Some of you may remember making chewing gum wrapper chains. You would take the gum wrapper, fold it, hook it on the previous one and eventually make a long chain. It was recycling before recycling became cool.

I took the same concept and decided to recycle the beautiful wrapping paper left over after Christmas. Very simple and fun to keeping adding to each year.

Here’s a quick video showing how it’s done.

Here’s the detailed instructions:
Start by cutting used wrapping paper to 4″ x 1 1/2″. Cut lots of paper so that you can make a wonderfully long chain.

Begin by folding the paper in half lengthwise.

Open the fold and fold the long edge towards the center fold.

Repeat for both long edges.

Fold in half lengthwise.

Fold in half, bringing the two short edges together.

Fold the outer end in towards the center fold.

Repeat so that both ends are folded in towards the center.

Press all of the folds so that they are crisp and flat.

Once you have two pieces folded, insert the ends of one piece into the two folds of the other piece. Repeat this in a zig-zag manner. I chose to do five pieces of the same paper and then switch to another five pieces of another color. This added a nice pattern of color.

Here are some detailed images of how it should look.

You can keep adding to this chain every year. It is a wonderful way to recycle wrapping paper. Your children will also love building this chain with Christmas memories.

Hope you enjoy this and happy making!

This is Linked to:
Embracing Change, Funky Polka Dot Giraffe, Live Randomly Simple, Pam’s Party and Practical Tips, Sugar Bee Crafts, Tatertots and Jello and The DIY Dreamer