Create Super Cute Eco-friendly Gift Tags

Using cereal boxes

To celebrate the shortest day yesterday and the beginning of our Christmas holidays today, I’ve made a little video sharing how I’ve made festive hedgehog gift tags using cereal boxes and some materials I had in the studio.

Materials I used:

• Recycling cardboard (cereal box). For my first collection of cardboard animals, I used the inside of cereal boxes to paint. Pro: there was nothing to hide under the paint so I was free to just go for it. Con: I was left with the very obvious outside cereal packaging at the rear of the animals so would need to add paint or glue a sheet of paper. Any other ideas?

• For the second collection (this time of a family of hedgehogs) I painted on the outer packaging cardboard to avoid the above problem. Pro: Both sides looked great and so worked well as gift tags and writing a seasonal wish was super simple. Cons: I had to add a more generous amount of acrylic to cover the letter on the packaging and therefore had to wait a lot longer for this to dry. Meaning I had to do it all in 2 sittings: the first to cut up the cardboard and paint the first layer. The 2nd to add details with pencils and neocolors and pastels.

• Acrylic paint by Art Studio Premium (paynes grey, burnt sienna, silver) and Daler Rowney (Natural 025)

• Neocolor II by Caran D’ache (white and grey)

• Red pencils by Prismacolor (PC922, PC923, PC926)

• Oil pastel by Sennelier (gold)

• General’s Layout pencil (555)

• Scissors

• String/ribbon/lace from an old curtain

Other amazing resources mentioned:

• Reader’s Digest Field Guide to the Animals of Britain book

• Goodship Company Illustration colour workshop (the one I did was Live on Instagram)

  

Making hedgehog gift tags was so fun and I love the end product but yikes, this is my first video, I don’t have all the tech (yet) and I’m cringing already at so much in this… HOWEVER we all need to start somewhere and the essence of what I’m saying is still something I believe in: recycle!!! And if you can bring a little smile to someone’s face in the process, then do it, gift tags are great! This is worth the cringe, isn’t it?! I’ve learnt a lot in the process of making this video (the lighting, sound, so much more) which most certainly would be worth a post in itself, maybe something I could share in the new year. In the meantime, here is the video of my hedgehog gift tags, there’s a whole family of them, every one is slightly different and unique.

As I mentioned in the video, please share if you’ve made gift tags also and let us know what materials you found worked best. This is not a how-to video, rather just a simple process video with a few ideas for a little craft (maybe some well earned time to yourself) this season. I’ve just seen Beth Spencer also has an ultra cute video well worth checking out.

Have a lovely Christmas season!

Helen xx