DIY Wrapping Paper...with Potatoes?!?!?!?!?!!!

Hey!

So, I love wrapping presents and I love collecting different wrapping papers and ribbons, but sometimes what's out there just isn't what I'm looking for.  Enter potato-stamped wrapping paper - simple, fun, and totally customizable.  Plus, people are super impressed when you tell them what you did.

My supplies and my stamps: I made a turtle shell/wagon wheel and a stylized totem heart owl.

These are the supplies you'll need:

• a potato - those idaho potatos are good this project, whatever you use, you want something on the long side
• sharp things...like knives, peelers, cookie cutters
• a pen/marker
• ink or paint
• plain wrapping paper (I used just brown paper, but the options are endless, it might be really cool to print over newspaper as well..hmm)
• felt (to use as a mat under your paper - this way you'll get nice even stamps on your paper)

As far as directions go, just trace your design into the potato (simpler is better).  You'll want to remove about 1/4 of the outer potato wall so that you have a nice raised stamp. After you're happy with your carving, gently dry your potato on a paper towel, then cover it nice and evenly with paint or ink and start stamping! You'll want to place a piece of felt on your table, then your paper, and then start stamping - the felt ensures that the whole stamp will stamp cleanly on your paper. You might want to test your stamp on a scrap piece of paper.




My owl paper. My roommate says they're creepy-looking but I like them.

When you're done, let the ink/paint dry totally and then wrap up your gifts! Oh, to avoid waste, I measured out how much paper I needed and cut it out before stamping.

Here's one picture wrapped in my owl paper and below is a picture of the stack of presents I wrapped alternating with my owl paper and some store-bought stuff.





For even better directions and a cool cookie cutter trick, check out this video by Martha!

Have fun with this one!
Malerie