I suspect some of you may be giving bottles of wine, balsamic vinegars, or olive oils as gifts, or host/hostess gifts, over the holidays.  So, I thought I would share some of my favorite ways to decorate long-necked bottles for gift giving.

To start, here’s how NOT to present a gift:

The easiest and most traditional way is to use a decorated gift bag.  These are quite economical and can be found just about anywhere, including dollar stores.  Be sure to fluff some tissue paper on top for a polished look.

I like the boxes below which are made especially for wine. Most come with lovely ribbon attached that can simply be tied around the box.  Some even have a sheet of tissue paper in them so they are a quick and elegant option. These are readily available in different stores; these came from Winners.

The wonderful hard-sided box below is almost a gift in itself and no further decoration is required.  Simply slip the bottle inside and off you go. The box in the photo was a purchase from my local Winners store.

If you are into wrapping gifts, any box that the bottle will fit into will do.  Choose elegant wrapping paper and pretty ribbon and/or cord to decorate the box.

Wine bottles don’t always have to be fully wrapped and concealed.  In the photo below, I used a Santa hat hairclip from the local dollar store to adorn the top of the bottle and added a tiny wreath of red berries and a pretty stripped ribbon to make this bottle a conversation piece.

For the bottle below, I used the Santa hat hair clip and cut a piece of boxwood from the tree beside my walkway and used it to make a tiny fresh wreath for the neck of the bottle.

I found the Santa hat and matching scarf below at my local Dollarama store.  It’s a fun and funky way to present a gift of wine.

If you are feeling particularly generous and are giving two bottles of wine, the option below is a hard-sided box that accommodates two bottles.  It’s another Winners find.

For the bottle below, I used distressed brown paper.

Simply take a 30″ square of brown wrapping paper and crumple it up and massage it until it is soft and supple.  This is a good thing to do to relieve stress (or to keep the kids busy)!  Place the bottle in the centre of the distressed paper and draw all sides up and secure around the bottle top with an elastic band, then decorate with pretty rustic ribbon and a sprig of holly.

I hope these suggestions will inspire you to decorate your bottles of wine, olive oils, and vinegars for gift-giving presentation.

Have a wonderful holiday!

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