Kinda late-or maybe I'm early?

I thought I'd share a gift wrapping idea I've been using for a few years.

Start by opening the bottom of a pull-top can. Wash the inside and save until needed.

You can find various size cans which have the pop-top, but don't save Swanson's broth cans. I did that and gave two nieces their birthday gifts in them. We dropped off the first gift and didn't see it opened. When niece Vicky got hers, though, we were right there. It's quite embarrassing to realize in that setting that although the can has a pop-top, the whole lid doesn't come off. Then the other niece, who is also in attendance, tells everyone "Yeah, you gave me one of those cans, too. I had to use a can opener to get it open."

Learn from my mistakes. No Swanson's broth cans.

Place the gift inside the can, making sure it clears the bottom of the can. You don't want your gift catching between the can and the bottom. Run a little hot glue around the can.

Put the bottom of the can back in place on the hot glue.

Wrap it and you're done. Be prepared to explain to the first couple recipients that they can pop the top. Otherwise, people seem to wonder what to do-unwrap the paper or pop the top?

Since I'm still talking Christmas, I decided to include this shot of my tree skirt. My best friend made this for us several years ago. Isn't her cross-stitching just amazing? I love it and am awed every year by the amount of work it must have taken.

You may think I'm late with this tutorial but really, I'm early. You've got a three week head start on your gift wrapping for Groundhog's Day.