• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
The Art of Doing Stuff
menu icon
go to homepage
  • HOUSE
  • COOKING
  • GARDEN
  • HOW-TO
  • EXTRA
  • Subscribe
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
  • search icon
    Homepage link
    • HOUSE
    • COOKING
    • GARDEN
    • HOW-TO
    • EXTRA
    • Subscribe
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
  • ×
    Home » How To Stuff

    A Bow for the Boys

    December 20, 2010 by Karen 29 Comments

    Pin54
    Share
    Email
    54 Shares

    Did you know when I was in University I wrapped Daniel Lanois' Christmas presents? 

    It's one of the many bizarre jobs I've done over my lifetime.

    For those who don't know who Dan Lanois is, he's a musician, songwriter and producer among other things.  Most notably, he produced several U2 albums, including The Joshua Tree.  He's won a bunch of Grammy's and stuff.

    Which is all well and good, but he can't wrap a present worth a hoot.  Or I suppose, he didn't have time to wrap his Christmas presents because he was busy discussing sunglasses and Africa with Bono and shining his Grammys.   Either, or.

    When I was in university I had a friend who was his personal assistant at the time.  He told me Daniel Lanois needed someone to wrap all the Christmas presents he was giving that year.  Being a wrapping fool since the age of 5, I was given the task.  While being a wrapping fool doesn't often translate into award winning albums and shiny Grammy's I'm still kindda proud of it.

    Every once in a while I look in my bathroom mirror and tell myself I'm partially responsible for the success that is Daniel Lanois.  At the same time I often debate whether one of my eyes is smaller than the other.

    I spent an entire night wrapping Daniel Lanois' presents in white paper with handmade birch bark tags.  Conversely other presents were wrapped in birch bark with white paper tags.  All the presents had pinecones and twigs as bows.  Keep in mind this was manyyyyy years ago and at the time was quite impressive.

    I got paid $10 a hour if I remember correctly.  Plus he paid for my supplies.   It wasn't until years later that I finally met Daniel Lanois when I interviewed him for a music show I was hosting.  I neglected to mention the presents.

    I also adorned one of his presents with this little bow ... something I came up with at the time and have been using ever since.

    Use it and you might also win a Grammy!

    Here's how you do it:

    First grab yourself some ribbon.

    Would you like to save this stuff?

    We'll email you this post, so you can refer to it later.


    Then do this:

    ANY CHARA CTER HERE

    After you tie your tie, all you have to do is slip it off your neck and slip it over your present. A rectangular present works the best. Hic.

    You also need to grab a pipe cleaner, as the piece de resistance.  Cut it short and use it as a tie clip.

    When it's all wrapped up, this is what you've got!

    Now as I said yesterday, beat it.   I've got crap to do. Not the least of which is wrapping a mountain of presents.

    Which this time around, I am not getting paid for.

    More HOW-TO STUFF

    • DIY a Modern Birdbath to Attract Birds
    • How to Light a Charcoal BBQ Without Lighter Fluid (In 2 Minutes)
    • The Subtle Signs of a Sick Cat
    • One Of My Best Backyard Hacks Ever

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

      Leave a Reply Cancel reply

      Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

      Recipe Rating




      The maximum upload file size: 512 MB. You can upload: image, audio. Links to YouTube, Facebook, Twitter and other services inserted in the comment text will be automatically embedded. Drop file here

    1. Stefanie

      December 21, 2010 at 2:12 pm

      Great idea!

      I found something that totally looks like something you'd do - a modern Christmas ball mobile: http://www.notmartha.org/archives/2010/12/20/christmas-tree-ornament-mobile/

      I'd attempt it myself, but with two dogs and a cat, I'm afraid it wouldn't be long for the world. Or else *they* wouldn't be long for the world. No peaceful coexistence, that's for sure. But it totally looks like something that should be in your house! Because, you know, I know all about your house and all.

