Christmas Wrapping Tricks

If you celebrate Christmas, then it’s no surprise that the holiday is nearly here. Have you finished wrapping all of your gifts yet? Not only that, but do you have curious children or friends and family that can easily guess you gift just from looking at it or touching the wrapped parcel? If so, we have some wrapping methods that will help you disguise your gifts until your friends and family have them unwrapped.

1.      Place items in boxes that don’t match the boxes’ content. Placing a sweater inside a clothing box is easily guessed. Try instead to wrap your sweaters in a cube-shaped box or a long box. You may place books or DVDS in media boxes or literature cartons. Instead, place them in clothing boxes. The shape alone is sure to confuse some of your recipients.

2.      Make step 1 even more efficient. If you place a video game in a clothing box, the recipient may know it is not a clothing item by shaking the box. There is an easy fix for this. Fill the box with something that can cushion the product. Great examples include bubble wrap, tissue paper, newsprint, and loose fill.

3.      Place items in a basket and wrap layers of tissue paper around the basket. This type of gift cannot be shaken and doesn’t retain the shape of the present, so it will be impossible for people to guess it.

4.      Combine your gift cards with small items from the location of the gift card. We have some examples for you. Giving a gift card to a bookstore? Buy the recipient a book or journal from the shop and tape the gift card in the front page. Giving a gift card to a movie theater? Attach it to a bag of popcorn. This is a fun way to present your gift cards, versus just placing them inside a card.

5.      If all else fails, go with the classic gift bag.

We hope these tips help you with your Christmas wrapping. Happy Holidays!

Holiday Wrapping Products

The holiday season is nearly here. Now is the best time to stock up on supplies for wrapping! Don’t wait until the last minute. Doing that will only result in lots of stress while you're waiting for your supplies, plus you could be left wrapping gifts on Christmas Eve. Get your items now to avoid that! Today we’re going to feature some of our favorite wrapping items for you to use this season.

20” x 30” Red Gift Grade Tissue Paper:

What better way is there to show the holiday spirit in your packaging? This red tissue paper is made with special dyes, making it resistant to fading and bleeding. This popping red color is sure to remind people of stockings, Santa Claus, and more! With soft texture on both sides, this seasonal tissue paper is a great item to use to package and wrap gifts. Not only that, but leftover paper can be saved for Valentine’s Day in February!

20” x 30” Green Gift Grade Tissue Paper:

Much like our red tissue paper, this green tissue paper will add some festivity to your wrapping. Like the red paper, this green tissue paper also resists fading and bleeding. You can even choose to pair it when the red tissue paper! This tissue paper is great for wrapping gifts, packing into boxes, and packing into bags. You will get 480 pieces per case when you purchase this item.

10” x 10” x 6” Holiday Red Gift Boxes:

These holiday red gift boxes are great for the holidays for a number of reasons! First off, in terms of hiding the identity of your gift, a box is the right way to go. Add padding, and it will be very difficult for the recipient to guess what the gift might be! In fact, you can use these red boxes as an excuse not to wrap at all. No messy paper, tape, or cleanup! If you’re shipping gifts across the country, these boxes add some festive flair. You can’t go wrong with these boxes. Also available in additional sizes.

Precious Metal Shreds:

Looking to add extra appeal to your gift this year? These precious metal shreds are perfect to do just that! They add a beautiful festive sparkle to your gift while also cushioning your product at the same time! These precious metal shreds are sure to make your package seem more upscale. You can get it in a variety of holiday colors including red, green, and silver!

10lb. Christmas Blend Crinkle Paper:

Add fun color and unique texture to your gift and packaging with this Christmas Blend Crinkle Paper! This crinkle paper offers a combination of green and red paper. It’s sure to get people’s attention! Use this blend of paper in gift boxes, bags, or even baskets! And don’t worry, because if you don’t like the Christmas blend you can purchase our crinkle paper in many other colors!

There you have it! We hope this sample of products will get you excited for the holidays.

Quick Halloween Costumes using Shipping Supplies

Halloween is fast approaching. Have you purchased a costume for you or your child yet? Halloween costumes can get expensive, and sometimes you find Halloween is days away and you have no costume! But don’t worry, because you can make your own simple but fun Halloween costume at home with items you already own! The type of materials you will be using include boxes, tape, and paint. So go ahead and read on for some great costume ideas!

Rubik’s Cube- Materials: Corrugated box, black electrical tape, and paint

You will need a large, cube shaped box for this. Start by cutting holes into the box where you will be standing and where your arms will need to be free. Once the base is assembled use black electrical tape to map out the small, individual cubes on the box. When this is finished you can paint each small cube the color you desire!

