lime green to combine with yellow. The easiest thing is to secure the end of the t-shirt yarn ribbon to the box with a little tape so it doesn’t move, but if you don’t have tape handy, that’s okay. Just work more carefully and hold it yourself until there’s no risk of it coming loose. Now simply wrap the t-shirt yarn around the box, covering the entire side surface as shown in the photograph. When you’re finished, cut the strip. You can secure and hide the loose end by sticking it to the box with a little tape underneath the wrapping you’ve just created or simply tuck it securely between the strips.
Step 2: Cover the rest of the box.
Once you’ve done the side, we’ll cover the rest of the box. We used a skein in the same color so we could introduce the yellow in the final step. Tuck the end under the wrapping you just created on the side, at one of the box’s corners, and start wrapping the t-shirt yarn across the entire surface as shown in the photograph. As before, you can secure it with a little tape to make it completely foolproof or hold it yourself until there’s no risk of it slipping out. Don’t obsess over securing everything perfectly: the fabric we’re creating is quite sturdy on its own, and besides, remember that someone will have to unwrap this gift.
Step 3: Create the woven layer.
It’s time to introduce the other color of t-shirt yarn we chose. As a starting point, tie the end to one of the strips in the layer you already have, as you can see in the image on the right (you can undo this knot later) and start weaving it through. You can make it as tight or loose as you like: we always left two strips above and two below.
Just as in the 
previous step, you need to wrap the t-shirt yarn around the box while weaving it. Once you’ve woven a couple of rounds, as shown in the photograph on the left, you can undo the knot you made earlier. When you finish the process, hide the loose ends under the sides again.
And we’re almost, almost there.
Step 4: The finishing touch.
Now that your gift is perfectly wrapped, it’s time to add the finishing touch. Take one or several strips of t-shirt yarn (depending on whether you want to make a single or double bow), pass them under one or two strips where you want to place the decoration, and tie a beautiful bow. And… voilà! You have the perfect gift.
If you live in Mataró or the surrounding area and enjoy t-shirt-yarn crafts, keep a close eye on our classes because t-shirt yarn is one of our favorite materials.
Did you like this idea for wrapping gifts with t-shirt yarn? Be generous, share it with the world!