With a series of crisp folds, glassine -- or less expensive tissue -- serves as both gift wrap and ribbon. To start, cover the box in brightly colored paper. Then, on a wide work surface, randomly fold a sheet of glassine, making all folds in the same horizontal or vertical direction.

A deep fold fits a small gift card; a shallow fold creates the illusion of narrow ribbon. Use double-sided tape to tack folds flat at ends. Turn paper on one side; make a series of perpendicular folds. Secure with more tape at intersections. Take care not to overfold, or you may have too little paper left to cover the package.