Gift wrapping is a very serious topic of conversation around this house. Let me explain:

I’ve been told on more than one occasion that I’m very “Type A”  – which I like to interpret as Type Amazing! (rather than Type uptight, perfectionist, worried about almost everything) …yeah, I’m gonna go with Type Amazing. When you’re Type Amazing, you are very particular about your gift wrapping technique. Neat corners and hidden seams. Tape strips shouldn’t be too noticeable and ideally, all the gift wrap is in the same color scheme. The bows should be big and the gift box should fit the gift. This means, don’t try gifting a bracelet in a giant shirt box. The gift wrapping police will promptly issue a citation for such a violation.

Funny thing is that I don’t have a ton of time to spend wrapping gifts. Now that I’m a mom, I have about .02 seconds to do everything and I can’t use those precious seconds digging through crumpled piles of tissue paper and gift wrap. So I called in the troops. The Container Store troops.

For the next few months, I’m teaming up with The Container Store to share some of my favorite ways to use their Elfa Drawer System to make life a little more organized. It only makes sense that we kick things off with an Elfa cart that speaks to my obsession with gift wrapping. Let’s take a look at the Gift Wrap Gameplane

Like, I said – gift wrapping is a serious topic in this house – so I’ve set up a no-fail system for making sure every gift is wrapped to perfection. The Medium width 10-runner drawer frame is the perfect height for standing up and wrapping til your thumbs go numb. The frame holds a ton of drawers that are wide enough for every box, bag, tin and tag you could ever need.

The ribbon dispenser, gift wrap organizer and hook rack offer even more space for all your gift wrapping goodies. The only problem with all these fun organizational doodads is that they give you way too many reasons to hoard gift wrapping supplies. Consider yourself warned. Let’s just say that I went a little overboard in the Giftwrap Wonderland. There may or may not have been a roll of wrapping paper sticking out the sunroof of the car.

Now as any true Type Amazing person will know, organizational trays are the thing of dreams. The people at TCS know about our plight for organized drawers which is why they give us clear drawer inserts. Amen and hallelujah. Junk drawers be damned.

For my gift wrapping cart, I filled the trays with the little itty bitty neccessities of wrapping – you know – scissors, twine, tape, hole punch. It’s so nice having it all in one place and easily within reach. It’s sort of like having your own dedicated gift wrapping room – without being a millionnaire living in a 9 bedroom mansion.

This cart is even great for all you “non-wrappers.” How do I know? Because I’m married to one. Before I tell you about Andrew’s gift wrapping abilities, let me preface this with a quick “Bless his Heart” – because if I learned one thing from 8 years in the South it’s that you can say anything about anyone as long as you say “Bless their heart.” So there. I said it, and now I can continue.

Andrew’s gift wrapping skills are right up there with Kanye’s humility. Yeah. Nonexistent. He’s bad at gift wrapping. But unlike Kanye, Andrew tries. Every year he locks himself in my craftroom for a couple hours and works really, really hard on wrapping my gift. When he’s done, the gift usually looks like there might be a pair of angry cats inside trying to wrestle their way through the paper – but that’s not the point. He tried and it doesn’t matter if he sometimes uses shipping tape or that he sometimes can’t find the ribbon or the scissors. It doesn’t matter. He tried. The least I can do is make his job a little easier by putting all the gift wrapping goods in one place. Now, I highly doubt this cart is going to improve his ability, but at least it will cut down on some of the frustration. If all else fails, he’ll have access to some gift bags and gift bags solve every gift wrapping problem.

Tell me about your own gift wrapping woes! Are you Type Amazing, like me?!  Or do you reach for gift bags instead? Tell me how you could use the elfa cart in your home!

And if you need some gift wrapping help, you can always visit your local Container Store to attend a Wrap Party. You can join in on  Saturdays and Sundays, until  December 20th, at 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. to learn how to wrap packages perfectly and tie them up with a bow. There’ll be cider, holiday treats and giveaways including a Customizable Gift Wrap Organizer Kit. You heard me! You can win one of these amazing carts!!

This post is brought to you by The Container Store. All photos, projects, ideas and quirky stories are my very own. Thanks for supporting the sponsors that help keep the lights on in thie joint!