Mummy- Materials: White clothing, white Duct tape

Choose white clothing that you don’t mind losing to this Halloween project, then wrap the white Duct tape around the clothing items to look like a wrap. For the head, use a ski mask and wrap Duct tape around that. This will stay in place more easily than gauze while still being recognizable!

Robot- Materials: Corrugated Box, paint, dryer vents, aluminum foil

To start with, follow the same steps as you did with the Rubik’s cube, cutting in space for you to stand, place your arms through, etc. After this is complete, paint your box a grey/silver color like a robot. Your creativity can take this costume anywhere, but we recommend dryer vents for the arms, grey pants for the legs, and aluminum foil around an existing pair of shoes. The face and buttons of the robot is up to you. You may choose to create a silver hat, use a second box as a head, make buttons from paint, paper, tape…the possibilities are endless!

 Jack in the Box- Materials: Corrugated Box, paint and markers, clothing pieces (for Jack)

Just like the rubik’s cube and robot, start by cutting out an area to stand in of the box. With this costume you will not want to make a space for your arms to stick out of the box. Instead, they should be above the top of the box. Once this is finished it is time to decorate your box! You can paint it any color you wish, and write “Jack in the Box” on the front. Feel free to add other decorations to the box to liven it up. For this costume to work, you must also dress up in an outfit akin to a jester. You’ll want some colorful clothing and a floppy hat. Consider adding some clown makeup as well!

Where’s Waldo- Materials: Clothing (white shirt, hat, and jeans), red duct tape

You can easily portray this classic character in just a few minutes! First put on your favorite pair of blue jeans. Next, take a long sleeved white shirt and use red Duct tape to make stripes on it. Do the same with a white winter hat, and you have a recognizable costume ready to go!

Barbie- Materials: Corrugated Box, paint, clothing (for Barbie)

This costume will take a bit more cutting. First, take your corrugated box and cut in an area for you to stand in. Next, you will need to cut a “window” out of one side of the box, so your head and body can be seen. Please note that your entire body, besides your legs for walking, should be inside the box. Make sure to leave sections of the front of your box so you may paint and write on it. Next, paint the box pink and write “Barbie” on the box. When inside the box, dress up in fashionable, fun clothes to get the Barbie look!

Stick Figure- Materials: White clothing, white paper plates, black electrical tape

Start off with a wardrobe of all white, including a long sleeved shirt, pants, and shoes. From here, use one piece of tape to make an outline of the body. This includes one line down the shirt, a line down each of the sleeves, and a line down each of the pant legs. Next make a mask out of a paper plate, with holes for eyes and a smile made out of tape. Just like that you have a fun, unique costume!

We hope you enjoyed reading about these costume ideas. Give them a try! None of these take too many materials or too much time. Happy Halloween!

Properly Pack and Ship

Whether you are used to shipping items or new to the business, it is always good to take a refresher on the proper way to pack, ship, and send out products. This month, we’re going to explain how to prepare your items for shipping.

The first step you must take is to choose what type of packaging you will be using to ship your items. This varies greatly depending on what exactly you are sending. A corrugated box may work best, and is most common when it comes to shipping. Other options include bubble mailers, mailing tubes, and much more. You should try to use new shipping containers whenever possible. Not only that, but be sure the container you choose is sized to the product you are sending, as well as strong enough to support its weight. It’s very easy to test the strength of a shipping container and check the dimensions to avoid errors while packing you items.

When packing your products to be shipped, you must be sure to include the appropriate padding protection. Parcels can face some rough treatment while in transit, so it is important you protect the items you are sending. You can do this in multiple ways. If you are sending multiple items in one shipping container, make sure each is wrapped separately. You must also make sure the item you are shipping is protected from the walls of the shipping container. You should use enough cushioning in your shipping container that the item you are shipping does not shift very much, if at all. Good choices for cushioning your items includes bubble wrap, loose fill, foam, and more!

Next, make sure you close your shipping container tightly. You don’t want the shipping container to open while in transit. How you do this really depends on what you are shipping, though tape is the most common way.

The last step is no less important than the others…label everything correctly! You want to be sure you have the correct address on your label, as well as your correct return address. Incorrect labeling creates huge headaches when you are trying to send stuff out.

We hope these tips can be of some help. Check back every month for shipping tips, information on our latest sales, and more!   

