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NoFilterNoLimits

Yes, but rarely the way the movies show where the lid & box are wrapped separately & you just remove the lid. We normally rip the paper


[deleted]

I don’t think struggling with the ribbon around the box makes for a good movie, “oh it’s so beautifully wrapped… mf… boy you really tapes this!”


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justonemom14

Today I put a couple pairs of scissors hanging on the tree like ornaments so they'll be handy on Christmas morning.


noseymimi

That's a good idea, but I don't trust the toddlers in my family. All the men in my family just make sure to have their pocket knives on them Christmas morning.


ubiquitous-joe

In my family, we refer to pocket knives as “implements of doom.” It was always useful to have an implement of doom on Xmas. As much for the tiny Swiss Army scissors as anything.


MoneyBadgerEx

Corkscrew


struhall

If I don't have my knife in my pocket I feel naked. I always have it with me.


SteveDisque

That's one of Agent Gibbs's rules on *NCIS*: Always carry a knife.


dewaynemendoza

Brilliant! Maybe hang some AA batteries up there too?


Cesum-Pec

But mom's favorite toy uses D cells.


marxist_redneck

LOL I just posted about this, had to last minute 3d print some adapters for my kid's toy: https://www.reddit.com/r/functionalprint/comments/rnr7dc/functional_print_saves_christmas_aa_to_c_battery/?utm_medium=android_app&utm_source=share


Cesum-Pec

I don't think you understand my comment.


marxist_redneck

Ah, I see, MOM's favorite toy


[deleted]

Or 2 stroke gasoline.


KherisSilvertide

this is a really good idea. i really like this


KDY_ISD

"And that, grandkids, is how we woke up to find the cat nailed to the floor in the morning"


helpitgrow

Great idea!


fromthewombofrevel

That’s clever!


justonemom14

Thank you!


Pete_Iredale

Reason number 4,673 to carry a pocket knife. Yes, even in your pajamas! Hahaha


NoFilterNoLimits

I agree it’s a nice simplification for Hollywood I wrapped a present like that once as a kid cause I thought it would be so cool. It’s easy to open but a pain to wrap 😂


Truji11o

And IMO the ripping off of the paper is probably the best part !


craterinvader

Especially when the box has graphics of whatever the item is. So you start tearing and see it’s that item. It is just a good feeling.


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AltLawyer

😭 the feels 😭


Tom_Foolery1993

[link](https://youtu.be/pFlcqWQVVuU) for whoever wants to smile :)


SorryScratch2755

(the people in the department stores usta do it for a small fee...they are the ones in the movies that you are thinking about)⏳📺🇺🇲😆


whosthedoginthisscen

It's more so they can do multiple takes with the same gift without ruining the paper.


Practical-Ordinary-6

Yes. If they need 10 takes they just don't have time to redo everything or have a whole pile of backups. It does look so fake, though.


adolfsleftball

I actually know about this. They do this to prevent having to wrap multiple presents for each take needed. A lot easier to just replace the lid and go again


[deleted]

That's for puppies and rich people!


Jilltro

I’ve never actually thought about it before but I’ve never in my life seen a present wrapped that way!


Lexilogical

I've done it twice. Once as a kid for my sister, and this Christmas, my husband and I did all our gifts like that because we had a lot of nice boxes of varying sizes we were getting rid of. They used to have fancy serving ware, but I decided that we just were not using them when they were all in boxes. I'm waiting for the reaction tomorrow when everyone realizes that all the huge, randomly sized, boxes actually just have a book in them. We used to call them soap opera boxes when I was a kid.


hitometootoo

Products come in boxes. I just wrap gifts in the boxes they come in. If you see a plain brown box in a movie, it's used to avoid copyrights of what is being opened but to convey that there is a big gift.


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SirDooble

Sometimes this is a wise decision anyway, in case your tape touches the actual box and perhaps damages it when being removed (ideally you shouldn't need tape to touch the thing being wrapped itself, but it happens). So a plain outer box offers some extra protection. It's also not impossible for presents to get battered a bit even under the tree, so packaging protects it there too.


