Furoshiki fabric gift wrapping is an excellent way to reduce the amount of waste produced during the holiday season (and all year long)! We fell in love with this method of wrapping gifts in fabric a few years ago. Using fabric instead of wrapping paper allows you to reuse the wrapping year after year, and in our opinion, looks even more beautiful than paper wrapping under the tree. Once you learn a few wrapping techniques, you’ll find this method both easy and relaxing. Picking out the fabric you’ll use is a lot of fun too!
History of Furoshiki Wrapping
According to Invaluable.com, Furoshiki means “bath (furo) spread (shiki),” and was first used in the 700’s to wrap and protect valuable goods. Today it is widely used in Japan and around the world to wrap gifts and other packages including children’s lunches!
When I visited Japan in 2016 I could not believe all the squares of fabric sold in stores for exactly this purpose. They were beautiful and came in endless varieties. Sadly, I did not know much about Furoshiki wrapping then, otherwise I would have probably brought home a suitcase full!
Fabric and Materials
We encourage you to use what you have around first – for example – fabric you already own, bandanas, napkins, or dish towels. I’ve even cut up and reused clothes in patterns that I loved and couldn’t bear to part with. You can also head to your local fabric store and buy some new fabric. Check your local thrift stores too, sometimes they will sell fabric or sheets you could use for wrapping.
Common fabric sizes for Furoshiki wrapping are 17×17 and 28×28 inches. I keep a variety of sizes for wrapping large and small gifts.
How to Wrap Gifts in Fabric, Furoshiki Style
In this short video, we show you how to wrap gifts of different shapes and sizes using a couple of different techniques.
There are various other guides for wrapping gifts in fabric on Pinterest and elsewhere if you want to pin and save a wrapping infographic. We’ve saved a few here, on our eco-holiday challenge board. Also check out our Eco Holiday Challenge highlights on Instagram for more.
Interested in learning more about making sustainable changes to your holiday traditions? Take our Eco Holiday Challenge and commit to doing better this year. Register to receive tips and inspiration in your inbox here.
Need a bit more guidance in making this change? Use our Badge Guide and earn the Eco Holiday Hero Badge. The badge walks you through three steps that will get you well on your way to being an Eco Holiday Hero!
Let us know how you plan to wrap your gifts this year in the comments below or over on Instagram or Facebook.
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