Wrapping Paper That's Honestly Too Good to Throw Away

Let me start with a small confession. There is a drawer in my studio that is just folded scraps of wrapping paper, and I cannot bring myself to recycle a single piece of it.

Some of those scraps are from prints I designed five years ago. Some are leftover from samples that didn't make it into production. A few are pieces customers sent back to me in trade-show thank-you notes, which I think says something nice about how the artwork performs in real life.

That drawer is the whole pitch for this blog post: wrapping paper should be beautiful enough that you genuinely don't want to throw it out. That's the bar. That's the project.

What Makes Wrapping Paper Good

I'm not going to pretend wrapping paper is a deeply technical product, but a few things separate the kind that disappears in a recycle bin from the kind that ends up in a drawer like mine.

Paper weight

Cheap wrapping paper is flimsy. It tears at the corners, it wrinkles the second you try to fold it, and the folds don't hold. The wrapping paper in the RJW shop is printed on a heavier matte stock that creases cleanly, holds a corner, and feels intentional in your hand. It's the difference between a present that looks like you wrapped it on purpose and one that looks like you grabbed whatever was in the closet.

Original artwork

This part matters more than you might think. Most wrapping paper out there uses the same handful of stock patterns and clip-art florals that get cycled through the same big-box stores every year. The patterns I print on RJW wrapping paper are designed in my studio from scratch, usually starting with painted or hand-drawn elements that get refined over months into full repeats. They're not on anything else, anywhere. That makes the wrap part of the gift, which is the whole idea.

Repeat scale

A lot of mass-produced wrapping paper has a print scale that's wrong for the size of most gifts. Either the motif is so big you only get one of them on a small package, or it's so tiny it reads as visual noise. I draw all the RJW patterns at a scale that works at gift size. You get a complete look on a small box, and the design still reads beautifully on a large one.

The Patterns Currently in the Shop

Summer Bounty

Big, generous florals in coral, golden yellow, and deep green. The Summer Bounty wrapping paper is my best-seller for a reason. It works for birthdays, housewarmings, a thank-you gift for a teacher, baby showers, pretty much anything that isn't strictly a winter holiday. It has a celebratory feel without being season-locked.

Pirouette

A bold, colorful floral repeat on a deep green background. Pirouette is the one I reach for when I want the wrap to read polished but still joyful. It pairs well with most ribbon colors and works in any context. It's also the highest-stock print in the shop right now, which makes it a great everyday pick.

Undergrowth

Mushrooms, deep botanical greens, that moody red. The Undergrowth print is the wildcard. It's the wrapping paper I'd use for an art-loving friend, or a gift to someone who has very strong opinions about their kitchen towels and their Spotify playlists. It's a little unexpected as wrapping paper, which is exactly why it works.

Spring Glow

Moths and botanicals in luminous, softer tones. Spring Glow is the one for the person who appreciates an unusual choice. It's also a gorgeous wedding gift wrap if you want to skip the standard ivory-and-blush.

How to Use It

The shortest pep talk in this whole post: use the pretty paper for the regular gifts. Not just the milestone ones. The wrap is part of how you tell someone they matter, and the random Tuesday birthday gift counts.

A few practical notes that come up a lot.

About the sheet format

The RJW wrapping paper comes as flat sheets, designed to ship flat and stay crisp until you use them. The flat format lets me print on a heavier, nicer paper stock than mass-produced alternatives, and each sheet wraps a generously sized gift comfortably. Fold the leftovers into smaller gift squares (they're great for that drawer I mentioned).

Pair with washi tape, ribbon, or a tag

A roll of coordinating washi tape (read more in this week's washi tape post) elevates the wrap immediately. So does a fabric ribbon, a sprig of something seasonal tucked under the bow, or a hand-written tag. The point is to make the package feel considered, and that takes maybe two extra minutes.

Keep the scraps

Truly. Save them. Use them as filler in a gift bag, a colorful liner inside a box, a quick tag for a small package, or origami-style envelopes for cash gifts. I use scraps to wrap small jewelry boxes inside larger gifts. Free pretty thing, no extra work.

Wrapping Paper as a Gift in Itself

A small thing I've been doing lately: gifting a few flat sheets of wrapping paper as part of a "gift kit" for friends who like to wrap things. A few coordinating sheets, a roll of washi tape, a pair of nice scissors, a stack of tags. It's a thoughtful gift for new homeowners, the friend who hosts every birthday party in your friend group, or a teacher.

It's also a sneaky-good Father's Day move. If you have a dad in your life who's hard to shop for and weirdly particular about how things are wrapped (we all have one), a small kit of nice wrapping paper is a real win. I went deeper on the Father's Day angle in this post.

A Note on Sustainability

I'm not going to pretend wrapping paper is the most environmentally innocent product in the world. It isn't. But the RJW papers are designed to be reused (the heavier stock makes that practical) and printed on FSC-certified paper, which I take seriously.

The honest move is to use what you buy, save the bigger scraps, and skip the cheap shiny papers that can't be recycled at all. Beautiful paper used twice is a much better outcome than three layers of metallic foil tossed in the trash.

Shop the Full Wrapping Paper Collection

You can browse all current designs at the wrapping paper collection.

I add new wrapping paper prints two or three times a year. Seasonal favorites sell quickly, so if you see something you love, grab it. Newsletter subscribers get first looks at new prints before anything goes public.

Use SUMMER15 at checkout for 15% off anything in the shop through the end of June.

Frequently Asked Questions

What size are the RJW wrapping paper sheets?

Each sheet is a generous flat-sheet size that comfortably wraps a medium-to-large gift. Sheets ship flat, which protects the print and lets us use a heavier paper stock than is possible on a mass-produced format.

Is the wrapping paper recyclable?

Yes. The RJW wrapping paper is printed on FSC-certified, recyclable paper. The heavier weight is also designed to be saved and reused, which is the most sustainable wrapping option.

Can I get matching gift wrap and washi tape?

Yes. Several of the wrapping paper prints have coordinating washi tape designs. Pairing them is one of the easiest ways to make a wrapped gift feel intentional and put-together.

Are the wrapping paper designs original?

Yes. Every pattern is original surface pattern artwork designed by Rebecca Woolbright in her studio. None of the designs use stock illustration or licensed artwork.

Do the wrapping paper designs work for weddings, birthdays, and other occasions?

Yes. The current prints are designed to work year-round and across occasions: birthdays, housewarmings, baby showers, weddings, hostess gifts, and Mother's Day or Father's Day. The patterns are not season-locked.