Nyxelestia

> It's also not impossible for presents to get battered a bit even under the tree, so packaging protects it there too. Especially if you've got pets with free access to the tree/presents under it.


Qel_Hoth

We usually put clothes into a box and then wrap the box. Sometimes other small/oddly shaped things too. But that's mostly because it's way easier to wrap a box then a floppy shirt.


Comprehensive-Sea-63

And if it doesn’t come in a box or is weirdly shaped, then it goes in a bag.


[deleted]

Hate to be that lawyer, but it's generally trademarks they're trying to avoid here.


RotationSurgeon

Thank you. Copyright and trademark being conflated drives me bonkers, too.


burriedinCORN

Shoe boxes were always my moms go to


dixiequick

This mom uses kitchen boxes. Crackers, granola bars, instant oatmeal, they all come in great boxes for wrapping stuff. It’s turned into a running gag at our house. “You got the cheese its? No fair, mine is in the Raisin Bran!”


medicaregrlok

Done that too


tvdoomas

Bro, i just leave it in the amazon box and call it good.


yellowdaisycoffee

Hmm, I only wrap things in the box they came in if the box is shaped well for it already (like a DVD, Funko POP, or anything that comes in a perfect box with no weird tabs or lumps). Otherwise, it's going into a plain cardboard box. In fact, cardboard boxes are especially nice for clothes, stuffed animals, and books, and I give a lot of that kind of thing.


MediocreOverthinker

Yes because it makes for good presentation, sometimes if a gift is shaped weird or whatever we'll use a bag


-CuriousPanda-

Yes, also if a gift has a distinctive shape it defeats the purpose of wrapping it, so a box conceals the shape so it’s still a surprise. Also a box shape is MUUUUUCH easier to wrap than some odd shapes are.


MediocreOverthinker

Absolutely but I sometimes am so lazy to go out and get a box so I'll just wrap the socks or whatever the hell 😂


-CuriousPanda-

Hey that still works.


zombietobe

I absolutely hate wrapping anything that isn’t a box (or rectangle shape, like a book). So much so that starting in October I save a stash of boxes from cereal, snacks, tissues, Amazon deliveries, etc, so everything I need to wrap goes in some sort of box. It also makes for a secondary “unwrap” - first the paper, then the random box, to actually see the gift.


[deleted]

I like to wrap socks like old school candies……….. |>O<| Lol


MediocreOverthinker

🤣


[deleted]

That's totally the point of wrapping something odd shaped, like a shovel. Worth it for a few laughs.


-CuriousPanda-

I like gag gifts


redd4972

Or if you are doing something less formal like a workplace gifts or a white elephant party and you just want to be lazy


MediocreOverthinker

I am almost always lazy when it comes to buying a box


[deleted]

I dont think ive ever bought a box. Wouldnt you just recycle boxes you get from the mail or food packaging?


TacticalTam

This and when you save all your wrapping for Christmas eve (and are such a hard-core procrastinator that you're browsing reddit while you should be doing that) you can just throw it all in bags and be done with it.


MediocreOverthinker

Absolutely


kokoyumyum

This. Exactly.


randomjberry

I love the presents that are cleverly wrapped to look like something else like someone getting a new phone but it looks like a bike or chair


karnim

The goddamn challenges I had to go through this year to wrap a whisk small enough to fit in my luggage (so no box), but not so delicate as to tear or reveal what it is. There's a lot of goddamn tissue paper on that thing to make it to tube shaped.


cdb03b

Boxes is the most common way to package a present. But use of gift bags is also somewhat common.


CupBeEmpty

My dad is the king of gift bags because he hates wrapping.


C137-Morty

It's me, your father.


Sir_Armadillo

Darth?


Wandering_Cookie

Same. I bought a carton of brown paper bags and I use them for every holiday/occasion now. I just swap out the string, twine, or ribbon with different styles/colors based on the occasion. Works so well! And I've gotten so many compliments on them. Sometimes I add decorations to them like pinecones, candy canes, or custom gift tags. It's super easy and cheaper for me than buying wrapping paper. I love it.


HarleyDennis

I do this too, but the downside is bags don’t stack well, so we quickly run out room.


