The heart of giving

Gift-giving should be done with a lot of heart. Although we’ve all benefited from the hassle-free convenience of slipping a present into one of those ready-to-go gift bags that are popular now I still feel there’s nothing like a creatively wrapped package tied with a ribbon or string that speaks volumes about both giver and recipient.

With the wealth of materials available locally, there is no reason to give a gift that seems uninspired. First off, a present doesn’t have to be expensive for it to be appreciated in the same way that the wrapping need not be expensive for it to be beautiful. Beauty is rife everywhere, and there is an amazing range of materials around just waiting to be discovered and used: in your own home, on the beach, or among the things you might otherwise throw away. Of course, one can’t be ilusyonada and think that a 25-peso gift will escalate in value 100 times when wrapped elaborately. All I’m saying is, make an effort to match the packaging imaginatively with the gift, but most especially match the gift with the person you are giving it to.

Early this year, my tita Inday asked me to join her in a five-session course on Creative Wrapping and Gift Packaging. Gracious lady Portia Leuterio conducted it and at the very least it taught us to touch base with our creative side and get those juices flowing. You would probably ask, what’s there to learn? Think again. Given the right materials, anyone can wrap anything! From the very simple to the more complex you will not be boxed in with what you learn offhand. Instead it will inspire you to create something you can truly call your own.

Do not lose the sense of pleasure that gift-giving brings. It is a joy when you have in your hands the perfect something for that friend of yours. And don’t just send it off in the bag it came in (unless of course the bag is already chic itself). If you have the time (you can always make time), nest that gift in soft tissue, wrap it in paper or cloth, and tie it with a ribbon or string. Oh, and don’t forget to attach a handwritten note. A curt and hasty "Happy Birthday" won’t cut it–throw in some warmth there. Remember Samantha in Sex and the City who manipulated circumstances and her boyfriend’s personal shopper just so the note that accompanied his gift would read, Love,xxxx instead of Best,xxxx?

While we’re on the subject of gift-giving, Christmas is just around the corner and what better time to start shopping than now when traffic is still manageable and the stores are not bursting with shoppers all trying to beat the Christmas rush?

It is undoubtedly my favorite holiday of the year, maybe because somehow I feel everyone makes an effort to soften up the rough edges of their personality, consequently coming across as kinder and more gracious. I’m one of those who actually look forward to shopping for gifts and I do it in bits and pieces, all year round. I like to take my time in the malls and until now it escapes me why when I don’t seem to be looking for anything in particular I chance upon a gazillion beautiful things that I just know would make perfect gifts. Call it serendipity if you like. When I am in one of these moments, I don’t even bother to wrestle with my rational mind. I just pull out my purse and buy it – never mind if I have no use for it (yet) or I don’t have anyone to immediately give it to. If it’s exceptionally lovely and there are but two or three left, I scramble to buy them all. I just know it will come in handy one day – and I haven’t been wrong. Time and again, this system has far proven to be a more of a boon than it ever could be a bane. It’s time and cost-efficient because then I don’t have to make a side trip to the mall and chances are I get them at really good prices.

I have relegated one cabinet in our room for my "finds." They are neatly stored in labeled poly-boxes and this is where I "shop" for presents to be given to family and friends. I have in abundance gifts for children’s birthday parties and I also have in stock a lot of gifts for ladies. Especially when we travel, I get a chance to purchase one-of-a-kind thingies that I know will make someone happy someday. Up to now it beats me what I can stock up for male friends. There’s always perfume and shirts, I guess, but I have yet to find something more imaginative than that.

For those times when the perfect gift cannot be found in my cabinet-cum-shop, I don’t mind making a side trip to the mall where I know I can find something. And on those rare occasions when even the mall refuses to yield anything, I don’t mind waiting awhile. I’d always rather give a thoughtful gift that’s a bit late than grab the next best thing just for the heck of it.

Also, because I find it therapeutic to wrap gifts myself I always have in stock an assortment of wrapping paper, raffia, ribbons and string. I remember buying raffia worth P300 that has lasted me for more than a year now. It’s my no-miss packaging – that together with handmade paper and dried flowers. I never throw away my daughter’s broken clips and little toys that, in my mind, are still "salvageable." I can always use these to jazz up the wrapping of presents, especially when they’re meant for kids. And it takes me forever to open gifts because I really take my time and I always save what I can. I like re-using nice wrapping paper (of course I trim the creased portions) and fancy ribbons and add-ons.

As I wrap a present that I feel is perfect for someone, I feel like I’m giving the gift some heart – at one point it was just a generic thing, one of many but was especially handpicked to be passed on to someone who truly deserves its beauty and function.