Hallmark announced on Monday a new line of wrapping paper. Instead of using tape , this paper is self adhesive and Hallmark claims the wrap is “sticky enough to create clean lines and crisp folds without leaving any residue on the gift“. I couldn’t resist testing these claims – so I headed to Hallmark Gold Crown (the only place it’s sold). Here are my thoughts on whether this is worth the extra $1.20 per roll that I paid ($4.99 for adhesive vs $ 3.79 for similar sized regular wrapping paper). P.S. – Even if you’re not looking for wrapping paper I’ve found a bunch of 75% of sale items at their online store – plus a 25% off coupon.
Is self-adhesive wrapping paper just a gimmick or will it make your gift wrapping faster and easier?
Hallmark Stores are running a promotion offering a free roll of adhesive gift wrap with any $5.00 regular wrapping paper purchase.
I wanted to take advantage of this offer – except there was no roll of regular wrapping paper priced over $5. Most paper was in the $3.79 to $ 4.19 range (for a similar 22 square feet of wrapping paper). The roll of adhesive paper that I purchased was $ 4.99 for a similar 25 square feet.
I picked out a generic looking paper since I typically am wrapping gifts for my kids to take with them to birthday parties and I never know whether they’ll be going to a party for a boy or girl.
After removing the outer plastic wrap, you’re left with a slightly waxy feeling roll of wrapping paper which seems slightly thicker than most.
Here’s the first trick – unwrapping the paper. Because it’s adhesive, it sticks to itself. Unraveling it without ripping proved difficult.
As you can see from the picture below, the paper is sticky – reminding me of an extra strength Post-It Note.
Problem # 1: Unrolling the paper causes it to to rip – and rip – and rip. Getting the paper to unravel cleanly with no tears requires l-o-t-s of patience. If you’re in a rush to wrap a gift (which I usually am) you’ll be frustrated by the amount of care you need to take to cleanly start unrolling the paper. Once this wrapping paper started to tear I found it difficult to stop the ripping
Once you’ve unravelled the wrapping paper – how does it work?
I picked a relatively simple square box as a test. The inside of the wrapping paper contains grids to help you align the package. The paper is sticky. Though not overly so. If you don’t put your package in the right place initially, you can remove it easily and reposition it on another section.
The instructions printed on the inside of the wrapping paper advise you may want to use tape to fasten the ends. In practice the hardest part of the process was securing the ends because as you fold the paper some of the adhesive is obscured by the folding.
Using this wrapping paper is like using adhesive shelf paper to wrap a gift. The Hallmark paper is less “sticky” so you can correct mistakes easier. Still, it’s far too easy to rip which ruins the ability to create the perfectly wrapped gift.
Is the paper easier to use than plain wrapping paper? Is it worth the extra $1.20 per roll that I paid?
I think if you are looking for a perfectly wrapped gift and you are a careful wrapper – this may be a marginally useful tool.
The time it took to unwrap the sticky paper was a hassle. I’m usually 15 minutes away from leaving for a birthday party when I remember that I need to wrap a gift. Then I go hurriedly looking all over the house for wrapping paper, scissors and tape. Careful unraveling and alignment of this type of paper would probably not be in the cards.
Another problem I found is the gift I wrapped began to unwrap itself within an hour.
I guess you could use tape to secure the ends — but if you need to use tape, why go to the trouble of buying (more expensive) self-adhesive wrapping paper??
Finally I unwrapped my “gift” and checked to see if there was any adhesive on the box. I’m happy to report that the box was free of any sticky residue and that unwrapping was relatively trouble free though I had to pry some of the paper free of the box.
Cost:
$ 4.99 per 25 Square Foot Roll (versus approximately $3.79 for a similar non-adhesive roll).
Where to buy:
Hallmark Gold Crown Stores
What I liked:
The grids on the inside of the paper made it easy to “line up” my gift for wrapping
What Could Be Improved:
The paper rips far too easily when unrolling, the package end flaps do not stay sealed (Hallmark does included some tape for the ends – but why should you have to use tape with a product advertised as self-adhesive), slightly more difficult to unwrap the gift, feels like using shelf liner to wrap presents, will be difficult to use this wrapping paper if you’re in a rush.
Hallmark Online Store – 75% Off Sale:
The clearance section at the Hallmark online store has a decent selection of items for the next time you need a gift for a distant relative.
A few of these are what I classify as good tag sale or eBay “starter kits”…here’s the link to the 75% off stuff…and use code FB2007 for another 25% off….
Mother’s Day is coming soon. Is it complete without the Wooden Frame Shadowbox Print – “Mom’s Love Is Always Blooming” – for $ 9.94 shipped?
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