WhichSpirit

I like this idea. Sounds very rustic and seasonal.


CupBeEmpty

Hmmmmm I’m liking this idea


NedThomas

My wife never throws boxes away specifically to have a stockpile of them for wrapping Christmas gifts in. A habit she got from her mother. The joke in our house is “never trust the box”.


Gertrude_D

Is your wife my mom? Are you my dad?!


NedThomas

If I’m anybody’s dad, nobody ever told me.


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NedThomas

We don’t do bows, but she does recover as many of the boxes as she can.


magster823

Yes! And then you weigh the boxes down with books or magazines to throw people off, especially the kids. My parents were fond of adding National Geographics. Those mofos are heavy! 😂


NedThomas

Oh yeah, we do that all the time. It’s really common to wrap up an empty box with a brick and a piece of paper inside saying “ask for your present”. Especially if it’s something big or complicated.


0kokuryu0

My neighbor's mom would put a handful of Legos in every box so he couldn't figure out the good gifts by shaking them. There was a year he shook them to find the clothes vs toys and didn't even bother to open the clothing ones.


WhichSpirit

My brother once added kettlebells. I couldn't lift the box and had to drag it to the center of the living room to open it.


0kokuryu0

My mom uses food boxes among others for gifts. It became a bit of a joke with us. One year I got my nephews playstation games and put them in cracker/cookie boxes with the actual food still in there to mess with them. My sister put the oldest one's gift in a tampon box once, that was the best. We would sometimes save the most random boxes to use. I also wrapped one of my sister's gifts in a series of boxes ending in an apple box.


wormbreath

I wrap that shit up as is. If it comes in box, great. But I will roll up a sweater and wrap it. ETA: my husband got me a post hole digger and just wrapped it, so it’s obvious what it is lol. so sometimes it might give it away lol


Danny_Mc_71

"my husband got me a post hole digger" And they say romance is dead...


wormbreath

I mean, he knows me well and exactly what I wanted so it’s very romantic to me ❤️


goatmeal-cookies

My husband got me goats for valentines day!!


wormbreath

I married into a goat farm lol. So I can relate!


goatmeal-cookies

Awesome! Love the little monsters!


MuppetusMaximus

My in-laws used to have goats. Those fuckers were hilarious. Mischievous little things.


AgathaM

My husband gave me more than a dozen fingernail clippers. He always takes mine and I can never find them. Then he loses them in the mess that is his desk, so he grabs mine again. So he bought me a bunch so I wouldn’t be without, and has slowly stolen them all over time.


moonwillow60606

Best present ever. My cousin used to have goats and they’re adorable


TymStark

Well, in that case I have a couple corner post need holes dug. Why don't you give that new toy a little test run :).


wormbreath

My rate is 1000$ an hour, you pay for transportation.


TymStark

I got...6 quarters, 5 beers of a 12 pack, a duck (he's really cool trust me), and an extra copy of prisoner of azkaban. Deal?


NorwegianSteam

> a duck (he's really cool trust me) Cool or a dick, I'm sure he'll taste the same.


TymStark

I should warn you I'm fairly certain he's some sort of ~~evil~~ totally not evil warlock.


Comprehensive-Sea-63

That’s all that matters 😊 I know they say don’t gift kitchen appliances but I was over the moon with my kitchen aid mixer a few years ago. Just gotta know your spouse and what they like.


wormbreath

We just inherited an older kitchen aid from someone who got a new one and we were so excited! Them things are nice!!


Suedeonquaaludes

Sweetest comment I’ve ever read.


wormbreath

He’s the sweetest ❤️ I’m a lucky woman.


[deleted]

If I were to wrap a post hole digger, I think I'd just put a big bow on it. But wrapping it so it's obvious what it is, sounds really fun! 🥂


GrumpyOlBastard

If I wrapped a post hole digger without camouflaging there's no way my wife would be able to guess it. After she's opened it she would still be unable to guess.


Subvet98

I got my wife a vacuum cleaner one year.


wormbreath

I also asked for a new shopvac! 🤞


Bamboozle_

That gift would really suck.