Packing Fragile Items

It’s nearing the end of the month, meaning many young adults are heading off to college. Packing up your life and moving to a new place is very daunting, no matter who you are, and this is particularly true when one has a lot of fragile items to transport. Having corrugated boxes isn’t enough. You need to have a strategy to pack your breakable items so they stay intact throughout a trip. If you find yourself at a loss, don’t worry. We have some great tips that will make this process much easier on you.

The item people probably think of first when it comes to protecting breakables is bubble products. Bubble

products have been used for decades as excellent padding to keep items safe. You can use bubble products in many ways to keep your items safe. Use bubble wrap to pad your items and pack them into a corrugated box. This is a simple but effective strategy. Something many people don’t realize, however, is that you can purchase more than just bubble wrap. You can also purchase items such as bubble pouches. These pre-made pouches allow you to simply insert items, no wrapping or cutting required! There are advantages and disadvantages to both options, so it is important to find the method that works best for your needs.

Another great item you can use to protect items is foam products. You can use foam in multiple ways. First, you can use it to actually wrap up your items. You can also use it as a cushioning layer between items. This is very effective with dishes. Foam is very lightweight and won’t scratch up your items when you use it. This makes it a good option for your valuables.

Newsprint is a great economic option for packing and moving fragile items. You can use it to wrap and pack multiple items into one box! You can use it to pack around any shape of item, whether it is something as standard as a plate or a more complicated household decoration. Newsprint isn’t only good for wrapping items. It also makes great void fill. Use it to stuff between objects in a corrugated box to stop the items from moving around and bumping each other.

Speaking of void fill, you may be looking for an item specifically meant to add extra cushioning in a box. Loose fill is the answer to that problem. It acts as a shock absorber for your products and fills in some of the space in boxes to add protection while your items are in transit. There’s a reason people have been using loose fill for so long…it works.

There’s additional ways you can pack fragile items as well. Try wrapping fragile items in towels or clothing. They offer a great deal of protection. Styrofoam is another good option, particularly for larger items. It’s always a good idea to save the box and Styrofoam large electronics came in to safely pack them up again later.

There you have it! Those are our best tips on how to pack up fragile items. We hope that we’ve been of some help to you.

Unique Uses for Boxes

Here at ShippingSupply.com, we know why people use corrugated boxes. For shipping and packing, of course! However, there are other fun and unique things you can do with your corrugated boxes. To show this, we’ve compiled this list of our favorite ten things to do with corrugated boxes!

1.       As a sign.  Why spend the money on a sign to promote something like a rummage sale or lemonade stand when you can save money by making one yourself? Just cut up a box, write your message, and post your sign! You can even get extra creative by using paint and drawing art on the sign to make it stand out.

2.       As a toy box. This is a great idea for boxes that come with removable lids. Paint the box with bright colors! Add stickers and cut-outs, or let your child decorate it all on their own. Then use it to store toys they regularly use.  

3.       To wrap presents. Many companies offer boxes for sale during the holidays to wrap your presents in. Save your money by recycling old corrugated boxes! Plus, you can make it a game. Wrap a DVD in a garment box with lots of padding. Or wrap up a scarf in a small cube box. It will make it harder for people to guess your gift.

4.       For costumes and costume props. You could use the cardboard to make props, such as swords, or as

the base of the entire costume! Cardboard is fairly lightweight, so it works well for costumes.

5.       For crafts. There’s tons of crafts out there that use corrugated boxes, from simple crafts for kids to elaborate projects for adults. Find a craft book or do a simple Google search to find hundreds of great projects!

6.       Toys for kids. It’s a common joke that you spend tons of money on toys for kids, and they’ll spend days playing with the boxes the toys come in. Hand off the boxes and let kids go wild, or make something! You can make houses, cars, rockets, and more!

7.       To store mementos. Do you like to save items and souvenirs that you can’t incorporate into your décor? For example, do you enjoy saving play bills, movie tickets, etc? Using a simple cardboard box is a great way to store these items all in one place! Next time you’re feeling nostalgic, everything will be there in one place for you.

8.       To store everything. Why spend the money on large plastic tubs when you can do the same thing with large corrugated boxes? Sure, it may not look as pretty, but it will save you a lot of money. All you have to do is label the boxes to know what’s inside.

9.       As drawer dividers. Do you have a drawer with multiple items inside it? Pieces of cardboard make for cheap and effective dividers. Simply cut up some boxes to place layers of cardboard between items. Or, if you are more crafty, you can design a full system out of cardboard!

