As we speed towards Christmas I spent yesterday doing some last minute present shopping. Now that’s all pretty much finished I’ve turned my attention to wrapping. There are two elements of present wrapping that my tics make particularly challenging: cutting the paper to size and cutting the tape – basically anything that involves the use of scissors. Consequently for the last few years I’ve often had to have help with wrapping.

But this year I’ve been wrapping gifts independently, thanks to two ingenious solutions – a guillotine and several rolls of paper tape.

Some of you might be questioning the safety of me using a guillotine but in fact it’s a pretty good option because the blade moves up and down entirely predictably, regardless of how wildly my arms are moving about.

This, coupled with the paper tape which I can rip with my hands, means I’ve reclaimed control of a very boring task.

Victory is mine!

The only hurdle left to overcome is the occasional overwhelming urge to crumple the paper. But then again shabby chic is all the rage I hear.

Festive Outburst
“Blue sky thinking reindeers.”