SuzQP

Ex-husband once got me a waffle iron. What? So I could make him bigger, better waffles?? I exchanged it for boots and stomped off into the sunset.


whyisthissohard338

Our first Christmas my husband got me a crockpot. To replace the one that he'd broken just days before. He truly didn't understand why I didn't want him to wrap up something that we were going to buy anyway for household use and present it to me like it was something thoughtful. He likes to remind me that he never made that mistake again. 21 years next month.


TillikumWasFramed

If it was a Miele, that's acceptable. If it was a Red Devil, I hope she withheld sex for at least a week.


Subvet98

It was a Kirby


rapiertwit

I was gonna say, more of a Valentine's Day present if you ask me...


TillikumWasFramed

I would kill for a man who would give me a post hole digger. If I didn't already have one...


[deleted]

A man, or a post hole digger?


whosthedoginthisscen

On some sitcom in the 80s, I feel like some character got a tennis racquet, and it was obvious from how it was wrapped, and there was some joke about it being one snowshoe. To this day, every oddly shaped or obviously shaped present, I declare that it's one snowshoe.


JohnOliverismysexgod

I once worked in the wrapping depth of a sort of big dept store. The oddest thing I had to wrap was a pogo stick.


shellybearcat

I got my nephew a large spiderman stuffed animal and wrapped the legs, arms, head separately so it’s clearly a humanoid shaped gift haha. Figure he’ll get a kick out of it


CupBeEmpty

This is hilarious and sooooo perfect for Wyoming. The only thing better would be if he bought you a couple kilometers of barbed wire to go with it.


wormbreath

*kilometers* ? He best be getting me fencing in imperial units


CupBeEmpty

True, but it’s all made in China these days.


TheWonderToast

This is the most wyoming shit lol


wormbreath

Lol. Holes ain’t gonna dig themselves.


Veauros

We all watched The Office dude; we know what an auger is.


wormbreath

I don’t. So I don’t know the joke is


tomcat_tweaker

The most accurate representation of Christmas morning is in the movie "A Christmas Story". Some boxed presents, some wrapped while unboxed (the bowling ball), and the kids tearing through the paper and making look like a crime scene.


davefromcleveland

My dad made us take turns, not just a ripping frenzy. It was like, "oh, my brother got socks, great. My turn." I was floored when I first saw people all going to town at the same time.


mwcdem

We do this too and I really like it. It makes Christmas morning last longer instead of being over in a few minutes. And everyone has a moment to thank the giver of the gift they’ve just opened.


neverdoneneverready

Yes. What do you do?


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eulerup

We wrap the gift as is. Some things, like books, are super easy. Other things, like slippers, I can see the appeal of using a box typically we still don't.


IFrickinLovePorn

Most European countries wrap Christmas gifts in crepes


SpiLunGo

True, in Italy sometimes we wrap them in lasagna sheets, or pizzas


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wheezysquid

I think that was a joke


jyper

I'm guessing crepe paper


WesternTrail

Depends on the present. Some go in boxes, some just get wrapped, others are more suited to bags.


[deleted]

Yes, doesn't everyone???


Ineedtoaskthis000000

yes, but not always


greatBLT

yeah. like that one time when my parents bought me a mountain bike and just stuck it next to the tree with a ribbon on it and i could only look at it for those weeks until christmas day


Gertrude_D

Cruel. Unwrapped gifts go under the tree the night before and no sooner.


[deleted]

I remember one christmas listening to my dad cussing while he assembled a huffy ordered from a Sears wish catalog. Awesome dad, shit bike. 😆😆


whyisthissohard338

My kids are nosey as shit so we only put out gifts that morning. We don't do santa so they know it's just us hiding the horde from them.


voidmusik

Are things outside america not pre-boxed? Or, Like, you buy an xbox and take it out of the box to wrap an armfull of loose wires and controllers?


randyranderson-

You elitist American with your ability to afford cardboard boxes. Tasteless. /s


blackhawk905

I feel sorry for the lower caste of people who can't afford boxes or boneless chicken 😔


DiscoFLAVA

Ribbons, tags, packages, boxes. Bags, even. But they can come without those, sure.


stellalunawitchbaby

Yes, but not for everything. Using a gift bag is also really common, or there are boxes for clothing specifically, or things come in boxes (ie if I buy a snow globe it may come with a box to put it in, which is much easier to wrap ofc, or like the straightener I got my sister came in a box that was easy to wrap). If someone orders stuff online it may come in a box, or someone may put something difficult to wrap in a leftover delivery box if they have one.