10.   To ship items, of course!

We hope that some of these ideas come in handy for helping you give purpose to your leftover corrugated boxes! And if you’re looking to buy corrugated boxes, we have a huge selection on our site, HERE. 

Save with Shipping Supply

We’ve not featured any of our sales on this blog in a while, so this month we’re going to as a reminder of the great deals you can get when you shop with us. Now through June 23^rd, all of our ties & fasteners are 12% off! And all you need to get this sale is the code SALE12.

These small items bring big convenience to your business. You won’t believe the large variety you will have to choose from when you browse ShippingSupply.com. Whether you want cable ties, cotton twine, or rope, you will be sure to find it on our site.

So don’t wait! Celebrate the start of summer with us with this great sale. Are you interested in shopping our large selection of ties and fasteners? We want to make it easier on you! If you have any questions feel free to give us a call at 1-877-501-PACK (7225).

We have sales like this every single week. If you’ve been missing them, it’s probably because you aren’t subscribed to our weekly email newsletter. Sign up HERE for great sales! Plus, when you sign up you will receive a 10% discount towards your first purchase. There’s no reason not to sign up!

Not enough deals for you? Well, do you keep up with our deal of the day? You can find it daily on our Facebook page. Every day we post a discount on an item online. Today the deal is on:

9 1/2" x 6 1/2" x 2" Kraft Easy-Fold Mailers

Deal Price: $17.19
Normal: $19.10

You will see great deals like this every day when you like our page or follow us on twitter!

We just wanted to remind everyone of all the great ways you can save when you shop with us. So don’t wait! Get shopping for our great products and great deals!

Moving Tips

May is here, and it is a big month for people to move during. Whether you are moving to a house, a new apartment, or have college grads moving, moving is a lot of work and often requires a lot of packing supplies. That’s why we want to offer some of our best tips to make your move as easy as possible.

·         Pack your heavy items in small boxes and your lighter items in large ones. It may be tempting to fit as much as you can into a large box, but you don’t want to make it so heavy that it's impossible to move.

·         If possible, pack electronics in the original box. If not, use bubble wrap to protect them.

·         Tape your boxes closed. During a move, boxes may tip over, someone may drop the box while walking, etc. If the box is taped your possessions will be safer.

·         Use unprinted newsprint instead of newspaper to wrap items. Printed newsprint could stain your items.

·         Pack your boxes by room. It will make the entire experience much more organized.

·         Use wardrobe boxes. These boxes allow you to hang your clothes on hangers inside the box. It will save a lot of time.

·         Always label your boxes so you know what is inside them. If you don’t, you’ll be stuck opening each box to find what you need.

·         Start packing early. It takes much longer than you would expect it to, so start packing the things you don’t use as far in advance as possible.

·         Pack a box of essential items such as a change of clothes, your toothbrush, and other similar items. Have it accessible right when you move in.

·         Pack your items tightly. Do not leave empty space in the boxes. Any item can be damaged. Fill this space with towels or packing paper.

That’s just a few tips for making your next move easier. Looking for moving supplies? ShippingSupply.com has a large selection of items such as boxes, tape, and more that will be a huge help with your new move! 

Keep in Contact

ShippingSupply.com is one of the leaders of the packing and industrial supplies industry. It’s been in business since 1994 and carries a wide range of products for its customers.

All of us here at ShippingSupply.com want to make your experience with our store as positive as possible. Today we’re going to show you all the ways to keep in contact with us, and how to keep up-to-date on our sales! 

First, let’s discuss contacting us. There is a multitude of ways for you to do that. First, you may try calling us. You can reach us at 1-414-290-1073, or toll-free at 1-877-501-PACK. If you prefer not to call, we also have a contact form on our site. All you need to do is add a bit of your personal information, write your message, and send it along. You can find that HERE. Or do you need help right now? We also have a live chat option that is available the majority of the day on weekdays. You can find that HERE.

Do you keep yourself informed of our deal of the day? Every weekday we post our daily deal online for our customers to take advantage of. This daily deal could be on anything. Sometimes it is for contains. Sometimes earplugs. Maybe we’ll have a deal on a specific poly bag, corrugated box, or tag. You never know. We post these deals to both our Facebook page and our twitter account.

The best way to keep updated on our latest sales, products, and more, is to subscribe to our weekly email newsletter. And if you haven’t signed up yet, you’ll receive 10% off when you do. Who could pass up on that offer? You can sign up for the newsletter HERE.

We hope that some of these links can be useful for you. As always, we will see you at the next blog entry. Goodbye! 

