Holiday Wrapping: White and Green

Each year I like to have a loose colour palette in mind when I wrap my gifts. I enjoy having a "collection" that speaks to the season and one that is personalized. Everyone will know this year, for example, that my gifts will be in white and green trim: "This must be from Andrew!"

Ideas for these sorts of whimsies come to me primarily from the pages of magazines. I may see a colour combination in a room that I love and run with it during holiday decorating time, letting it taint all of my little holiday projects, from tree trim to wrapping.

Last year, I wrapped my gifts in a white and gold motif, as shown above. I liked the white base enough to keep it around for a second year. It infers snow and ice. The gold brought some warmth to the palette. I used a gold toile wrapping as accent trim and gold rope in place of ribbon. I also used a very broad white ribbon on some of the larger gifts and recycled some gold gift bags from Christmases-past, stuffed with gold and white tissue.

Below are some inspiration photos for the green and white motif I'm going with this year. I will have a follow-up post to show you how the gift wrapping is going later next month. (I am 90% finished my Christmas shopping, but there are still a few key items to put together before I set up my wrapping station!) Is anyone else inspired by certain colour combinations this year?

These two images from Veranda magazine demonstrate the clean, cool look of white and green. Above, gorgeous arrangements of white roses and thistle are nested into large glass vases filled around the rims with white pebbles. Green pears at each place setting add an additional pop of chartreuse. The room, with its desaturated palette of creams, whites and beiges, benefits greatly from the vibrant hue.

Here, again, a neutral dining room in warm gray tones, makes an excellent backdrop to the powerful punch of green filigree. Potted paperwhites look graceful on a natural 'runner' of moss and cedar sprigs. Cedar boughs tucked into the curls of the chandelier give the effect of a dangling Christmas tree overhead. The cedar motif is carried to the garland around the bay window and a large urn filled with olive branches adds a decadent touch.

Some vibrant green and white dinnerware.

Extending the white and green motif from home decor to gift wrapping is the next step. Here, various kinds of giftwrap in shades of white and cream (with silver accents) look lovely with green trim, including sprigs of ivy and white flowers.