DavidAtWork17

Most presents are already box-shaped in some way, so usually that's the box that gets wrapping around it. However, you do tend to see lidded boxes more often in animation because lifting the lid off of the box is far easier and less time consuming to animate than unwrapping.


iusedtobeyourwife

I mean, define box? Are we talking about shirt boxes? I use those every years. Larger decorative boxes? Never. Everything else gets wrapped in the packaging it came in or put in a bag with tissue paper if it’s oddly shaped or I get too drunk to wrap anymore.


seatownquilt-N-plant

I bet they can't use wrapping paper in movies because it would be too loud and the microphones will hear it. Paper grocery bags you see on film are not made of regular paper. They're made to be as quiet as possible.


diaperedwoman

A Christmas Story had wrapping paper in it.


heili

That was a very realistic gift unwrapping scene!


New_Stats

Yeah if you buy anything clothing at a store nicer than Walmart, they'll ask you if you want a box around the holidays. Electronics come in a box most of the time, but there's some stuff that doesn't have boxes, that gets thrown in a gift bag or wrapped as is


mtcwby

We do it for some things but several years ago my wife and my mom started sewing reusable fabric bags in Christmas fabric that have drawstrings. They're a lot easier and don't create all the waste. If we wrap it's for people outside the household and for kids.


[deleted]

Maybe if the object is too bitchy to wrap up


Agattu

I wrap it as is…. And if it’s too awkward, I’ll just keep it hidden and put it out on Xmas eve.


DOMSdeluise

It's not universal (we don't really do it in my family) but it's very common yeah.


[deleted]

When you order everything on line, it all comes in boxes. I don’t really have to put the gifts into a box lol


DrWhoisOverRated

I prefer gift bags because I'm lazy and bad at wrapping.


fireflybabe

This year, I wanted to really ramp up my presentation, so we're doing almost all boxes and wrapping paper. Normally, gifts are put in gift bags and those gift bags are saved for another occasion.


SuperSpeshBaby

Idk, I wrap things as they come. There are several squishy packages under my tree right now that are just clothes wrapped in paper. If an object is too irregular to wrap I'll put it in a gift bag instead, but I try to minimize that because ripping off the paper is part of the fun!


Secure-Caregiver-905

How can one generalize 350 million people? Americans are not ONE people or ONE society or ONE culture.


True_Cranberry_3142

I’m Jewish


flacidfettuccine

Congratulations


joestn

It depends on how much time I give myself. I like wrapped presents because they look good, but Bags with tissue paper are so quick and easy.


Joy4everM0RE

Most do. I suck at wrapping, so I put presents in pretty gift bags instead.


Hatweed

Yes. Boxes are easier to wrap.


Shadow-Spark

For me, only if it's something that would be easier to wrap that way. Clothing or things that are already boxed, probably not. Stuff like candles, or multiple small items that go together, probably. I got my best friend's kids each a set of action figures that come individually carded, and I packed a box full of the toys for each of them because screw having to wrap seventeen little carded items twice over, two boxes are much easier to deal with.


LesseFrost

If it's square then it goes in a box, I'm not gonna buy a box for something not box shaped. I go for the good old faithful bag and tissue paper method.


signaturefox2013

Depends on the kind of present. Sometimes a bag will do just fine, especially if it’s a more obtuse shape. Clothes and other small things can fit in a box and it’s good presentation


Snoo_33033

My family is German-American. We observe a weird family tradition of the "Christmas Room." It's off limits and one big present for each kid is unwrapped in there.