      Please make this next year and post an easier how-to for the rest of us! I can always lock the critters in the barn for a few weeks.

      Reply
      • Karen

        December 21, 2010 at 2:52 pm

        Stefanie - I looked at it and it's great! And it gives me the creeps all at the same time. LOL. Don't know why. Definitely something I'd try. I'm still mostly a traditionalist when it comes to Christmas decorations though. It just doesn't feel like Christmas without um ... a tree trunk! LOL. ~ karen

        Reply
    2. lori

      December 21, 2010 at 1:14 pm

      Karen this is just fabulous!!
      I remember wrapping presents in the mall ... hey I did not get paid!

      hey jeff ...remember all things will pass given the right amount of time. ouch. just have another glass and you won't remember a thing. lol
      Merry Christmas

      Reply
    3. Amy

      December 21, 2010 at 12:18 pm

      Oh flash backs to my first job, which also was wrapping presents! Not for anyone famous, though. Just at the local shopping mall. Or, at least, if anyone famous did stop by, I was too clueless to know them!

      I don't think I made $10/hour; it was more like $6.25/hour. Even accounting for American vs. Canadian dollars, you were making good money!

      I learned how to make bows out of yards of ribbon, too, but they were out of that nasty plastic ribbon, and I'd rather use cloth ribbon like you do here, or even the paper loops from yesterday. Very nice! Merry Christmas!

      Reply
    4. Leslie

      December 21, 2010 at 12:02 pm

      Genius.

      Reply
    5. Jessie-Lee

      December 21, 2010 at 10:18 am

      So is it bad that while I should be appreciating the awesome bow, I was straight up amused by the snow? Yes, I am that simple minded.

      Reply
      • Karen

        December 21, 2010 at 10:27 am

        Perfectly understandable Jessie-Lee. ~ karen

        Reply
    6. Tessa

      December 21, 2010 at 9:16 am

      CLEVER! Adorable. Love it

      Reply
    7. Jeff

      December 21, 2010 at 8:54 am

      Now if I have 10 to 12 gifts to wrap like this I am thinking a larger bottle of JD would be cost effective because repeating step six as diagramed would run me $2.00 US per bottle. Also, after wrapping about 4 or 5 of the dozen gifts I have to do, I may need your advice on correcting double vision. Wish me luck!

      Reply
      • Karen

        December 21, 2010 at 10:12 am

        Jeff - Good luck. Remember, drink a full glass of water with every gift/bow/bottle. ~ karen

        Reply
        • Jeff

          December 21, 2010 at 12:30 pm

          i gUEssss i shoood hav reeded yur repli firss. i amm oon giff rap nummmbr 7. 5 tooo gooo! i thinnk i drannk the cap fromm the botle. lol

    8. Todd@PhitZone

      December 21, 2010 at 8:08 am

      Karen, you never cease to amaze me with your "Canadian-snowed-in-what-else-am-I-gonna-do-eh?-Pass-the-Canadian-Club!" craftiness.

      Reply
      • Karen

        December 21, 2010 at 10:11 am

        Todd ~ You should see the shenanigans I get up to during a full-on blizzard. ~ karen

        Reply
    9. stephanie

      December 21, 2010 at 7:15 am

      Oh Canada! (you, not the song) I knew there was a reason I liked you - the Jack Daniels confirms it!

      Reply
    10. Farquist

      December 21, 2010 at 7:09 am

      Love how you dressed to match the wrapping paper. :) Also, where does one find awesome gray wrapping paper?

      Reply
      • Karen

        December 21, 2010 at 10:09 am

        Hi Farquist! The paper is actually closer to black. I think. Looks a bit greyer in the pics. Anyhow ... it's from good old Ikea! Beautiful paper. I love it! ~ karen

        Reply
    11. CanuckinCalifornia

      December 21, 2010 at 6:55 am

      That's just all kinds of awesome :)

      Reply
    12. Nitpicker Mike

      December 21, 2010 at 6:44 am

      It's stent, surely.

