How to Wrap a Shoe Box

November 06, 2024

What you'll need

• Scissors
• Paper or fabric
• Ruler
• Glue or double-sided tape

What you'll need to do

1. Choose your fabric or paper
2. Cut your chosen material to the correct size
3. Stick your material onto the outer sides of your shoe box and lid

A guide to wrapping a shoe box

Before you bin the box, consider injecting a new lease of life into your old shoe storage. Give your shoe box a fresh look with a little gift wrap or repurpose your humble container as a new home for your nick-nacks and old photographs.

Rather than being a present for the recycling bin, a nicely wrapped shoe box can double up as a gift box for birthdays and Christmas. Uncover a few tips and tricks and find out how to wrap a shoe box with our handy guide.

Wrapping a shoe box is as simple as slipping on a pair of new shoes. Before you get tangled in Sellotape, follow these simple steps.

1. Select your wrapping material

Choose the fabric or paper you want to use for wrapping your shoe box. If you're planning to use the shoe box as storage, aim to choose a fabric or paper that matches the decor of your room. When gift wrapping a shoe box, pick wrapping that will suit the recipient's tastes so they can reuse it later.

2. Select your wrapping material

Measure the narrow ends of the shoe box and add two inches for overlap on the width and three inches on the depth. For the longer sides of the box, you'll want to measure a piece of material that's just slightly short of the full length but allow for three inches of overlap on the depth at each side. For the lid, you'll need to cut a piece of your chosen material that's the same size as the lid, plus double the depth of the sides for overlap.

3. Cut the material to fit the box

Once you've measured out your material, cut very carefully along your measurements. You should have two pieces of material for the short lengths, two for the longer lengths and one for the lid.

4. Stick the material to the box

Put some double-sided sticky tape on the ends of the box and with great care, attach your paper. If you're using fabric, a crafting glue will typically hold the material in place better.

5. Fold over the edges

Once you're confident the box is secured to the paper correctly, fold your overlaps and secure them in place using more tape or glue.

6. Finish covering the wrapping

Repeat steps three and four for the long sides of your box and the lid to finish covering it. There you have it - your shoe box is ready to go.

7. Top it off with a bow

Add a touch of class to your wrapping skills with a bow. If your shoe box has a flip-style lid, you can still use the above method. Alternatively, you could cut a single, bigger piece of material to cover the side and lid together.

How to gift wrap shoes without a box

Should you find your new pair of shoes are without a home, you can still wrap them up nicely without a box. Here are a few alternatives that may be more suitable if getting a little bit crafty isn't your thing:

• Wrap them in fabric. Traditionally known as Japanese Furoshiki, this method is also environmentally friendly as you use a cotton or silk scarf as the wrap. The scarf could also be given as part of the gift.
• Wrap them in tissue paper. Another simple yet effective way to wrap shoes without a box would be to tie them together with a ribbon, wrap in tissue paper as before. This method can add a splash of colour, look eye-catching, and cuts down on the excess going into the rubbish afterwards.

Sending shoes through the post

When sending shoes through the post, either with or without a traditional shoe box, always try to put them in an outer box to send. Shoe boxes are usually made from single wall cardboard and aren't designed to withstand much of an impact. The same goes for wrapping paper bags and cellophane. Though the shoes are unlikely to get damaged, if they're being sent as a gift and they turn up sticking out of a damaged box, it might spoil the surprise a little.

Re-purposing a shoe box

As well as using a shoe box as a storage box, you can re-purpose them in several other ways.

A picnic basket for two

Wrap your shoe box in your favourite fabric or twine and add ribbon or strips of cloth for handles to create a cute picnic basket perfect for a Sunday stroll with the family.

Your own football table

Create a football table by cutting goals into the ends of your shoe box and creating holes for your handles on either side. Use cardboard rods to create the handles and fashion a couple of footballers out of cardboard too. Put it all together, add a ping-pong ball and voila! Hours of fun during rainy days.

DIY jewellery board

Cover the lid of your shoe box in your favourite material and use drawing pins to hang up your necklaces and bracelets to rid yourself of the hassle of detangling them every morning.

Choosing the right shoes to give as a gift can be a difficult task, but wrapping them and finding a use for the box can be even harder. Hopefully, our useful tips on how to reuse or gift wrap shoe boxes have helped and will go some way to making things a little easier for you.

Check out the shoezone blog for more style tips and footwear suggestions for every occasion.