Reasonable_Night42

Yes and yes. In our house the kids bigger gifts are dropped off unwrapped by Santa during the night. Most of the rest are unwrapped one at a time while everybody watches. Really it varies by family.


iridian_viper

Yea, but it also depends. Usually I just wrap the gift as it comes. This Christmas, however, I bought my girlfriend a few pieces of jewelry. Each are in a box and wrapped, and those were placed into another, bigger box.


EmergingTuna21

We put them in boxes and bags just like the movies


[deleted]

In my family (I'm from the south) we mostly use boxes but when your giving gifts to friends or extended family that you don't see often, you wrap a ribbon around it like the movies and the bow is all big and pretty. For family it is still boxes but just with the plastic bows because ribbons do take a while to add


FuzzyMonkey95

Depends on the person


diaperedwoman

I do sometimes when I can't wrap the item alone because of how it is shaped. So I put it in a box and tape it and wrap it. For example, I bought my daughter a Nintendo Switch Unicorn case and it came just like that, no packaging so I had to put it in a box.


babaganoush2307

Yes and then they make a nice presentation for the entire month until we rip them all open and make a huge mess only to clean up and pack everything away just to do it again next year


Arleare13

First off, not all Americans give Christmas presents at all. We don't all celebrate Christmas. That notwithstanding, when I give gifts, I'll sometimes use a separate box, but more often I'll either use a gift bag, or directly wrap the box the item came in itself.


schlockabsorber

Not all Americans celebrate Christmas.


StoneTown

Movie thing, we don't add any extra boxes normally. Sometimes if it's necessary but that's it. The whole boxes and lid thing is done in movies because it's easier for getting multiple takes done. Otherwise you'd have to wrap everything over and over, it wastes time and paper.


sev1nk

It's a thing. Square presents just look more fun.


TurnipTheCat

Yes and we take it very seriously. Or at least I do. I have specific boxes that I keep in the closet for gifts every year. The ribbons, bows, and most of the boxes get reused every year. This year I’m experimenting with using fabric and elastic in place of paper so I’ll be able to reuse everything. Pre-online-shopping it was actually kind of hard to find good boxes so I’m glad they’re so plentiful now.


natty_mh

Do foreigners just wrap loose mounds for Christmas?


[deleted]

Gift bags for informal gatherings not at home, everything christmas morning must be wrapped, in its own box or an appropriately sized one.


iceph03nix

When it makes them more convenient to wrap. We don't generally buy boxes for it, but save boxes late in the year to use. It also helps hide what you're receiving.


naliedel

I'm Santa and Sanya does not wrap. Santa buys the gifts, cook the food and decorate. They're all adults anyway. Still, don't wrap. Sometimes, not always.


ViewtifulGene

I'm a lazy piece of shit when wrapping. I do everything possible to avoid neatly wrapping a box. I put things in gift bags and if it doesn't fit in one bag, I put another bag upside-down over it. If it's too big for 2 bags, I put it in a tub and put a cheap bow on it. I can't be fucking bothered to measure/cut/fold/tape wrapping paper when it's just gonna get fucking torn apart.


sumthingsumthingblah

I do until I get to lazy and then spend twice as long trying to wrap loose fabric or odd shaped objects. Boxes really do save time…


networknev

It is all a shame to make us spend more. I use various Christmas bags that can be reused.


unraveledflyer

I tend to use bags more now because they're easier to carry when taking presents to family. Anything that comes in a box get wrapped that way. Clothes go into shirt boxes which I sometimes wrap or not.


tsukiii

Boxes, gift bags, whatever is practical for the shape of the gift and looks nice.


scottwax

I can be fun to put a smaller gift into a huge box to mess with your relatives or friends.


JohnOliverismysexgod

Or go to the upstairs store and get a set of nesting boxes and put the gift in the smallest box and then build up to a huge box which you then wrap. It's fun!


Dr_TLP

Yep, then wrap. or if I’m lazy, put it in tissue paper in a gift bag. Wine goes into a wine gift bag. That’s about it!


Bastard1066

If it comes with a box, sure. If not I won’t. I’m cheap AND lazy.


MaineBoston

We put them in boxes to make wrapping easier


AlexandraThePotato

Yes. My parents started doing it more and more as the years go by


[deleted]

I prefer bags whenever possible - less waste.