      Reply
      • Karen

        December 21, 2010 at 10:08 am

        Mike - Nope. It's stint. And I say that with convection. ~ karen

        Reply
    13. Candy

      December 21, 2010 at 5:08 am

      Ah man, this is brilliant. If I was even half as creative/mashed up on Jack Daniels as you I would have come up with this idea to wrap my dads handmade shirt. Too late now, I gifted it last weekend.

      I really enjoy your writing, thanks a lot.
      Candy

      Reply
      • Karen

        December 21, 2010 at 10:07 am

        Thanks Candy! This *would* have been great for a handmade shirt! Remember the bow for his b-day! ~ karen

        Reply
    14. Shauna

      December 21, 2010 at 2:27 am

      Your bottles to small eh! Hoser ;) maybe you should try 24 eh?

      Reply
    15. Eva

      December 21, 2010 at 12:12 am

      Cool! but how many attempts at making the tie was there that made you crack open the JD :)

      Reply
      • Karen

        December 21, 2010 at 12:15 am

        Eva! Only 2. I'm not very patient. :) ~ karen

        Reply
    16. Alexandra Dare

      December 21, 2010 at 12:10 am

      LOVE IT!!!!!!!!!!!!! Now show us a picture of your TREE. Pretty please?

      Reply
      • Karen

        December 21, 2010 at 12:13 am

        Alexandra - Thanks! Or as we Canadians say, thanks eh. Tree pictures coming on Thursday and Friday. I figure on Thurs. and Fri. no one will have time for anything but looking at pretty pictures. ~ karen!

        Reply
    17. Shannon

      December 21, 2010 at 12:10 am

      Holy Crap! It's snowing on taods!!!

      That present is awesome because it is all like, this is Christmas & it's serious business.

      Reply
      • Karen

        December 21, 2010 at 12:12 am

        Shannon - Yes indeed. There is nothing more deadly serious than a gift at Christmas. Except getting a stint in your heart. I imagine that's pretty serious too. You must be feeling better! Glad to hear it. ~ karen

        Reply
        • Shannon

          December 21, 2010 at 12:49 am

          I am feeling much better thank you. (it's a Christmas miracle!!!)

    Primary Sidebar

    SHOP ON AMAZON

    Use it 👆 to support my work. LEARN MORE

    My name is Karen Bertelsen and I was a television host. In Canada. Which means in terms of notoriety and wealth, I was somewhere on par with the manager of a Sunset Tan in Wisconsin.

    I quit television to start a blog with the goal that I could make my living through blogging and never have to host a television show again. And it’s worked out. I’m making a living blogging. If you’re curious, this is how I do that.

    So I’m doing this in reverse basically. I’m the only blogger who is trying to NOT get a TV show.

    More about me 👋

    Seasonal Articles

    • Apple Watch Band Stuck? How to Remove It.
    • Cleaning Copper with Ketchup: A No-Rub Experiment
    • Garbage Apples, Jam Trauma, and the Beige Poppy Crisis
    • Creamy Pesto Pasta with Zucchini & Goat Cheese
    • Saving Lettuce Seeds From Bolted Lettuce
    • How to Keep Flowers Fresh in a Vase

    Popular Articles

    • This Is Where I Try To Buy Your Love
    • Guaranteed Crispy Sweet Potato Fries & Sriracha Mayo Dip
    • A Year Full of Pots: Win Sarah Raven's New Book
    • The Difference Between People Who Eat Mayo & People Who Eat Miracle Whip
    • Your FIRST look at my new kitchen in Canadian Living Magazine.
    • How to Print an Image on Wood.

    Footer

    as seen in

    About

    • About
    • Contact
    • Privacy Policy

    Newsletter

    • Sign Up! for emails and updates

    Social

    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Twitter
    • Pinterest
    53 shares