Tips for Shipping Christmas Gifts

Want tips on how to package the Christmas gifts you'll be shipping this season? Here's a few things you'll want to make sure you do before you ship your gifts this holiday season.

Make sure they get there by Christmas. First thing's first. Look up the carrier you're likely to use to ship your gifts (UPS, FedEx or USPS) and look for their calendar. They can tell you when you'll have to ship your goods in order to get the gifts there by Christmas. This can give you an idea of your time frame and when you should buy gifts and ship them. The sooner you ship, the less likely you'll have to spend a bundle!

Take particular care with food. If you're shipping food gifts this holiday season, there's a whole other set of rules you should be aware of: http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/1215357/how_to_ship_homemade_holiday_foods.html?cat=74

Pack before you wrap. When wrapping gifts that you know you'll be shipping, make sure you pack and secure the items inside. If you're wrapping a statue, then make sure that when you put it in the box, you place it in layers of bubble wrap or tissue wrapping paper.

Consider simple wrapping. In shipping, items such as bows and other decorative trinkets you might be used to affixing to a package, may get damaged an/or look a bit sad upon arrival. So choose a pretty wrapping paper, but keep it simple!

Label everything! If your gifts are going to multiple people, make sure you include a large and clearly printed label on each gift. Otherwise your gift will be that mystery gift under the tree.

Use the ship and disperse method for a pretty presentation. A friend of mine has a bunch of relatives that all live in the same area. She likes a beautiful presentation when it comes to wrapping, so she ships the wrapped presents to her mother. She also throws in extras like ribbons and sleigh bells, which her mother puts on before giving them out to the various relatives and friends. If you know someone who can do this favor for you, enlist them as your secret gift finishing elf!

Pack after you wrap. Once you've wrapped all your presents, it's time to fit them in a box for shipping. You'll want to pack the gifts tight, so that there's as little movement as possible. The less presents bounce around, the less chance there will be for breakage and damage to your wrapping job. Each side should have padding. Bottom, top and sides. If you take it to a packaging store, they can take care of things for you.