5 Reasons to Shop

We understand that shopping online is meant to be convenient, and we at ShippingSupply.com aim to make your experience as good as possible. That is why we’ve generated these five reasons why you should choose us to shop with for all your shipping needs.

1.       We have a huge selection. We carry over 10,000 items on our website for you to order. We carry all sorts of shipping, packing, and janitorial supplies. We’ve split our products into easy categories for you to browse. With this selection, we’re sure we have what you’re looking for.

2.       We pride ourselves on our excellent customer service. We aim to leave our customers completely satisfied. If you are not, you may return your order within 10 business days of receipt for a cash refund or replacement. There are a multitude of ways to get in contact with us, and our professional staff will be happy to assist you.

3.       We aim to have unbeatable prices for all of our items. We do not do minimum orders, and there are no hidden charges! Our competitive prices make us the perfect option.

4.       Ordering with us is 100% secure. We make sure that our customer’s shopping experience is both secure and safe. We utilize state-of-the-art Secure Socket Layer and 128-bit encryption to keep you safe. In addition, we pledge a 24 hour response time Mondays through Fridays on email requests.

5.       We value your privacy. We never sell or rent your personal information with outside companies for any reason. We’ll never ask for anything such as your social security number. In addition we provide unsubscribe instructions from our email newsletters and we never send spam email.

  

With all of these great reasons, why wouldn’t you want to shop with us? We hope you choose us for your future shipping needs!

Resources

ShippingSupply.com has a variety of resources to help you while you are shopping on our site. Sometimes you know exactly what you need, and sometimes you need help finding it. That is where these convenient resources come in.

Use our tape finder to browse all of our tape in one convenient place. You can click the different categories to see what we have available to you.

Our box finder tool allows you to search specific categories of boxes, but also to search by size and length. Submit your own dimensions into our search or choose a pre-selected length to browse through!

Much like our tape finder, our label finder allows you to search by the type of labels you desire, such as inventory, thermal, and more!

Our poly bag finder is similar and is a great resource for you to use. If you need help finding the poly bags you need, this is how to do it!

That isn’t the only way to get help finding the supplies you need, though. We have an online chat option that is live on weekdays. You can call us at 1-877-501-7225. We also have a convenient customer service tab that has extra special tips and information to help you out.

And if all else fails, you can always use our contact form.

We will do everything in our power to help you find the products you need. We know it is you, the customer, that is why our company has grown. Thank you for your loyalty, and we hope we can provide you with all the help you need.

Bubble Wrap Appreciation Day

Today is bubble wrap appreciation day! There are all sorts of types of bubble wrap to suit everyone’s needs. At ShippingSupply.com we have a large selection of bubble wrap. Shop standard air bubble rolls, dispenser packs, anti-static bubble products, and much more!

But everyone knows about the standard use of bubble wrap. It is an economic way to protect items that you are shipping. It can be used in mailers, corrugated boxes, and more. But there are other ways bubble wrap can be useful too. Read on to discover what to do with your leftover bubble wrap!

• Insulate Windows: Winter can be rough on your heating bill, especially if you have older windows. Some people use plastic, but bubble wrap works just as well! Keep the drafts out, the warmth in, and the heating bill down.
  
  
• Pad Sleeping Bags: Sleeping bags are a great invention, but sleeping on the ground can still be uncomfortable. Place a mat of bubble wrap under your sleeping back for additional padding while camping.
  
  
• Protect Produce: It is common to keep produce in a drawer in the fridge, and it is also common for this storage method to bruise said produce. Line your drawer with bubble wrap to prevent this. It also makes cleaning the fridge easier…simply remove the bubble wrap and replace it!
  
  
• Take on Vacation: We often pick up souvenirs while on vacation, and often those souvenirs can be breakable. Add extra protection for the trip home by bringing bubble wrap.
  
  
• Protect Perishables in Travel: If you’re taking a dish to a dinner party, bringing home leftovers, etc, then a good way to keep items from spoiling on the way is to wrap them in bubble wrap to keep food insulated.
  
  
• Cover Windshields: If you hate scraping snow and ice from windshields in the winter, simply put a sheet of bubble wrap over the windows. In the morning removed the bubble wrap and head to work!
  
  
• Get Crafty:  There’s tons of crafts and silly activities out there that require bubble wrap. Make a dress out of it. Use it as a unique paintbrush. A simple Google search will yield all sorts of results. Get searching and have fun!

 And there you have it! These unique ways to use bubble wrap may not be traditional, but they are useful and fun. Enjoy bubble wrap appreciation day!